AP Day declared for Feb. 8
Published 9:09 am Tuesday, February 7, 2012
SHOWN ABOVE ARE the Bainbridge High School students that have taken at least one AP class.
The Georgia Board of Education recently passed a resolution declaring Feb. 8 as AP Day in Georgia.
Advanced Placement courses and exams are administered by the College Board, which also administers the SAT. AP classes offer rigorous college-level learning options to students in high school. Students who receive a 3, 4 or 5 on AP exams may receive college credit.
Colleges look favorably on students who succeed in AP Courses. The presence of AP courses on a student transcript indicates that the student took the most rigorous classes available.
Michael Adams, President of the University of Georgia, commented, “In all discussion, debate, and conversation about the state of education in Georgia, I rarely hear anyone talking about the rigor of the curriculum that students are taking. Yet it is a factor above all others that determines success in the college admissions process and, ultimately, success as a college student … if there are advanced placement courses available, take them.”
Bainbridge High School has a successful Advanced Placement Program, offering English Language and Composition, English Literature and Composition, Environmental Science, Comparative Government and Politics, European History, U.S. History, Human Geography, Calculus AB, Music Theory, Psychology, and Statistics.
On Feb. 8, the school celebrates the students who take Advanced Placement classes and the teachers who teach those classes. Bainbridge High School offers two incentives for participation in Advanced Placement courses: AP Bearcat of Distinction can be earned for recognition at graduation by completing at least five AP classes, and AP Bearcat Scholar can be earned by completing at least three AP classes. AP Bearcat Scholars will receive prestigious pullovers marking their accomplishment.
However, the largest recognition perhaps comes from colleges who weigh the taking of AP courses heavily for acceptance. According to State School Superintendent Dr. John Barge, “Our students must have rigorous coursework in high school to be successful after they graduate.”