Salisbury High has most students taking AP courses

By Sarah Campbell

scampbell@salisburypost.com

SALISBURY — The Rowan-Salisbury School System offered 20 college-level classes throughout the district this year.

Students had the opportunity to take Advanced Placement classes in subjects such as biology, calculus, music theory and U.S. history.

Kathy McDuffie, the district’s director of secondary education, said the classes are open to all students, but those who are college-bound are particularly urged to enroll.

“The classes are for students who want to earn college credit in high school or for those who have always excelled in school and are looking for more of a challenge,” she said.

Nearly 600 students took AP classes this year. Salisbury High had the most AP students with 173 and South Rowan had the fewest with 49.

South Rowan ramped up its efforts to get more students to take the advanced classes by hosting an AP Symposium in May.

“We were seeing some of our seniors receiving rejection letters from the colleges that they were applying to,” Principal Don Knox said. “When we called the schools and asked why this was happening, we heard the same common theme, these students did not show enough academic challenge in their transcripts.

“So, I decided that we need to do something to offer more students information about our AP programs and why they need to consider taking these classes.”

Many of the AP classes are taught in a traditional classroom setting by a teacher from the school.

McDuffie said teachers are required to submit their syllabus to the College Board, the nonprofit organization that administers AP exams, for approval before they can begin teaching AP courses.

Teachers are not required to hold a specific degree or certification to instruct the classes.

Students who want to take classes that are not offered at their school can either travel to another school in the district or take it online through the North Carolina Virtual Public School.

Contact reporter Sarah Campbell at 704-797-7683.