Anna Shaw
Upper School students at Girls Preparatory School posted top scores for 2017 Advanced Placement (AP) tests. The school celebrates 59 current seniors and recent graduates from the Class of 2017 who have earned AP Scholar designations for 2017. These students were recognized for achieving scores of 3 or higher on at least three or more AP exams.
As part of its preparatory curriculum, GPS offers 24 Advanced Placement courses to sophomores, juniors, and seniors across a range of subjects.
AP courses are rigorous, college-level classes that give students an opportunity to gain the skills and experience colleges recognize, according to the College Board. Tests are scored on a 5-point scale, with 5 as the highest and 3 considered passing.
The mean score achieved by GPS students in 2017 was 3.71 across all AP exams, which is significantly higher than both the state and national rates of 2.87 and 2.84 respectively. In the humanities and in STEM courses, GPS students earned mean scores much higher than those of their peers. For example, 29 GPS students earned a mean score of 4.34 in English language composition while the national mean was 2.77. In physics, all four GPS students scored 5’s when the national mean was 3.69.
“GPS is incredibly proud of these young women for this outstanding academic achievement, and we celebrate the faculty who work diligently to promote excellence in their classrooms for all GPS students on a daily basis,” says Jenise Gordon, head of Upper School. “We would like to also acknowledge the contributions each student makes to this institution that go well beyond the classroom.”
The 59 GPS students’ 67 awards included*:
23 AP Scholars received scores of 3 or higher on three or more AP exams
18 AP Scholars with Honors received an average of 3.25 or higher on all AP exams taken, and 3 or higher on four or more of these exams
18 AP Scholars with Distinction received an average of 3.5 or higher on all AP exams taken, and 3 or higher on five or more tests
7 National AP Scholars received an average of 4 on all AP exams taken, and 4 or higher on eight or more tests
1 AP International Diploma received scores of 3 or higher on five or more AP exams in three or more subject areas
Anna Shaw, class of 2017, received the highest recognition, an AP International Diploma, scoring 3 or higher on nine exams. Because of her stellar AP exam scores, Anna was able to start her college career significantly ahead of her peers. “We just took her to Northeastern University (Boston, Massachusetts) where she’s enrolled in the international business program,” says Susan Shaw, Anna’s mother. “Because of her AP scores, she’s starting as a second-semester sophomore. She studied really hard for the exams, but her teachers at GPS have well-prepared her for college.”
From the class of 2017, Leah Baxter, Lori Baxter, Isabella Cornea, Kara Swann, Rebecca Torrence, and Phoebe Warren received National AP Scholar status.
AP Scholars with Distinction: Emily Ballentine ’17, Anna Brandao ’17, Mary Brown ’18, McKaylyn Fults ’17, Samantha Jackson ’17, Margaret Marshall ’18, Sarah McDougal ’17, Katherine McVay ’17, Ritika Modi ’18, Tatiana Poggi ’18, and Kathryn Thel ’18.
AP Scholars with Honor: Mary Arrowsmith ’18, Khadija Aslam ’18, Jennifer Brockman ’17, Hannah Brotton ’17, Sarah Goodrich ’17, Elisabeth Hale ’17, Annsleigh Jones ’18, Lyla Jones ’18, Tia Kemp ’17, Emily Large ’17, Margaret Lim ’18, Ashley-Rose Lynn ’18, Margaret Martin ’17, Jessica Melton ’17, Lea Mulligan ’17, Lucy Newbold ’17, Kathrine Schlegel ’18, and Sophie Veys ’18.
AP Scholars: Noor Azhar ’17, Leonora Browne ’17, Gabrielle Cox ’17, Lilyanna Everett ’17, Hannah Goldbach ’17, Clare Hamn ’18, Jai-La Hansford ’17, Julie Kim ’17, Silvey McGregor ’17, Kendall McKoon ’18, Ella Melton ’17, Meher Memon ’18, Phoebe-Agnes Mills ’18, Anna Oglesby ’18, Emma Rowell ’17, Reagan Sanborn ’18, Katherine Stamey ’18, Daphne Thomas ’18, Kathryn Thomas ’18, Victoria Tomokane-Vervil ’18, Agnes Towns ’18 Mary Vance ’17, and Anna Ward ’17.
“These are notable achievements, not only for our students, but also for our faculty, who lead these courses,” says Dr. Autumn Graves, head of school. “As a school, we strive to best prepare our girls for college and life beyond graduation. Our commitment to AP courses is just one component of building a foundation for well-rounded leaders.”
*Some GPS students won multiple awards.