AP
Massachusetts Celebrates First AP Day
Nearly 130 students and 15 teachers from five Massachusetts school districts gathered at the State House in Boston on March 5 to advocate for equal access to Advanced Placement (AP) across the Commonwealth.
Nearly 130 students and 15 teachers from five Massachusetts school districts gathered at the State House in Boston on March 5 to advocate for equal access to Advanced Placement (AP) across the Commonwealth.
Students from Agawam, Ayer-Shirley, Everett, Ludlow, and Springfield school districts met with Lt. Governor Karyn Polito and 28 members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Senate, sharing their personal experiences with AP and urging lawmakers to provide funding for AP Exams for low-income students. Students also discussed their desire for Massachusetts to establish a uniform AP credit policy that awards college credit for exam scores of 3 or higher.
Sen. Michael Moore with students from Everett High School
The trip to the capitol additionally served as a learning opportunity for students. “Today was a very exciting and eye-opening day on how our state government functions, and how influential the smaller people are in play,” said Nathanial Aponte, a 10th-grade student at Springfield Honors Academy.
Students from Ayer-Shirley joined Sen. James Eldridge in the Senate Chamber
The students also had plenty of reason to celebrate: For the third year in a row, Massachusetts is the top state in the nation in terms of the percentage of the Class of 2018 who scored a 3 or higher on AP Exams. More than 47% of the graduating class took at least one AP Exam during high school and close to 33% scored a 3 or higher, which is not only higher than in 2017 but about 10 points higher than the national average.
You can find more photos of Massachusetts AP Day by checking out #APDay on Twitter.