CH-UH makes AP District Honor Roll

AP students kicked off the school year with an AP Success Camp.

Cleveland Heights-University Heights City School District is one of 250 school districts in the U.S. and Canada, and one of 10 school districts in Ohio, to earn a spot on the College Board’s 10th annual AP District Honor Roll. 

To achieve the honor, Cleveland Heights High School had to, since 2017, increase the number of students participating in AP (Advanced Placement), while also increasing or maintaining the percentage of students earning AP exam scores of 3 or higher. (The range of AP scores is 1 to 5, with 5 being the highest, and 3 and above considered passing. Most colleges will give college credit for a score in the 3 to 5 range.)

According to the College Board, reaching these goals shows that the district is successfully identifying motivated, academically prepared students who are ready for AP.

“Equity is a major, defining factor in the work we do in CH-UH city schools, so this honor proves to me that we are on the right track in preparing all of our students for success,” said Superintendent Elizabeth Kirby. “I’m so proud of the clear dedication our staff and students have to academic achievement.” 

National data from 2019 show that, among underrepresented minority 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.

“CH-UH is committed to expanding the availability of AP courses by making them equitably available to all prepared and motivated students, of all backgrounds," Kirby stated.

“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.”

For inclusion on the 10th annual AP District Honor Roll, districts must meet the following criteria:

• Increase participation/access to AP by at least 4 percent in large districts, at least 6 percent in medium districts, and at least 11 percent 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 these same underrepresented minority 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 percent of its AP students earn a 3 or higher.

More information, and the complete 10th annual AP District Honor Roll can be found at: https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/about-ap/awards/district-honor-roll.