Makes some sense to me.

“What we’re proposing to do is eliminate class rank,” Loss added. “Eliminate the current use of a selection of a valedictorian and salutatorian and then implement the laude system with the class of 2017 effective with the 2015-16 school year.”

Loss said students are avoiding challenging classes under the current system. Counselor Kelly Pokrzywa said she gets frustrated talking to students who don’t want to take advanced placement classes because they’re worried about their GPA.

“No matter what you say, that number is so important to them,” Pokrzywa.

Under the laude system, students who have a 3.0 GPA or higher are eligible for laude honors, which include summa cum laude, magna cum laude and cum laude. The GPA is multiplied by the number of semesters of laude courses a student takes.

The worry would be that colleges don’t know how to consider it. If they base some of their admissions qualifications on a class rank, what do they do for kids who don’t have one? Kewaskum isn’t the first school to do this though, so there should be some basis for evaluation.