Processing Update for 2027-28 State Scholars (Impacting High School Graduating Class of 2027)

10/21/2026

This message provides processing updates about the State Scholar Program (SSP).

Submit Sixth Semester Data by November 20

If your high school's sixth semester data has already been successfully submitted (i.e., file status is "Validated"), go to the Data Processing Has Begun section, below.

If your high school has not submitted sixth semester data, please do so as soon as possible to ensure your students are included when 2027-28 State Scholars are named. The final date on which data will be accepted is Friday, November 20, 2026.

Sixth semester is defined as the third semester prior to graduation – usually, the end of a student's junior year (excluding summer term). When submitting data, remember:

  1. if your school ranks, unweighted rankings should be provided;
  2. if your school does not rank, unweighted grade point averages (GPAs) must be provided;
  3. weighted rankings and GPAs cannot be accepted; and,
  4. you must submit data for the entire class, including any applicable disqualification codes.

Upload Data via Excel Spreadsheet

Refer to the following resources for information about uploading an Excel spreadsheet with your school's data.

Reminder: Data used to determine 2027-28 State Scholars must be submitted to ISAC by uploading a properly formatted Excel spreadsheet via the SSP/OCCA system within the GAP Access portal. Online processing of individual records is not available this processing cycle.

Data Processing Has Begun

ISAC has begun processing sixth semester data.

  • State Scholars will be announced through late December 2026.
    • We anticipate the first round of announcements to take place before Thanksgiving.
    • Once ISAC staff reviews your school's sixth semester data, your students will be considered in the next round of State Scholar announcements.
      • There are no additional steps that the high school must complete.
  • ISAC will send an email to the high school to indicate when that school's State Scholars have been named.
  • You may print congratulatory letters and Certificates of Achievement as soon as your Scholars have been named.
  • You may generate the "Finalists" report in the SSP system after your State Scholars have been announced.
  • ISAC anticipates the final announcement of 2027-28 State Scholars to take place in late December 2026.

Corrections

  • To correct previously submitted data before your high school's State Scholars have been announced, corrections must be made in your school's master student data file (i.e., the file you initially submitted to ISAC).
    • Update the applicable student records in the master file and then reupload the entire corrected master file via the SSP/OCCA system.
    • Do not upload a file containing only the corrected student records, as this will overwrite the existing data in the system.
  • After your high school's State Scholars have been announced, corrections to previously submitted data (for example, correcting the spelling of a name, or reporting that a student was designated as a State Scholar in error) must be submitted in writing to Partner Services via one of the following options:
  • Requests to reconsider a student's State Scholar status must be submitted as an appeal.
    • Appeals will be reviewed beginning in January 2027.

Printing Congratulatory Letters and Certificates of Achievement

State Scholar congratulatory letters and Certificates of Achievement are printed and distributed by the high school.

  • The documents are available via the SSP/OCCA system as soon as your Scholars are named.
  • Instructions for downloading and printing congratulatory letters and Certificates of Achievement are provided in the User Guide for High School Programs.

Appeals

  • If you feel that a student should have been designated as a State Scholar and was not, ISAC must receive a letter of appeal from the student and/or high school before the appeal deadline.
  • The deadline for 2027-28 State Scholar appeals will be determined, and all appeals will be considered, after the final round of announcements has taken place (anticipated for late December).

Looking Ahead: Final Announcements

  • A sample press release, which may assist you in announcing State Scholars, will be available at the ISAC website after final announcements are made.
  • We recommend that high schools wait to publicly announce their Scholars until the sample press release is available.

You are receiving this message because you registered for ISAC's e-Messaging service through one or more subscription groups for Counselors.

If you have any questions, please contact Partner Services by sending an email to [email protected] or calling 866.247.2172.