PEABODY — The School Committee unanimously voted to inflate its GPA scale for the 2026-27 school year and beyond on Tuesday night, addressing concerns that its college prep grade point average scale was not based on a 4.0.
Currently, an A+ (100%) in an honors class or an A- (91-92%) in an advanced placement class receives a 4.0. There is not currently any opportunity for any college prep course to equate to a 4.0 on a transcript, as an A+ (100%) in college prep equals a 3.6.
Students who earn an A (93-96%) in a college prep class receive a 3.348-3.45 on their transcript. For honors classes, an A (93-96%) equates to 3.72-3.84; and for advanced placement, an A (93-96%) adds up to 4.092-4.224.
Superintendent Dr. Josh Vadala noted that, after looking into how neighboring districts weigh GPAs, “It turns out that our GPA weights were a little bit lower than the surrounding communities.”
With that understanding, the Committee opted to pivot to basing its college prep GPA on a 4.0 scale moving forward. Beginning in September, an A (93-96%) in a college prep class will be a 4.0, and an A+ will be a 4.3 on a student’s transcript. An A (93-96%) in an honors class will be a 4.5, and an A+ will be a 4.8; and for advanced placement, an A (93-96%) will be a 5.0, and an A+ will be a 5.3%.
This shift will align Peabody with Essex North Shore Agriculture & Technical School, Bishop Fenwick High School, Lynn Public Schools, Lynnfield Public Schools, and Marblehead Public Schools, among many, who have passing grades of 60% and above and use a 4.0 base for college prep classes.
“Colleges do recalculate them, so it wasn’t necessarily doing our kids a disservice for college entry. This will certainly help, but in terms of opportunities for scholarships and things like that, this will elevate the GPAs and give the kids credit for that,” Vadala said.
He continued, “At no point will anyone’s rank or class rank be negatively affected. This will elevate GPAs moving forward at a consistent rate across all students, so it wouldn’t change anyone’s class rank, which I think was very important.”
Committee member Joe Amico said that this GPA boost will really help Peabody students succeed.
“This will help them get that opportunity to apply for scholarships that maybe they weren’t applying for because of the lower leveling on the grade,” Amico said.
Committee member Pamela Milman added, “It’s really exciting to see something like this go through and make a difference.”
