<p>Here's how my school does val/sal, and I think it works really well. Max GPA is 4.3 (A+). Honors courses get a 1/3 of a letter grade bump, but if the kid has an A+ w/o the bump, he doesn't get a bump. Kids don't select courses based on val/sal aspirations and the kids who deserve it the most always end up at the podium come graduation. Usually the val has a 4.18 weighted.</p>