The Loudoun County School Board voted on Oct. 27 to remove class rank, beginning with the class of 2025. This change mirrors both the neighboring counties of Prince William and Fairfax. While this ruling may eliminate direct, numerical ranking of students, they will still be able to see how they compare to their peers using the Latin honors system. 

This means that the top 25% of students in each school’s graduating senior class will be divided into three levels based on their standing in the class. The top rank will be Summa Cum Laude, representing the top 5% of students. The next will be Magna Cum Laude, representing the top 10% of students. Lastly, the final grouping of students will be Cum Laude, representing the top 20% of each graduating class. 

Mr. Ian Serotkin, School Board Blue Ridge District School Board Representative, hopes this change will reduce stress, as he has previously heard from community members that class rank put, “a lot of unnecessary stress on students and can lead to ‘gaming the system’ with regards to course selection.” 

Serotkin’s own high school in New York didn’t provide a class rank to students unless they were ranked valedictorian or salutatorian. 

Mr. Harris Mahedavi, the board member who proposed the motion, did not respond to a request for comment.

The only board member that opposed this change, Mr. Jeff Morse Dulles District School Board Representative, initially worried that the shift to the Latin Honors System didn’t accomplish reducing stress and only transferred, “A competition for valedictorian to competition [to be in the] top 5%.” Morse did, however, add that he would support the policy now that it has been passed. 

Ms. Jaclyn Smith, Director of Counseling for Independence High School, hopes this is a step in the right direction to helping students manage stress. In her experience, she has seen students feel an increase in pressure when they are compared to their peers. Smith hopes that “students will strive for their best and focus on making the most of the high school experience – whether that’s in the classroom or in extracurriculars.”