Washington High School“Excelling”

Advanced Placement

Program

Information Night

Our Administration

Carol Lippert – Principal

John Pierzchala – Asst Principal Student Services

Brian Fitzgerald – Asst Principal Op. & Res.

Michelle Reed – Asst Principal Attend/Discipline

About Our School

3years as an ―Excelling‖ school

Featured in U.S. News and World Report

A population of approximately 1750 students

Over 70 different clubs, sports, and activities

A wide variety of elective programs

A focus on 9th grade transition (LINK)

School wide Advisory Program

About Our School

Highly qualified and trained teachers

Award-winning Fine Arts programs

A focus on technology and literacy

A personal connection with parents,

students, and the community

A learning system emphasizing student

achievement and preparedness for college

Rigor/Relevance Framework

RELEVANCE

R

I

G

O

R

Apply

knowledge in

one discipline

Apply

knowledge to

real-world

situations

Student

Thinks & WorksD

Student

WorksBTeacher

WorksA

Student

ThinksCProject-Based Learning

Internships

Presentations/Exhibitions

Low

Memorization

Guided Practice

Games

Community Service

Demonstration

Simulation/Role Playing

Compare/Contrast

Debate

Experiment

High

High

The Advanced Placement Program

The Advanced Placement Program offers

students the opportunity to take rigorous

courses during their high school years in

order to gain college credits as well as

prepare them for the challenges of higher

education.

College graduates vs. high school only

According to the Census

Bureau, over an adult's

working life, high school

graduates earn an

average of $1.2 million;

associate's degree

holders earn about $1.6

million; and bachelor's

degree holders earn about

$2.1 million (Day and

Newburger, 2002).

0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

After

20 yrs

After

40

years

high school

AA degree

Bachleors

The Benefits of the Advanced Placement Program

Provides students with a head start on college.

Assists students in obtaining college admission.

Allows students the opportunity to earn college credits.

May enable placement in upper-level courses in college.

The Benefits of the Advanced Placement Program

Allows students to:

– Fulfill a foreign language requirement

– Save money on college

– Earn academic scholarships and awards

– Experience college-level exams

– Increase chance for success

Why Take AP Classes?

College credit can allow you to move into upper-level

college courses sooner, pursue a double major, and

gain time to study and travel abroad.

―As a freshman, I was able to skip general ed

requirements and head straight into the higher-level

classes I wanted to take. Taking AP exams literally

saved me semesters of time.‖—Brent Wiese, University of Iowa

Why Take AP Classes?

A U.S. Department of Education study found that the strongest predictor of college graduation is something students do before they ever go to college:

Participate in rigorous, college-level courses in high school—and AP courses in particular.

Clifford Adelman, Answers in the Tool Box: Academic Intensity, Attendance Patterns, and Bachelor’s Degree Attainment (1999), U.S. Department of Education.

Save money

If you earn a qualifying grade on an AP Exam, you can receive credit for the equivalent course at thousands of colleges and universities:

―I took AP throughout high school because it was the most interesting and well-taught program offered. When I reached college, I realized that I had accumulated a year’s worth of credits. I graduated from Michigan’s undergraduate business school a full year early, saving $30,000 and a year’s time.‖

—Nikki Baker, University of Michigan

Standing Out in the Admission Process

―One of the best standard predictors of

academic success at Harvard is

performance on Advanced Placement

Examinations.‖—William R. Fitzsimmons

Dean of Admissions

Harvard University

Cost of Taking AP Courses

There is an $82 fee for each AP Exam, which

the College Board uses to:

1) develop, print, ship, and score the exams

2) subsidize teacher training

3) develop classroom resources

4) support educational initiatives

GUHSD covers the cost of this exam.

Dual Enrollment

Students have the opportunity to earn college credit

while completing the high school requirement. Dual

enrollment courses are offered through many AP

classes.

Many of our Career and Technical Ed classes also

offer the opportunity to gain dual credit.

Dual enrollment credits cost approximately a third of

community-college tuition – including books.

Dual Enrollment Core Courses

AP English – 6 credits

AP Government – 6 credits

Honors Pre-Calculus – 5 credits

College Algebra – 4 credits

AP US History – 6 credits

AP French – 8 credits

AP Spanish – 8 credits

AP Physics – 6 credits

What’s the cost of taking a Dual Enrollment Course?

Each credit costs $71. For a 3 credit course

that would be $213.

A 3 credit course at ASU would normally

costs about $1671.

Financial assistance is available for those

who qualify.

Student Selection

Student selection for the Honors/AP program is

based on the following:

1. Student grades and performance

2. Performance on state mandated tests

3. Performance on placement exams

4. Teacher recommendation

5. Parent and student desire

Typical Honors/AP Track

Freshman Year: Honors English 1-2 Honors Algebra 1/Geometry

Honors Biology

Physical Education

Spanish 1-2, French 1-2, Japanese 1-2 or Elective

Elective of your choice

Sophomore Year: Honors English 3-4

Honors Algebra 2

Honors Chemistry

Honors World History

Spanish 3-4, French 3-4, Japanese 3-4 or Elective

Elective of your choice

Typical Honors/AP Track

Junior Year: Honors English 5-6

Honors Pre-Calculus

AP Biology

AP US History

Honors Spanish 5-6, Honors French 5-6Japanese 5-6 or Elective

Elective of your choice

Senior Year: AP English

AP Calculus

AP Physics

AP Government

AP Spanish, AP French, or AP Japanese Elective

Elective of your choice

Graduate Recognition

―Standard of Excellence‖ seal on the

diploma.

Top graduates speak at graduation and

march at the front of the class.

Medallions and cords are awarded for

academic achievements.

Honors and Awards ceremony honoring

student accomplishments.

Importance of Meeting to EXCEED on the AIMS Test

Graduation recognition

Looks great on the transcript

Opens up other scholarship possibilities

Honors and Awards

Pride in your school and community

ABOR – AIMS Scholarship

3 Criteria to receive the scholarship:

1) 1’s and 2’s in all core classes

2) GPA of 3.5 or better

3) Exceed on all 3 AIMS exams

Currently worth around $7,500/year or $30,000

AP Classes and the ABOR Scholarship

Students who do not exceed on all 3 exams

can still get the scholarship.

By passing 2 AP exams and exceeding on 2

AIMS Tests, students can still gain the

scholarship.

Earn academic scholarshipsor awards

Some of the most competitive scholarship awards value AP Exam grades:

―Having the AP Exam grade can make the difference when it comes down to awarding precious scholarship dollars.‖

—Edwina Harris Hamby, Dean of AdmissionFisk University

Why should I take the AP class?

Stand out in the admissions process

Earn academic scholarships and awards

Experience a college-level test and coursework

Save money

Be a step ahead

Increased chance for success

Commitment

Please check the courses and make any changes.

AP exams are paid for ahead of time.

By signing this form you are making a commitment

to remain in and pass the class for the 2010-2011

school year. Dropping the class is not an option.

Thanks for Attending!

Questions?

Visit us at:

Washington.guhsdaz.org