Graduation
Graduate Profile
Graduation is a team effort. The Alpha Office principal, counselor, and secretary coordinate many senior activities, including ordering announcements and caps and gowns. The Registrar’s Office participates in this process by:
- Ordering diplomas
- Providing names of eligible graduates for the program and the photographer
- Designating seat assignments
- Directing the graduation ceremony based on district policy and grade level guidelines
- Ordering robes for faculty and district administration
- Ordering honor cords for the top 15%
- Safe-keeping of diplomas for five years until students pick them up
- Providing similar services again for the summer graduation in August
Caps and Gowns
- Herff Jones contracts to provide caps and gowns for graduation.
- Details about this process can vary from year to year.
- Students will be advised as to what to do through a general assembly program and through the "email tree".
- Online information can be found at highschool.herffjones.com.
- Distribution of caps and gowns will be done in early May. A student will not be given his/her cap and gown if there is an outstanding obligation to the school (detention, fines, etc.)
Graduation Ceremony
- Graduation is held on Saturday at the Don Coleman Coliseum.
- The specific time rotates yearly… 10:00 a.m. , 1:00 p.m. , 4:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m.
- Students are to arrive one hour before the ceremony begins.
- A district-wide summer graduation ceremony is provided in August for students who finish graduation requirements during summer school.
Diplomas
- Only one diploma is ordered for each student.
- Replacement of lost diplomas is not a service provided through the registrar’s office.
- Cards are given to each senior in mid-January to confirm correct spelling of his/her full legal name to be printed on the diploma.
Final Transcript
- All colleges require either a final transcript or verification of graduation.
- We will process this information for you at no charge…including the stamped envelope.
- This transcript is sent to the Admissions Office. Any other need you have for a final transcript is to be requested in the normal fashion.
- Processing this final transcript is contingent upon a clear record (books, fines, etc.)
Senior Academic Awards include:
- Valedictorian- Student(s) with the highest seven semester Grade Point Average
- Salutatorian- Student(s) with the second highest seven semester Grade Point Average
- Top 15% recognized by Memorial High School
- Magna Cum Laude- top 5%
- Cum Laude- remainder of the top 15%
- Top 10% as recognized by the State of Texas
- Cannot include more than 10% of the senior class
- Determines priority admission to state colleges and universities
- State of Texas “Highest Ranking Graduate”- Texas Education Code, Section 54.201. The SBISD approved method for selection at MHS is:
- The valedictorian as determined by a seven-semester class rank.
- In the case of a tie, the "Honor Graduate Certificate" will be awarded according to the following sequence until the tie is broken.
- The student who has spent four years at Memorial High School in grades 9 - 12
- The highest seven-semester numerical average (carried to four places after the decimal) of those courses used to calculate the class rank
- The highest eight-semester numerical average (carried to four places after the decimal) of those courses used to calculate the class rank