Michigan City Area Schools is one of 447 school districts in the U.S. and Canada honored by the College Board with placement on the 8th Annual AP District Honor Roll. Districts on the honor roll have increased the number of students participating in Advanced Placement (AP) courses since 2015 while also increasing or maintaining the percentage of students earning AP Exam scores of 3 or higher.
MCAS is among only 19 schools in Indiana named to the AP Honor Roll this year.
“We are committed to exposing more of our students to rigorous AP coursework, expanding our course offerings, and assisting our students in preparing for AP exams,” said MCAS Superintendent Dr. Barbara Eason-Watkins. “Our staff and students are working extremely hard in this area, and we’re thrilled to receive this recognition.”
Currently, 16 Advanced Placement courses are offered to students at Michigan City High School, most of whom are in the Honors College or Early College programs. Courses offered include AP Biology, AP Calculus, AP Chemistry, AP English Language and Composition, AP English Literature and Composition, AP Environmental Science, AP European History, AP Microeconomics, AP Music Theory, AP Physics, AP Psychology, AP Statistics, AP U.S. Government, AP U.S. History, AP World History, and AP Human Geography. Next fall, an AP Computer Science Principles course will be added.
Last month, Michigan City High School hosted an AP conference for students from eight high schools across northern Indiana. The conference was one element of a new five-year partnership between MCHS and AP TIP-IN (Advanced Placement Teacher Investment Program for Indiana), a program administered by the University of Notre Dame.
According to the College Board, this year’s honored districts are successfully identifying motivated, academically prepared students who are ready for AP.
“Congratulations to all the educators and administrators in this district who have worked to clear a path for more students of all backgrounds to participate and succeed in AP,” said Trevor Packer, head of AP and Instruction. “These educators and administrators are fostering a culture in their schools and classrooms that allows students to face new challenges and build the confidence to succeed.”
In 2017, more than 4,000 colleges and universities around the world received AP scores for college credit, advanced placement, or both, and/or consideration in the admissions process.
Inclusion in the 8th Annual AP District Honor Roll is based on a review of three years of AP data, from 2015 to 2017, looking across 38 AP Exams. The following criteria were used.
Districts 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;
- Increased or maintained the percentage of American Indian/Alaska Native, Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino, and Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander students taking exams and increased or maintained 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; and
- Improve or maintain performance levels when comparing the 2017 percentage of students scoring a 3 or higher to the 2015 percentage, unless the district has already attained a performance level at which more than 70% of its AP students earn a 3 or higher.
The complete 8th Annual AP District Honor Roll can be found here.