Bellarmine Students Thrive on AP Exams
Posted: August 6, 2009
Bellarmine students performed extraordinarily well on their Advanced Placement testing in 2009, with 621 students taking a total of 1186 tests. Students scored a "3" or better on 89% of those tests - a remarkable achievement by any standard.
From the class of 2009, 73.3% of graduating students scored a "3" or better at some point during their high school career on at least one AP test, earning those students college credit or advanced standing as they enter college. More than a quarter of students who just completed their Sophomore year have already scored a "3" or better on at least one AP examination.
What is especially impressive about these numbers is that Bellarmine students registered for 20% more Advanced Placement exams this year than they did the year prior - meaning that many more students had access to the exams, and these students still met with success at a tremendous rate.
The success of the program is in large part due to the dedication of Bellarmine's teachers, many of whom devote time during the summer honing their craft and staying current with new trends in their AP subject. A number of Bellarmine teachers have even been involved in grading or designing AP tests. Fr. Ron Clemo, S.J., has been a reader for the Advanced Placement exam in U.S. History for many years. Casey McCullough and Jose Molina have also been readers of Advanced Placement exams in Environmental Science and Calculus, respectively. Lynne West has conducted an AP Workshop to instruct other teachers in their approach to AP Latin, and Chris Wolf has played in instrumental role in the grading of AP World History tests, this year serving as a leader for the alternate exam.
Congratulations to all of the Bellarmine students for their successes on their exams, and a big thank you to these teachers and all of the others whose dedication is a big reason for this success.