Clark School District Named to College Board's AP Achievement List

Clark Township School District is one of fewer than 400 school districts in the nation being honored by the College Board with a place on its AP® Achievement List for opening AP classroom doors to a significantly broader pool of students, while maintaining or improving the percentage of students earning scores of 3 or higher. From 2008 to 2010, Clark Township School District has increased the number of students participating in AP courses from 102 to 146, while improving the percentage of students earning AP Exam scores of 3 or higher (the score typically needed to earn college credit) from 72 percent in 2008 to 76 percent in 2010.

The AP Achievement List is made up of all school districts that are simultaneously expanding opportunity and improving performance, so even low-performing districts are included if they have been able to maintain or improve scores while expanding access. The list includes 388 school districts representing 43 states, with California’s 37 districts on the list representing the largest number of districts from a single state, followed by Michigan with 29 districts and Pennsylvania with 28 districts. Clark is one of only 20 districts in New Jersey and only two in Union County (along with Cranford) to achieve this recognition.

“Participation in college-level AP courses can level the playing field for underserved students, give them the confidence needed to succeed in college, and raise standards and performance in key subjects like science and math,” said College Board President Gaston Caperton. “The AP Achievement List districts are defying expectations by expanding access while enabling their students to maintain or improve their AP Exam scores.”

“These districts are living proof that when access to AP is provided for the range and breadth of prepared and motivated students, districts can achieve even higher learning outcomes for their students — and the opportunity for so many more to earn college credit and placement — than when AP opportunities were restricted to a smaller segment of the high school population,” said Trevor Packer, vice president of the College Board’s Advanced Placement Program®.

Inclusion on the list is based on the following criteria:

1. Examination of three years of AP data, from 2008 to 2010;
2. Increase in participation in/access to AP by at least 4 percent in large districts, at least 7 percent in medium districts and at least 11 percent in small districts;
   1. A steady or increasing percentage of exams taken by African American, Hispanic/Latino and American Indian/Alaska Native students; and
   2. Performance levels maintained or improved when comparing the percentage of exams in 2010 scoring a 3 or higher to those in 2008, or the school has already attained a performance level in which more than 70 percent of the AP students are scoring a 3 or higher.

Additionally, school districts with an AP student population composed of 50 percent or more traditionally underrepresented minority students (African American, Hispanic/Latino, American Indian/Alaska Native) and/or low-income students have been noted on the Achievement List to highlight significant improvements in equity and quality among the nation’s historically underserved student populations.

The complete AP Achievement List can be found at www.collegeboard.org.