Curriculum

ACADEMIC REQUIREMENTS 

All students must carry six subjects, and all students must be scheduled for lunch.  

Promotion to the sophomore class requires six (6) credits; promotion to the junior class requires twelve  (12) credits; promotion to the senior class requires eighteen (18) credits. Students not meeting these  requirements will not be invited back for the fall semester. 

A student who does not meet the above requirements due to class failure is expected to attend summer  school and acquire the necessary credits. Summer school courses that are offered at St. Pius X High  School MUST be taken at the school. Exceptions must be approved by the administration. Courses listed  as “required for graduation” in the course description are to be taken at St. Pius or an approved site if  summer school is necessary to make up for a failure in that course.  

MINIMUM COURSE LOAD 

All students will be required to enroll in 6 academic courses and Study Hall/SOAR each semester. Exceptions for students to opt out of study hall must be approved by the administration. 

 

Classes of 2026, 2027, 2028, 2029 

 

Twenty-four (24) credits are required for graduation. These must include: 

• • English, 8 semesters = 4 units of credit 
  • Mathematics, 8 semesters = 4 units of credit (minimum)
    Social Studies, 7 semesters = 3.5 units of credit 
  • Laboratory Science, 8 semesters = 4 units of credit 
  • Physical Education,* 2 semesters = 1 unit of credit 
  • Theology, 8 semesters = 4 units of credit 
  • Communication Skills,** 2 semesters = 1 unit of credit 
  • Fine Arts, 1 semester = 0.5 unit of credit 
  • Other Electives, 4 semesters = 2 unit of credit 

NOTE: 

• • For students in the Class of 2027 and beyond, the one credit of Physical Education may be fulfilled by the student’s participation in one full season of a St. Pius X athletic team during the student’s freshman year. 
  • The Communication Skills requirement may be fulfilled by competency in both  speaking and writing skills in a language other than English (2 units). Students with a documented learning difference may take one unit of a World Language and 1 unit of  Developmental Psychology. Developmental Psychology does not satisfy the Modern and  Classical (foreign) Language requirement necessary for admission to many  colleges/universities. Most universities require two years of the same foreign language. Three years of a World Language are recommended.

Elective courses will only be offered if minimum enrollment guidelines are met. The master schedule is based on student request and available teacher staffing. To ensure course availability,  students should make every effort to submit their course selection forms on time. Courses offered in even years will begin in the fall of 2026-2027, 2028- 2029, 2030-31. Courses offered in odd years will begin in the fall of 2025-2026, 2027-2028,  2029-2030. 

Course sections in English, Mathematics, and World Languages are available to meet the  needs of various student abilities. Assignment to special course sections will be made by counselors and  department personnel with final approval given by the Assistant Head of School for High School.  

Because of the amount of work required in Advanced Placement (AP) and Honors courses, students are strongly encouraged to take no more than 3 courses each year.

ACADEMIC INFORMATION 

ACADEMIC REQUIREMENTS

All middle school students will have six subjects and a lunch. The schedule will include English, Math, Science, Social Studies, Theology, and one elective. X Hour is a fixed period that will be scheduled during the last period of every school day. Middle school athletes who are participating in an in-season SPX sport may attend practices/games for that sport as scheduled.  

Assignment to special course sections will be made by the Middle School Administration. 

6th Grade Core Course Curriculum

English Language Arts 6

Math 6

Religion 6

Social Studies- Ancient Civilizations 6

Science- Foundations of STEM 6

Elective 

X Hour

Elective Course Offerings:  Electives will be scheduled according to student enrollment. 

• Art (semester course)
• ASL (semester course)
• Beginning Band (full year course)
• Beginning Orchestra (full year course)
• Beginning Choir (full year course)
• Dance (semester course)
• Drama (semester course)
• PE (semester course)
• Spanish (semester course)

 

7th Grade Core Course Curriculum

English Language Arts 7

Math 7

Religion 7

Science- Foundations of Life Science

Social Studies (one semester of New Mexico History, one semester of U.S. History)

Elective

X Hour 

Elective Course Offerings:  Electives will be scheduled according to student enrollment. 

• Art (semester course)
• ASL (semester course)
• Beginning Band (full year course)
• Beginning Orchestra (full year course)
• Beginning Choir (full year course)
• Culinary Arts (semester course) enrollment is limited to class availability
• Dance (semester course)
• Drama (semester course)
• PE (semester course)
• Spanish (semester course)

8th Grade Course Curriculum

English 8

Math 8 or higher

Science- Foundations in Physical Science

U.S. History 8 

Theology 8

Elective

X Hour 

Elective Course Offerings:  Electives will be scheduled according to student enrollment.  Students may choose either a full year course or two semester courses.  

• ASL (full year course)
• Beginning Band (full year course)
• Beginning Orchestra (full year course)
• Beginning Choir (full year course)
• Culinary Arts (semester) enrollment is limited to class availability
• Dance (semester)
• Drama (semester)
• French I (full year course)
• Latin I (full year course)
• MS Art (semester)
• MS Intro to Spanish (semester)
• MS PE (semester or full year course)
• Spanish I (year)
• Honors Spanish I (year)
• Studio Art 8 (year)

CREDITS AND GRADES 

All grades are recorded in letters. The 4-point grade system is used at St. Pius X. 

Grade Scale Points 

98-100 A+ 4.333

94-97 A 4.0

90-93 A- 3.667

87-89 B+ 3.333

\83-86 B 3.0

80-82 B- 2.667

77-79 C+ 2.333 

73-76 C  2.0

70-72 C- 1.667 

67-69 D+ 1.333 

63-66 D 1.0

60-62 D- 0.667 

0-59 F 0 NO CREDIT for F