Valley View Diversity, AP Expansion Efforts Net National Recognition

ROMEOVILLE, IL — For the third time in the past five years, Valley View School District 365U has been named to the College Board AP District Honor Roll.

While 433 school districts in the United States and Canada earned the honor this year, only 13 districts, including VVSD, were singled out because of their diverse enrollment and the significant number of students from low income families in the district.

To be included on the 2016-17 AP District Honor Roll, a district must show increases in the number of students participating in Advanced Placement while also maintaining or increasing the percentage of students earning scores of 3 or higher on their AP exams.

According to Trevor Packer, the College Board’s head of AP and Instruction, reaching these goals shows that Valley View is successfully identifying motivated, academically-prepared students who are ready for AP.

“Congratulations to all the teachers and administrators in this district who have worked so tirelessly to both expand access to AP and also to help students succeed on the AP Exams,” Packer said. “Your teachers and administrators are delivering real opportunity in their schools and classrooms, and students are rising to the challenge.”

Inclusion on the 7th Annual AP District Honor Roll is based on a review of three years of AP data, from 2014 to 2016, looking across 37 AP Exams, including world language and culture. Criteria used included:

• Increasing participation/access to AP by at least 4 percent in large districts, at least 6 percent in medium districts, and at least 11 percent in small districts
• Maintaining or increasing the percentage of exams taken by black/African American, Hispanic/Latino, and American Indian/Alaska Native students
• Maintaining or improving performance levels when comparing the 2016 percentage of students scoring a 3 or higher to the 2014 percentage.

Under the direction of Superintendent Dr. James A. Mitchem Jr. and his team, VVSD has been committed to expanding the availability of AP courses among prepared and motivated students of all backgrounds for the past five years.

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.

In 2016, more than 4,000 colleges and universities around the world received AP scores for college credit, advanced placement, or both, and/or consideration in the admission process.

Submitted by Valley View School District 365U

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