The Courier-Journal reports the largest school district in Kentucky now joins several others in watering down its grading system so more kids will get more scholarship money from the taxpayer.

Resetting the grading scale so more students will get “A’s” on their report cards does nothing to increase academic rigor in the school system. It is just more of what caused Dewey Hensley, the recently resigned chief academic officer in Jefferson County, “A boulder-sized sense of frustration regarding our lack of focus, our emphasis on perception above reality, and the lacking sense of urgency around achievement” in Jefferson County Public Schools.

Meanwhile, Carl Rollins, the executive director of the Kentucky Higher Education Assistance Authority, claims that this sort of stunt does not increase the awards of KEES scholarships very much. But, Rollins’ data does not yet include the huge chunk of more Jefferson County students that will now be added into the mix from by far the largest school system in the state. Next year, the scholarship story will probably be different. After all, the people in Jefferson County who made this grade-inflating decision are counting on just that.