If it’s accredited, it should count

I understand that the La Cañada Unified School District has been grappling with questions about which summer school courses can be applied to graduation requirements.

The discussion has focused largely on the discrepancy in total instructional minutes between most local summer school options and those of the most popular option: Hillside School & Learning Center.

Some have suggested that La Cañada High School should only recognize courses taken at schools with a minimum number of instructional minutes. In other words, Hillside seat time would have to get longer or the courses would simply not count for La Cañada High students.

What’s important is the overall quality of the educational program and its ability to advance learning.

Luckily, we have an independent, reputable and rigorous process already in place to evaluate these vital criteria: the Western Assn. of Schools and Colleges.

The association regularly reviews schools for accreditation. It is my opinion that any school that has been accredited by the same organization accrediting La Cañada High should have its credits accepted toward La Cañada High graduation requirements.

Glenn Fischel

La Cañada