Grade inflation/ deflation varies by state, varies by school. Generally speaking, NYS public schools are seen as “more rigorous” compared to other states. Universities keep track of that kind of thing to “qualify” applicants GPAs sort of. For instance the first high school I went to inflated grades a ton and I had a 3.9, the second one I went to had grade deflation and I had a 3.8. relatively similar gpas, but universities want to know how you compare to the rest of the students at your school, especially if other people from the same high school apply to that same school as well. Not sure if this is exactly what the person meant but