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High school seniors likely won't have to take math anytime soon, much to the disappointment of technology business leaders who say Utah must make changes now to remain globally competitive.

A state Office of Education committee, made up of business people, higher-education representatives and educators, had recommended a year ago that all high school seniors be required to take math to help reduce the number of students who need remedial classes in college. But the state Board of Education put off a decision Friday about the issue, possibly until after new Common Core State Standards are implemented in 2014-15. Those standards will change what students are required to learn in math and language arts in each grade.

Now, high school students are required to take three years of math, but can fit them in anytime between ninth and 12th grades.

Board members deferred the math issue in response to concerns from district superintendents who worried about implementing new academic standards and requiring senior math at the same time.

"Small school districts don't have the ability to make the transitions like the large ones do," said Marshal Garrett, superintendent of the Logan City School District. "We are concerned we don't have the staff to do what you're asking us to do."

He said superintendents also worried about interrupting student academic plans already in progress and putting together classes in a short time frame, among other issues. The Utah School Superintendents Association voted unanimously against making the change now, said Brenda Hales, state associate superintendent.

"I really think we're premature in making any decision on this and we should wait until we get the Common Core put together," said Dixie Allen, state board member. "We should not shove this down the throat of districts trying to change for the Common Core."

But technology-sector leaders were disappointed, saying schools have waited long enough. The Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce also had supported the idea.

"It's OK because we'll hire Chinese people to do our engineering, and we'll hire our kids to flip hamburgers," said a sarcastic Ron White, CEO of Heavy Stone Laboratory, after the decision Friday.

Richard Nelson, founder and CEO of the Utah Technology Council, said public education is under-serving students.

He said it's important that all students, "have as much math as possible to help them compete for the hot jobs currently in Utah. Too many of these kids will not be qualified to work in the high-tech life science and clean-technology sectors."

He presented to board members a letter supporting a senior year math requirement signed by several prominent lawmakers, college math professors and William Sederburg, commissioner of the Utah System of Higher Education.

Sederburg said more than half of Utah public college and university students now take remedial classes during college, largely in math. He said it's an "issue they need to get on with" though he said he would prefer the state go even further by requiring four years of math to graduate.

"We'd like to avoid a big gap between when students take math in high school and when they take it in college," Sederburg said. "That's a big part of the reason why there are such retention problems."

Many board members, however, worried about implementing a new requirement just as math standards are about to change.

Allen said if the business community and higher education want kids to take senior year math they should encourage students to do that.

"If higher education institutions and/or businesses want students to have a senior year of math that's all they have to say: 'If you want to come to our college you have to have a senior year of math,' " Allen said. "They can do that but for us to do this for every child in our system now is irresponsible."

Parent DeAnn Moyle said her son probably would have benefited from taking math his senior year, but had her daughters been required to do so they would have had less time for art. One of her daughters majored in painting and drawing and another majored in graphic design after high school.

"It definitely would benefit some students, but I'm not sure it should be required for all students," said Moyle who is also the Olympus Council PTA president.

But Trevor Hull, who graduated from Cyprus High and is now a freshman at the University of Utah, said taking senior year math helped him.

"If you go to college you're going to have to take math anyway so if you take a year off your senior year, when you get into college you're going to be less prepared," he said.