The Washington State Board of Education has approved Wenatchee School District’s request to waive CORE 24 requirements for the Class of 2019.

Under the board’s approval, announced this morning by Wenatchee High School Principal Bob Celebrezze, the new graduation requirements will now begin with the Class of 2021 for Wenatchee School District.

In April, the Wenatchee School Board approved submitting the waiver request to the State BOE. The waiver request was prepared by WHS Assistant Principal Dave Perkins.

“Thanks too goes to Mr. Perkins for his research and drafting of the application,” Celebrezze said in his announcement. “This approval has the full support of the assistant principals and myself.”

The state board met in Pasco May 13-14, where 26 other Washington high schools were granted the waiver.

Stefanie Randolph, communications manager for the Washington state board, said if a school requested a waiver, the board granted it, because the additional credit requirements included schools adding classes.

“Not all schools had the framework in place to do that,” she said. The waiver will allow schools the time necessary to add classes.

Out of the 249 districts in Washington with high schools, 59 have received a CORE 24 waiver. There’s no deadline set by the state board for requesting a waiver, but schools have to inquire sooner rather than later to avoid legal problems.

Randolph said a third of high school seniors weren’t taking a full course load their senior year, which meant some had to take “remedial” classes in order to catch up in their first years of college. That’s one reason the legislature ultimately passed the CORE 24 requirements, she said.

Previously, students were required to have 20 high school credits in order to graduate.

“This waiver will now allow the WSD to be more thoughtful and researched into how to best meet these requirements for each and every child served,” Celebrezze said.