State School Superintendent Richard Woods recently named 272 Advanced Placement (AP) Honor Schools, and Gainesville High was one of the schools that was recognized.
These schools are part of an AP program in Georgia that is earning accolades: Georgia is 13th in the nation for the percentage of students earning the highest AP exam scores (3, 4, and 5) and tied for third in the nation in one-year percentage point growth in the percentage of public school graduates scoring a 3, 4, or 5 on at least one of the exams.The schools being recognized by the Georgia Department of Education (GaDOE) fall into six categories, based on the results of 2015 AP courses and exams.
Gainesville High School was named as both an AP STEM School and AP STEM Achievement School.
AP STEM Schools are schools with students testing in at least two AP math courses and two AP science courses (AP Calculus AB, AP Calculus BC, AP Statistics, AP Biology, AP Chemistry, AP Environmental Science, AP Physics B, AP Physics C, AP Computer Science). AP STEM Achievement Schools are schools with students testing in at least two AP math courses and two AP science courses, and at least 40 percent of the exam scores on AP math and AP science exams earning scores of 3 or higher.
AP courses and exams are administered by the College Board, which also administers the SAT. AP courses are one of several ways Georgia students can access college-level learning opportunities while in high school. Students who receive a 3, 4, or 5 on AP exams are often eligible to receive college credit.
“Through the AP program, these schools are personalizing learning and expanding the opportunities available for their students,” Superintendent Woods said. “This honor is a credit to the hard work of many dedicated educators here in our state, and I offer my congratulations to the teachers and students at each of these schools – and my gratitude for their hard work and dedication.”
