Utah in Top Ten in Percentage of Students Passing AP Exams

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SALT LAKE CITY - With nearly one out of five high school students earning college credit by passing advanced placement (AP) tests, Utah ranked 10th in the nation for percentage of public high school students passing AP exams in 2009, according to the 6th annual AP Report to the Nation released today by the College Board. The College Board noted that 9,191 of Utah's 33,137 public high school students took an AP exam in 2009 and that 6,140 of those who took the exam passed it, meaning 18.5 percent of Utah public school students passed an AP exam in 2009. Maryland, with 24.8 percent of students passing AP exams led the nation. California, with 20.8 percent of students passing an AP exam, and Colorado, with 20.1 percent of students, were the only other Western states in the top 10. California ranked seventh and Colorado eighth. Among the College Board's Top Ten AP States (Maryland, New York, Virginia, Massachusetts, Florida, Connecticut, California, Colorado, Vermont, and Utah), Utah ranked fourth in percentage of students taking AP exams who passed the exams. Based upon percentage of students passing AP exams, Connecticut ranks first at 71.6, Massachusetts second at 71.4, Vermont third at 69.0 and Utah fourth at 66.8 percent. "We think this is terrific news," said State Superintendent of Public Instruction Larry Shumway. "What this shows is that more and more Utah kids are better preparing themselves for post-secondary education. Digging deeper into the data, we're also seeing increasing AP participation rates among Utah's ethnic minorities while our passing rates remain high, and that's good news for Utah's future." More information about the AP Report to the Nation and Utah-specific AP information can be found at http://www.collegeboard.com/html/aprtn/?excmpid=CBF13-ED-1-aprtn. www.schools.utah.gov
Attributions
Mark Peterson, Public Relations Director, Utah State Office of Education