Rising 9th Grade

The answer is yes. Students are required to earn 7 arts credits, made up of 1 dance credit, 1 music credit, 1 theater credit, 1 visual credit, and 3 of whatever arts they enjoy. Dance credits are earned only through dance classes. 

Most students meet this requirement in 7th or 8th grade. If you attended Seattle Academy your 7th grade year, you have fulfilled this requirement already. If you did not attend Seattle Academy during your 7th grade year and think you completed this requirement, please contact your previous middle school and request a transcript or letter to be sent to the Registrar's Office. Those who have not met the requirement are required to take the Pacific Northwest History course offered during the spring trimester of their senior year.

PE credits can be earned by taking PE classes at Seattle Academy, participating in sports at Seattle Academy, or taking additional dance classes at Seattle Academy (once arts requirements are met). A second option for earning PE credit is participating in a sport (not offered at Seattle Academy) at another school, like gymnastics, football, or crew. A third option is by participating on a rec team or taking a class, like aerobics or kickboxing. The second and third options require additional paperwork that can be found on the Process for Earning Outside PE Credit form also listed above in the quick links section.

Once department requirements are met, credits count as general/additional credits.

You can view your classes in Veracross at the end of August. You can change your elective classes by filling out the Course Change Request to add or drop a course at the beginning of each trimester. 

Outside Credits 
Students are allowed to earn up to 5 trimesters worth of credits for courses or activities completed outside of Seattle Academy. 

• Credits must be earned with an accredited organization 
• Credits must be pre-approved by the Registrar
• Outside credits are recorded on transcripts as a pass and are not calculated into the grade point average 
• PE credits earned through a non-SAAS organization count toward the PE graduation requirement
• A credit earned to supplement a failed SAAS course counts towards the graduation requirement for that failed course (see below)
• All other credits earned outside SAAS count towards the general elective credit requirement

Supplementing a failing grade in a required course 

If a student earns a letter grade of F or NC in a required course, the student must retake the course at SAAS or take and pass an online equivalent in order to fulfill the requirement to graduate. Failed courses can be made up through Yellow Wood Academy, BYU Independent Study, or another educational institution approved through the Registrar. The original failing grade AND the new grade are included on the transcript. Credit from outside institutions is recorded as a pass on the transcript.

Credit pacing: In addition to the overall minimum number and type of courses taken for graduation, the following recommendations apply to the number of credits that a student should earn in each year of Upper School.  

View our Grades, GPA, and Transcripts webpage for more information. (Veracross Login is required to view).

Study Hall
A study hall is a block during which a student is not enrolled in a class and may use the time for work completion or other tasks. Study halls may be useful for students for a variety of reasons, including for students who are balancing both academics and co-curriculuar activities. Students in a study hall in 9th and 10th grade are assigned a space on campus where attendance is taken and where they should remain during the study hall block. Students in 11th and 12th grades may stay on campus or may leave campus, and no attendance is taken during their study hall block. Study halls are taken by the trimester, and a student need not take one for every term in a given year. No credit is earned for a study hall. Students sign up for a study hall during registration just as they would for a class.  

Independent Study
Independent study is an opportunity for individual, self-directed studies in a field of special interest that fall outside of the existing course offerings in the Seattle Academy curriculum. Independent study enables an 11th or 12th grade student to pursue an academic topic of interest under the supervision of a faculty member. A minimum of 20 hours total work allows a student to earn 0.5 elective credits, while 40 hours allows a student to earn 1 elective credit. A completed independent study appears on the transcript with a “Pass.”  An independent study must be pre-approved through the process outlined in the independent study proposal form found here.    

Teaching Assistantships (TA)
A student may, with advance permission from an instructor, be a teaching assistant (TA) for a specific course. A TA completes course-related tasks that support the teacher in delivering content and facilitating student learning. Students do not earn course credit for TAing but may earn a one-time credit of 40 Community Action hours upon completing a term of TAing. TA Students interested in TAing should reach out directly to the teacher they are interested in working for; the teacher will then coordinate with the registrars and will let the students know the next step.