All Cherokee High Schools Earn State Honors For AP Programs

CHEROKEE COUNTY, GA — Cherokee County School District’s high schools all have earned state honors for excellent Advanced Placement programs and performance that continues to exceed state and national averages.

Each of Cherokee Schools’ six traditional high schools today received recognition from the state as a 2020 Advanced Placement Honor School for outstanding student performance and participation on Advanced Placement exams, which offer students more challenging coursework and the opportunity to earn college credit. This is the 10th consecutive year for all the district's high schools to earn state Advanced Placement honors.

Overall, Cherokee County students earned passing scores of 3 or higher on 79 percent of the 4,746 tests administered last school year, as compared to 59 percent for Georgia and 58 percent nationwide; the Cherokee Schools passage rate also increased from 75 percent the previous year.

“We’re dedicated to preparing every student for future success, and an important way we accomplish this for college-bound graduates is through the variety of Advanced Placement courses we offer and the experienced educators who teach them,” Superintendent of Schools Brian Hightower said. “We’re so proud of our students, teachers and staff for the hard work and dedication that resulted in this recognition.

Schools can achieve Advanced Placement Honor School recognition in as many as eight categories. All Cherokee County high schools again earned recognition as Advanced Placement STEM and Advanced Placement STEM Achievement Schools, and, for the first time, all six earned recognition as Advanced Placement Humanities and Advanced Placement Humanities Achievement Schools. Two schools – Creekiew High and Woodstock High – additionally earned Advanced Placement School of Distinction Honors.

• AP Schools of Distinction: 70 schools statewide including Creekview High, Woodstock High
  • At least 20 percent of students take AP exams and at least 50 percent of those students earn scores of 3 or higher.
• AP STEM Achievement Schools: 94 schools statewide including all Cherokee County high schools
  • Students test in at least two AP math courses and two AP science courses, and at least 40 percent of scores in those courses are 3 or higher.
• AP Humanities Schools: 70 schools statewide including all Cherokee County high schools
  • Students test in at least one ELA course, two social sciences courses, one fine arts course and one world language course.
• AP Humanities Schools: 70 schools statewide including all Cherokee County high schools
  • Students test in at least one ELA (English Language Arts) course, two social sciences courses, one fine arts course and one world language course; and at least 50 percent of those scores are 3 or higher.
• AP STEM Schools: 183 schools statewide including all Cherokee County high schools
  • Students test in at least two AP math courses and two AP science courses.