The College Board released its 9th Annual AP Report to the Nation today, which documents the remarkable gains made by Alabama’s Advanced Placement students.
The ten-year report marks a 218% jump in AP participation by Alabama students, and more importantly a 149% increase in number of students passing the exam. (Source, AL.com)
State Superintendent Dr. Tommy Bice credits in part the successful work of A+ College Ready, a division of A+ Education Partnership, for the show in gains.
In a statement released today, he said, “Through the collaborative work of our local school systems, the A+ College Ready Program and the Alabama State Department of Education (ALSDE), we are providing students with opportunities and support to receive college level instruction and college credit as part of their high school program. We are seeing not only increased numbers of students enrolling but also under-represented groups of students not only enroll, but also receive qualifying scores, which gives us reason for great celebration today.”
The most significant gains in Alabama are in access to the typically under-served student populations. Numbers of minority students taking the AP exam jumped from 453 in 2002 to 2,300 in 2012.
“There are so many students in Alabama that are capable of taking and passing Advanced Placement courses, which help increase their chances of success in college,” said Mary Boehm, A+ College Ready President. “We are proud that we are reaching so many students, but the program has only served 20% of the high schools in the state. We will continue to expand so that more Alabama students – no matter where they live – have the opportunity to challenge themselves at higher levels.”
Currently, A+ College Ready serves over 16,000 students out of the approximate 217,600 high school students statewide. (Source, ALSDE 2011-12 data)
With 4,258 students passing an AP exam in 2012, the ALSDE points out that this amounts to almost $13 million annually in total tuition savings for this cohort of students – approximately saving each student over $3,000.
According to the ALSDE release, Alabama will be presenting its formula for success at the College Board Collaborate Southern Regional Forum in Atlanta this March.
Currently, there is no increase in the Governor’s proposed state education budget for AP expansion, despite the State Board of Education requesting a $3 million increase for next year. But, efforts are being made to secure adequate funding for the 76 schools in 34 systems currently served by the program, plus an additional 20 schools to be added in 2013-14.
Click here to download the news release from ALSDE.
