Katy ISD Named to AP Achievement List by the College Board

Katy Texas News
Posted March 25, 2011

Katy ISD is one of only 388 school districts nationwide being honored by the College Board with a place on its AP Achievement List for opening AP classroom doors to a significantly broader pool of students, while maintaining or improving the percentage of students earning scores of 3 or higher.

From 2008 to 2010, Katy ISD increased the number of students participating in the AP program from 1,934 to 2,329 while improving the percentage of students earning AP Exam scores of 3 or higher, the score typically needed to earn college credit, from 82 percent in 2008 to 83 percent in 2010.

“This recognition by the College Board is further proof that we are accomplishing our mission to provide students unparalleled learning experiences here in Katy ISD,” says Katy ISD Superintendent Alton Frailey. “I am proud of the work that everyone associated with the AP program has done to not only make the AP courses available to students, but to ensure that they succeed in achieving at exceptional levels.”

The AP Achievement List is comprised of all school districts that are simultaneously expanding opportunity and improving performance. Inclusion on the list is based on the following criteria:

• Examination of three years of AP data, from 2008 to 2010;
• Increase in participation in/access to AP by at least four percent in large districts, at least seven percent in medium districts and at least 11 percent in small districts;
• A steady or increasing percentage of exams taken by African American, Hispanic/Latino and American Indian/Alaska Native students; and
• Performance levels maintained or improved when comparing the percentage of exams in 2010 scoring a 3 or higher to those in 2008, or the school has already attained a performance level in which more than 70 percent of the AP students are scoring a 3 or higher.

“Participation in college-level AP courses can level the playing field for underserved students, give them the confidence needed to succeed in college, and raise standards and performance in key subjects like science and math,” says College Board President Gaston Caperton. “The AP Achievement List identifies districts that are defying expectations by expanding access while enabling their students to maintain or improve their AP Exam scores.”

Helping more students learn at a higher level and earn higher AP scores is an objective of all members of the AP community, from AP teachers to district and school administrators to college professors. Many are experimenting with a variety of initiatives and strategies to determine how to expand access and improve student performance simultaneously.

“These districts are living proof that when access to AP is provided for the range and breadth of prepared and motivated students, districts can achieve even higher learning outcomes for their students — and the opportunity for so many more to earn college credit and placement — than when AP opportunities were restricted to a smaller segment of the high school population,” says Trevor Packer, vice president of the College Board’s Advanced Placement Program.

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