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RCPS high schools named 2021 AP Honor Schools
Posted on 03/01/2021
Image says AP HonorsConyers, Ga. – Rockdale County Public Schools (RCPS) high schools – Heritage and Rockdale County – were named 2021 Advanced Placement (AP) Honor Schools by State School Superintendent Richard Woods, a distinction RCPS high schools have achieved for more than 11 consecutive years.

Superintendent Dr. Terry Oatts said, “Our unwavering commitment to rigorous coursework for our students has been recognized through these AP Honor designations for many years. I am extremely proud of the work of our teachers, administrators, and district support personnel who understand the benefits, impact, and significance of affording more of our students such advanced learning opportunities. I am most proud of our focused and intentional efforts to increase AP participation, AP course offerings, and AP exam achievement to a broader range of students at each of our high schools. Congratulations to all!”

Rockdale County High School and Heritage High School were recognized in the AP Access and Support category.

Rockdale County High School was recognized in the AP Humanities, AP Humanities and Achievement, AP STEM, and AP STEM Achievement category.

Advanced Placement classes and exams are administered by the College Board, which also administers the SAT. AP classes offer rigorous college-level learning opportunities to students in high school. Students who earn a 3, 4 or 5 on the AP exams may receive college credit. RCPS offers AP courses at every high school, including the Rockdale Career Academy and Rockdale Virtual Campus. Examples of possible courses include: U.S. History, World History, Economics, Physics, Biology, Chemistry, Calculus, Statistics, Computer Science, English Literature and Composition and Art.

Definitions of each category provided by the Georgia Department of Education are:

AP Access and Support Schools – Schools with at least 30 percent of AP exams taken by students who identified themselves as African-American and/or Hispanic and 30 percent of all AP exams earning scores of 3 or higher.

AP Challenge Schools – Schools with enrollments of 900 or fewer students and students testing in English, math, science, and social studies.

AP Schools of Distinction – Schools with at least 20 percent of the total student population taking AP exams and at least 50 percent of all AP exams earning scores of 3 or higher.

AP Expansion Schools – AP schools with 25 percent growth in AP participation from May 2019 to May 2020 and a minimum of 25 students testing in May 2019.

AP Humanities Schools – Schools with a minimum of five students testing in each of the following AP categories: one ELA course, two history/social science courses, one fine arts course and one world language course.

AP Humanities Achievement Schools – AP Humanities schools (see above definition) with at least 50 percent of all AP Humanities exams earning scores of 3 or higher.

AP STEM Schools – Schools with a minimum of five students testing in at least four AP STEM courses (AP Calculus AB, AP Calculus BC, AP Statistics, AP Biology, AP Chemistry, AP Environmental Science, AP Physics 1, AP Physics 2, AP Physics C, AP Computer Science A, AP Computer Science Principles).

AP STEM Achievement Schools – AP STEM schools (see above definition) with at least 50 percent of all AP STEM exams earning scores of 3 or higher.