A resolution to add an honorary A+ to Wichita State’s grading scale was introduced at the Student Senate meeting Wednesday.
Liberal Arts and Sciences Senator Josh Mallard — an author of the resolution — called the legislation a “stepping stone” to change GPA in future years.
A student government resolution acts as the opinion of the Student Government Association, urging the university to make the proposed change. It is nonbinding.
The current resolution would only add A+ to the grading scale as an honorary title. The grade would not increase GPA or diminish the value of an A. After conversations between the registrar’s office and the senate’s Academic Affairs Committee, Mallard said the registrar made it clear that it wasn’t feasible to change the way GPA currently functions.
The committee surveyed around 309 students, and 85% said they would be interested in adding the honorary A+ to the grading scale.
Engineering Senator Abby Otten questioned whether 387 students properly reflect the beliefs of students at large.
“Are you worried that this doesn’t totally encapsulate the opinions of the student body since there’s a lot more,” Otten said.
LAS Senator Braeden Miller echoed Otten’s question, pointing out that the survey did not include demographics, so there’s no way to know whether the sample was an accurate representation of the whole student body.
“I would say no,” Mallard said in response to Otten’s question. “I mean, if you’re looking at it statistically, 85% out of that 300 is still a very large number compared to the 14,000 students.”
255 students — 85% of 300 — is 1.4% of 18,458, which was the number of students enrolled in fall 2025.
Speaker of the Student Senate Matthew Phan opted to skip a committee referral. This means the legislation will stray from the typical process where legislation is introduced, referred to the committee and altered and then presented a second time and voted on.
Students can share their thoughts on legislation at weekly Student Senate meetings during the public forum period. Senate meetings are on Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m. in the Rhatigan Student Center, room 233.
All senate meetings are livestreamed on SGA’s YouTube channel.
