Mars Area School District was named to the 10th annual CollegeBoard AP (Advanced Placement) District Honor Roll for expanding opportunity and improving performance for AP students.

The Honor Roll recognizes districts for increasing access to Advanced Placement course work while maintaining or increasing the percentage of students earning scores of 3 or higher on AP Exams.

Mars Area High School is in the third year of its partnership with the National Math + Science Initiative (NMSI), a non-profit organization that offers a college readiness program proven to dramatically increase the number of students taking and earning qualifying scores on AP English, math and science exams as well as to increase access to traditionally underrepresented students.

The high school offers AP courses in Biology, Calculus, Chemistry, Computer Science A, Computer Science Principles, English Language, English Literature, European History, French, German, Physics I, Physics II, Spanish and United States History.

During the 2018-2019 School Year, 220 Mars Area High School students were enrolled in AP (Advanced Placement) courses and took more than 362 AP exams. Of those students, 75 percent earned a qualifying exam score of 3, 4, or 5, which may qualify students for credit at many colleges and universities. 

Approximately 40 percent of students in high school’s Class of 2019 earned a score of 3 or higher on at least one AP Exam taken during their high school career. In addition, 51 students qualified as different levels of AP scholars with one student qualifying for an AP national honor.

NMSI includes at least three (3) AP extracurricular study sessions for English, mathematics and science, which are typically held on Saturdays and are led by state and national AP experts while the students’ classroom teachers observe. All NMSI Study Dates are listed on the District’s calendar.

Through the NMSI partnership, schools receive funding for equipment and supplies and students typically receive half off the cost of the AP exam fee from NMSI or the school district. The District’s partnership with NMSI will continue through the current School Year.

For more information, visit https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/about-ap/awards/district-honor-roll.