AP District Honor Roll
Carlsbad Unified started off the New Year with the notification that we were again named to the annual AP (Advanced Placement) Honor Roll, the third time we were awarded that designation in the last five years. Only 447 school districts in the nation, and 34 in California, received this honor, and we were the only district in San Diego County selected for it.
The AP District Honor Roll “recognizes school districts committed to increasing access to AP for underrepresented students while simultaneously maintaining or increasing the percentage of students earning AP Exam scores of 3 or higher. AP District Honor Roll recipients are committed to expanding the availability of AP courses among prepared and motivated students of all backgrounds.” (AP Central, The College Board)*
We are proud to have been selected. The award reflects the commitment of our Board, administrators, teachers, counselors, and students to academic excellence for all. Carlsbad Unified has continued to expand its Advanced Placement program because we believe that all students will achieve.
One of our primary LCAP (Local Control Accountability Plan) goals is “to ensure that students demonstrate academic growth and proficiencies so they leave K-12 ready for college/career”; and one of CUSD’s key success indicators is “to increase the number of high school students enrolled in at least one Honors, Advanced Placement, or Community College class by 2%.” In 2016-17, an impressive 63% of Carlsbad Unified high school students were enrolled in at least one of these challenging classes
Students at Carlsbad and Sage Creek High Schools currently can select from a full array of Advanced Placement classes, including Advanced Placement Biology, Calculus, English Composition, and United States History. Over 83% of students in 2016-17 who took an AP Exam scored 3 or higher. (The statewide average is 62%.) And, while our pass rates remain high, we continue to increase the number of students who take at least one Advanced Placement Course—930 students took AP exams in 2016-17 compared to 827 in 2015-16, an increase of 103 students. Students work hard in these college-level classes, while acquiring the skills they need to be successful in college and their careers. Besides exposing students to a rigorous curriculum, AP classes can improve students’ chances of getting into their dream colleges; satisfy college prerequisites so they can take more interesting classes; and possibly even save thousands of dollars in tuition.
We congratulate our outstanding AP students and their talented teachers and administrators whose efforts earned CUSD the AP Honor Roll designation.
On behalf of our School Board and the administrators, teachers, and staff at Carlsbad Unified, we wish you an exciting, successful, and healthy New Year!
*Inclusion on the 8th Annual AP District Honor Roll is based on the examination of three years of AP data, from 2015 to 2017, for the following criteria: • Increased participation/access to AP by at least 4% in large districts, at least 6% in medium districts, and at least 11% in small districts. • Increased or maintained percentage of American Indian/Alaska Native, Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino, and Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander students taking exams and increased or maintained the percentage of American Indian/Alaska Native, Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino, and Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander students scoring 3+ on at least one AP Exam; and • Improved performance levels when comparing the percentage of students in 2017 scoring a 3 or higher than those in 2015, unless the district has already attained a performance level at which more than 70% of its AP students are scoring a 3 or higher.When these outcomes have been achieved among an AP student population in which 30% or more are underrepresented minority students (American Indian/Alaska Native, Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino, and Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander) and/or 30% or more are low-income students (students who qualify for free or reduced-price lunch), a symbol has been affixed to the district name to highlight this work.
