All Bartow County High Schools Make AP Honor Status

From Bartow County Schools:All three Bartow County high schools achieve 2019 Advanced Placement (AP) Honor School status! Based on results from last year’s AP course offerings and exams, Adairsville, Cass, and Woodland high schools were once again named AP STEM Schools by the Georgia Department of Education. Woodland High School earned an additional designation of AP STEM Achievement School.

To be named an AP STEM School, students were required to test in at least two AP math courses and two AP Science courses. To receive the additional recognition of being identified as an AP STEM Achievement School, 40 percent of those students had to score a three or higher on the AP math and AP science exams. “We value the past and look forward to the future,” says Bartow County School System Superintendent Dr. Phillip Page. “This school year, we added three AP coordinators. Each received College Board national training, as well as state, regional, and school-level training and support. As a result, we are already seeing more students enrolled in Spring AP courses and more parents knowledgeable in the rigor and benefits of AP participation. Next year, in accordance with our new ‘I am AP’ plan, we will not only see more students taking AP courses and exams, but also the number of AP course offerings will increase district-wide. That equates to more opportunities for each high school student in our system.”

New plans to advance the AP programs at Bartow County Schools vary school-to-school. “Our ‘I am AP’ initiatives this year have included meetings each semester with our AP students and parents to discuss the benefits of and the mindset for achievement in an AP environment,” adds Woodland High School Principal Wes Dickey. “We have rolled out AP incentives to increase the percentage of our students who commit to taking the exam. AP students will be given tutoring/remediation schedules for this semester as our AP teachers work with them to increase their potential success on the exam(s). In addition, Matt Landolt, our building level AP coordinator, will be working on the creation of an AP Student Leadership Group and an ‘I am AP’ information board as we continue to build our program here at WHS.”

By developing an AP Pathway and promoting it among incoming freshman, Cass High School will be offering a new robust set of opportunities to students in 2019-2020. “Our new four-year AP Pathway provides students the opportunity to select advanced course options designed to develop academic skills required to extend their learning in a competitive college or university setting,” says Cass High School Principal Steve Revard. “The AP Pathway will develop a cohort of learners who support and encourage each other throughout their high school careers. With the addition of AP Human Geography, AP Computer Science Principles, and AP Spanish, Cass will
offer a total of 15 AP courses that students will have an opportunity to pursue.” Adairsville High School also created an AP Pathway to help serve as a course sequencing guide. Another essential part of the school’s student-driven “I am AP” plan includes the identification and recruitment of potential AP students.

The Georgia Department of Education began recognizing AP Honor Schools 11 years ago. This recognition began with three categories: AP Access and Support Schools, AP Challenge Schools, and AP Merit Schools. AP STEM and AP STEM Achievement categories were added in 2011, and the AP Humanities category was added in 2015. Georgia’s public-school class of 2018 ranked 16th in the nation for the percentage of students scoring 3, 4, or 5 on at least one AP exam during high school, and 13th in the nation for AP participation, according to state officials.

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