For the third consecutive year, LCHS has been designated as an AP (Advanced Placement) Honor School by State Superintendent of Schools Kathy Cox.

The number of honor schools jumped from 80 in 2009 to 125 this year.

“I am proud that more Georgia students than ever are challenging themselves with demanding course work and are successfully mastering the material,” said Superintendent Cox. “We recognize that one of the best ways to close the achievement gap is to challenge all students with rigorous work and high expectations. Georgia is making tremendous strides with Advanced Placement.”

Advanced Placement Honor Schools are recognized in three categories: AP Challenge Schools, AP Access and Support Schools, and AP Merit Schools.

LCHS is listed among the AP Challenge Schools, schools with 900 or fewer students that offer at least one AP course in each of the four traditional core areas – English, mathematics, science, and social studies.

AP classes and exams are administered by the College Board, which also oversees the SAT. These classes offer college-level learning options to students in high school. In fact, students who receive a 3,4, or 5 on AP exams may receive college credit. AP courses are weighted for HOPE eligibility.

According to the College Board’s “AP Report to the Nation,” Georgia currently has the 12th-highest percentage of seniors scoring a 3 or higher on AP exams.

Superintendent Cox noted that 17.8 percent of the state’s students scored a 3 or higher on at least one AP exam during high school, which beats the national average of 15.9 percent.

“Moreover, Georgia is tied for second in the nation when comparing the five-year-increase of public school seniors scoring a 3 or higher on at least one AP exam,” said Cox.

“When it comes to public school students enrolling in AP courses and taking the exams, Georgia is a national leader,” the superintendent continued. “Only one other state in the country had a greater one-year increase in the number of AP exam takers and the number of exams given. The number of AP exams taken by Georgia’s public school seniors increased 3.3 percent since 2009, compared to a 1.5-percent average increase nationwide.”

In other remarks, Cox stated, “We know in Georgia that we must continue to close the achievement gap, and that’s why it is so important that more of our minority students take these rigorous AP courses and do well on the exams.

“The AP report shows that Georgia is a leader in minority test-takers and success. We have work left to be done, but we are making tremendous progress.”

More than 23 percent of students who took an AP exam in 2008-2009 were African-American, an increase of almost one percentage point from the previous year.

The AP report further indicated that 11.4 percent of Georgia’s African- American high school seniors scored a 3 or higher on at least one AP exam — almost eight points above the national average.

In her comments, Dr. Becky Barden, principal of LCHS, said, “One of our goals during the last few years has been to increase the number of AP courses we offer. It has been our aim to try to add at least one AP course each year to the curriculum. Our students are also given the opportunity to take AP courses online through the Georgia Virtual School (GAVS).

“We’re very honored to receive this recognition from the state school superintendent and hope to continue increasing our AP offerings,” said the principal.

At the present time, the AP curriculum at LCHS features calculus, English Language/Literature, biology, statistics, music theory, psychology, and United States History on campus.

As for the online courses, GAVS offers a wide variety of AP subjects such as art history, biology, chemistry, environmental science, French, macroeconomics, microeconomics, and world history.

In 2007-2008, 578 students enrolled in 20 different online AP courses.

In additional remarks, Dr. Barden said, “Since AP courses usually have fewer students, we feel very fortunate that our board of education has been supportive of our endeavors to challenge our students.

“After spending a semester or two in college, many of these students come back and tell us how much they appreciated the AP courses. Not many Class A schools have the AP opportunities we provide.”

Among the other area schools designated as AP Challenge Schools by the secretary of state were Greene County High School, Hancock Central High School, John Davidson Magnet High School, Oglethorpe County High School, and Westside High School.