Over the past three years, Advanced Placement students at Bradford Area High School not only increased their enrollment numbers, but also passed the exams by a larger percentage thanks to hard work and diligence.

The result of Bradford High’s success was recently recognized throughout the state and country when the campus was named among 46 schools across Pennsylvania to the annual AP District Honor Roll. The annual honor roll recognizes schools that increase access and performance related to Advanced Placement programs. To qualify, large school districts had to show there was at least four percent more participation and access to Advanced Placement programs. Medium districts had to see at least a six percent increase and small districts had to see at least 11 percent.

Bradford High Principal David Ray said the recognition is a significant achievement for the campus.

“During the 2017-2018 school year, only 373 schools throughout the United States and Canada earned this distinction,” Ray said. “Only 46 of these schools were in Pennsylvania.”

Ray said the school received the honor by increasing the number of students taking advanced placement courses by 13 percent from 2016 to 2018, and increasing the number of students who passed advanced placement exams by 23 percent during the same period.

In explaining what the AP program comprises, Ray said it is run by the College Board, the creators of the SAT exams, and allows students to take courses in high school that can earn them college credit and/or qualify them for more advanced classes in college.

He said Bradford High offers eight AP courses: two English, two science, one math and three social studies classes.  

“This school year (2018-2019), we have 91 students enrolled in AP courses,” Ray explained.  “For the 2019-2020 school year, we are also planning to add an Advanced Placement Computer Science course.”

Ray noted that for the upcoming school year, Bradford High was awarded a grant from the National Math and Science Initiative (NMSI) to provide teachers and students additional supports that are used to continue the growth in AP achievement seen over the past three years.

“The grant is providing our teachers with professional development and our students access to additional curriculum and resources,” Ray explained. “The NMSI is also bringing master Advanced Placement Teachers to Bradford to teach Saturday study sessions to our AP students and teachers. We are excited by the possibilities offered by the NMSI Program especially given the improvements we’ve seen in the past few years.”

Ray said the district’s ultimate goal is to see every student who plans to attend college take several AP courses during their time at Bradford High. He also noted AP courses are the most rigorous college prep courses offered at the high school.  

“Students who take Advanced Placement courses in high school, even if they don’t receive college credit for the course, are significantly more likely to be successful in college than students who never take an AP course,” Ray added. “This is a message we are trying hard to get out to our students and parents.”

In concluding his comments, Ray said he wanted to thank the Bradford High students who’ve taken AP courses over the past three years for their hard work and willingness to enroll in the challenging courses.  

“I’d also like to thank all the teachers at Bradford High and across the school district for their hard work in preparing students to take Advanced Placement courses,” Ray commented. “ I’ll also note the hard work and dedication of our Advanced Placement teachers in making our students successful.”

Superintendent Katharine Pude said she believes the AP recognition “is a wonderful accomplishment” for the school district.

“The Honor Roll recognizes districts that, over the past three years, have been committed to increasing access to AP courses for underrepresented students and for increasing student scores and participation,” Pude said. “We have continually strived to provide opportunities for our students to succeed in their post-secondary education, and to be one of only 373 districts in the United States and Canada recognized in this manner is significant for our small school district.”