For the first time, Austin ISD is one of 433 school districts in the U.S. and Canada and one of 23 districts in Texas being honored by the College Board with placement on the 7th Annual AP District Honor Roll. To be included on the 7th Annual Honor Roll, the district had to increase the number of students participating in Advanced Placement while also increasing or maintaining the percentage of students earning AP Exam scores of 3 or higher for three consecutive years.

Reaching these goals shows AISD is successfully identifying motivated, academically prepared students who are ready for AP.

“One of our goals is to increase college–, career– and life–readiness for all students in AISD,” Superintendent Paul Cruz. “Increasing the number of students participating while maintaining high scores shows we are moving in the right direction. I’m proud of our students and staff for this accomplishment.”

The following criteria were used for determining whether a district made the honor roll:

• Increase participation/access to AP;
• Increase or maintain the percentage of exams taken by black/African American, Hispanic/Latino and American Indian/Alaska Native students who scored 3 or greater on at least one AP Exam; and
• Improve or maintain performance levels when comparing the 2016 percentage of students scoring a 3 or higher to the 2014 percentage.

When these outcomes have been achieved among an AP student population in which 30 percent or more are underrepresented minority students (black/African American, Hispanic/Latino, and American Indian/Alaska Native) and/or 30 percent or more are low-income students, a symbol has been affixed to the district name to highlight this work. AISD met both criteria.

National data from 2016 show that among black/African American, Hispanic and Native American 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 equitably opened. AISD is committed to expanding the availability of AP courses among prepared and motivated students of all backgrounds.

“Congratulations to all the teachers and administrators in this district who have worked so tirelessly to both expand access to AP and also to help students succeed on the AP Exams,” said the College Board’s head of AP and Instruction Trevor Packer. “These teachers and administrators are delivering real opportunity in their schools and classrooms, and students are rising to the challenge.”

In 2016, 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 admission process.

Inclusion on the 7th Annual AP District Honor Roll is based on a review of three years of AP data, from 2014 to 2016, looking across 37 AP Exams, including world language and culture.

The complete 7th Annual AP District Honor Roll can be found at http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/public/score_reports_data/awards/232608.html.

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