Student achievement in Bartow County continues to climb, with high schools earning a record 13 Advanced Placement (AP) Honor School designations this year, more than doubling from just five awards in 2018.
The recognition, issued by the Georgia Department of Education, reflects performance and participation in 2025 AP courses and exams. This year also brought an additional milestone for Cass High School, which earned one more award than in years past with the AP STEM Achievement School designation. Across Georgia, 316 schools in 110 districts were named AP Honor Schools.
Adairsville High School received:
AP STEM School Award
AP Humanities School Award
AP Humanities Achievement School Award
Cass High School earned:
AP STEM School Award
AP STEM Achievement School Award
AP Humanities School Award
AP Humanities Achievement School Award
AP Access and Support School Award
Woodland High School gained:
AP STEM School Award
AP Humanities School Award
AP Humanities Achievement School Award
AP STEM Achievement School Award
AP Schools of Distinction Award
Award Categories:
AP Access and Support Schools: Schools with at least 30% of AP exams taken by students who identified as African American and/or Hispanic (minimum of 16 students) and 30% of all AP exams earning scores of 3 or higher. At least 25 exams must be administered.
AP Challenge Schools: Schools with enrollments of 900 or fewer students and exams administered in English, math, science, and social studies and a minimum of 25 total exams administered.
AP Expansion Schools: AP schools with 25% growth in AP student participation from May 2023 to May 2024 and a minimum of 25 students testing in May 2023.
AP Humanities Schools: Schools that administered at least five exams in each of the following AP categories: one ELA course, two social studies courses, one fine arts course, and one world language course, and a minimum of 25 total exams administered.
AP Humanities Achievement Schools: AP Humanities schools (see above definition) with at least 50% of all AP Humanities exams earning scores of 3 or higher.
AP Schools of Distinction: Schools with at least 20% of the total student population taking AP exams and at least 50% of all AP exams earning scores of 3 or higher.
AP STEM Schools: Schools that administered at least 5 exams in each of four separate AP STEM courses (math, science, and computer science) and a minimum of 25 total exams administered.
AP STEM Achievement Schools: AP STEM schools (see above definition) with at least 50% of all AP STEM exams earning scores of 3 or higher.
“This honor is a testament to our school's belief that rigorous academic challenges should be accessible to ALL students,” said AHS AP Coordinator Dr. Kelly Ratcliff. “Our AP teachers work tirelessly to support student success, and our school culture values growth and opportunity. By providing strong support, we have seen more students rise to the challenge and succeed.”
“Our AP success is the result of a focused, collaborative effort across our entire Colonel community,” said CHS AP Coordinator Micaela Armona. “We strategically use AP scoring data to refine instruction and intentionally guide students into courses that align with their strengths. At the same time, our administrators and teachers work closely as a unified team to raise rigor, provide meaningful support, and maintain high expectations for every student. Our Magnet program plays a key role by giving students the opportunity to begin AP coursework as early as their freshman year, building experience, confidence, and strong test-taking skills over time. Ultimately, it comes down to a tremendous amount of hard work from both our students and staff… and maybe just a little bit of teacher magic.”
“We are incredibly proud of our students and teachers for earning recognition in five AP categories this year,” added WHS AP Coordinator Amber Phillips. “While each honor is meaningful, AP School of Distinction is especially significant because it recognizes schools that are not only increasing student access to Advanced Placement courses, but also demonstrating strong student performance and success within those courses. Earning this recognition reflects Woodland students’ willingness to challenge themselves academically and the incredible work our teachers do to support them throughout that process. Being recognized in both STEM and Humanities also highlights the strength and variety of opportunities available to students across our AP program. These accomplishments are a reflection of the culture of high expectations and support we are continuing to build at Woodland.”
Each high school will be honored for its achievements at an upcoming Board of Education meeting.