Hi, melmichigan! My DS9 is quickly approaching this same situation, and I will be following your progress and your commentary on it.
Our middle school upper level courses do not accumulate HS credit either, even though those same courses are offered for credit at the HS level for the middle and lower track kids.
My concern is having enough credits to graduate, in case my DS is dually-enrolled HS and college, and we choose not to send him to college early. HG+ under-agers are not required to have a HS diploma to be admitted to those colleges that accept them (how could they?), but if you plan to send a kid at 18, you would be required to jump through all the same hoops as everyone else (including class rankings, weighted or otherwise).
Plus, I've been asking if my district accepts distance learning advanced coursework for credit, and if so, how would that be graded in the weighted class rankings. For instance, our HS doesn't offer AP German, nor does it offer AP Calculus BC. If we were to pursue other options for those courses, I'd want to make sure my DS received credit for them and his high grades.
Here is an angle I've been considering for my own advocacy: does your district allow for transfer credit -- for students moving to the district from another one, or even another state? If so, why is the coursework your child is accumulating different from that the transfer student? If one is eligible for credit, why not the other?
As far as the accumulation of extra credits goes, one of the many accepted paths for HG+ kids has been to arrive in HS early, and remain for 6 years or so, some of that time dually-enrolled in college. Why choose between Latin III and French III, or between a science emphasis and a humanities emphasis, etc., when you can have it all? Each kid is different, but this works well for those who need a little extra maturity time before going off to college (like my DS9, who is twice-exceptional).
Our district has the 3 years of math, so many years of this and that policy as well. I then worry about the kids who are dually enrolled HS and college, and how could they satisfy diploma / graduation requirements if the college credits don't count.
Perhaps your state's department of education has some sort of gifted ed adviser on staff? Someone who could advocate for your daughter's unusual educational path? Someone who could work with your district administrators on your behalf?
Sorry to ramble on so long. Just wanted to share my thoughts so you would know you are not alone.
Best wishes to you and your DD.
