Graduation is the highlight for every senior and for every high school. Part of the pageantry of graduation is seeing students adorning their gowns with honor cords that they have earned through hard work. Most schools will award honor cords to a very small percentage of only the highest achieving students. At Keene High School we have embraced the Jostens Renaissance philosophy by allowing more students to receive honor cords at graduation. And the selection process is really simple yet very rewarding.

Each department sets their own criteria for their departmental honor cords. We have 14 different departments each with their own criteria. Here's a compilation of examples for criteria that are commonly used:

• 4-5 on A.P. test 
• Grade of B better in at least three departmental classes 
• Participant on the Math/Environmental science team for two years 
• Marked improvement in GPA the last two years in departmental courses 
• Tutored students who have struggled in classes, i.e. Math, Science, Writing skills
• Each department's criterion is posted in the front window of each departmental office.

Each department decides on their honor cord color. Students receive their honor cords as they line up for graduation and each department head places the honor cord on the student. (We use an overhead in the staging area and list each department's honor cord winners. We do one department at a time. The excitement and clapping is more than you would ever expect).

This is our first year with this program. We graduated 425 seniors and 145 students received honor cords. This is above and beyond the National Honor Society Honor cords. Our graduation program has a code by the name of each honor cord winner and the department they received the cord from. The honor cord colors and departments are also listed on the program.

Also, each department marches into the graduation ceremony with their cap and gown plus their department's honor cord. We had 132 staff at the graduation ceremony all in caps and gowns!

Our parents thought this was the greatest thing they had ever seen. We had some students with 6 cords, some with 2 and a lot with one. We checked the list the next day and over half had never been recognized before for any academic achievements. If you want to promote academic excellence to the community and students this is a venue you should not pass up!