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District makes AP® Honor Roll

12/6/2019

Richland School District Two is one of 250 districts in the U.S. and Canada and one of only three in South Carolina being honored by the College Board with placement on the 10th Annual AP^® District Honor Roll. To be included on the 10th Annual Honor Roll, Richland Two had to, since 2017, increase the number of students participating in AP while also increasing or maintaining the percentage of students earning AP Exam scores of 3 or higher. Reaching these goals shows that this district is successfully identifying motivated, academically prepared students who are ready for AP.

Dr. Baron R. Davis, Richland Two superintendent, said, “Our responsibility is to give our students — who deserve a premier educational experience — access to a high-quality, rigorous academic career. As a district, our focus is on consistently pushing the bar to give them the opportunity to find their pathways to purpose.”

Inclusion in the 10th Annual AP District Honor Roll is based on a review of three years of AP data, from 2017 to 2019, looking across 38 AP Exams, including world language and culture. To make the AP Honor Roll district’s must:

Increase participation/access to AP by at least 4% in large districts, at least 6% in medium districts, and at least 11% in small districts
Increase or maintain the percentage of American Indian/Alaska Native, Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino, and Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander students taking exams and increase or maintain the percentage of American Indian/Alaska Native, Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino, and Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander students scoring 3+ on at least one AP Exam
Improve or maintain performance levels when comparing the 2019 percentage of students scoring a 3 or higher to the 2017 percentage, unless the district has already attained a performance level at which more than 70% of its AP students earn a 3 or higher
Achieve these outcomes among an AP student population in which 30% or more are underrepresented minority students (American Indian/Alaska Native, Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino and Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander) and/or 30% or more are low-income students (students who qualify for free or reduced-price lunch),

“With more students participating and succeeding in AP in this district, more students are getting a head start on college by earning college credit during high school,” said Trevor Packer, senior vice president of AP and Instruction at the College Board. “We are pleased to honor the teachers and administrators who have worked to clear a path for more students of all backgrounds to advance through AP.”

National data from 2019 show that among American Indian/Alaska Native, Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino, and Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander students with a high degree of readiness for AP, only about half are participating. The first step to getting more of these students to participate is to give them access. Courses must be made available, gatekeeping must stop, and doors must be opened equitably. Richland Two is committed to expanding the availability of AP courses among prepared and motivated students of all backgrounds.

Helping more students learn at a higher level and earn higher AP scores is an objective of all members of the AP community, from AP teachers to district and school administrators to college professors. Many districts are experimenting with initiatives and strategies to see how they can expand access and improve student performance at the same time.

Richland Two expands access through participation in the National Math and Science Initiative (NMSI) College Readiness Program. This increases the number of students who are exposed to AP classes. In the district, the program started at Blythewood and Ridge View high schools. In the 2019–2020 school year, it is expanding to include Spring Valley and Westwood high schools.

Superintendent Davis said, “With NMSI at four of our high schools and the International Baccalaureate program at Richland Northeast, a majority of students in our high schools will have the opportunity to take advanced courses. That speaks volume and power. That’s a seed that we plant, nourish and grow. We may not see the fruits of that labor at the end of a course or this semester but that tree will bear fruit in the form of students who are better prepared for college and career and for becoming global citizens of tomorrow.”

The complete 10th Annual AP District Honor Roll can be found here: https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/about-ap/awards/district-honor-roll