Brookwood celebrates 21 AP Scholars this year
A month into school, Brookwood School students are now becoming accustomed to their schedules. Binders are thickening with lecture notes and handouts, and that first round of tests is already a thing of the past. With the College Board’s recent release of the school’s AP scores and AP Scholars list, younger students now have more of an understanding of how all that hard work will soon pay off.
Overall, Brookwood students scored 25 percent above the global average on their AP exams and yielded a list of 21 AP Scholars from the classes of 2017 and 2018. Brookwood’s AP Scholars took a total of 98 exams in 11 subject areas, garnering an average score of 4.2 on a scale of 1 to 5.
Success on an AP Exam is perhaps the greatest single predictor of strong performance in college classes, said David Grooms, Brookwood’s Upper School director.
“Colleges see the results of these exams as an international standard of achievement,” he said.
To be distinguished as an AP Scholar, a student must earn a score of 3 or higher on a scale of 1 to 5 on three or more Advanced Placement exams. This year’s AP Scholars from the class of 2017 are Alex Daniel and Harrison Wright. Scholars from the class of 2018 are Jordon Brinkley, Curry Brinson, Thomas Harrison, Trenton Newman and Will Saunders.
AP Scholar with Honor awards are given to those who receive a 3.25 or higher on all AP exams taken and scores of 3 or higher on four exams. From the class of 2017, J Anderson, Honey Balfour, Christian Bell, Rhodes Heath and Will Ladson earned this distinction.
The AP Scholar of Distinction award goes to students who score an average of 3.5 or higher on all AP exams taken and scores of 3 or higher on five or more of these exams. From the class of 2017, Rachel Cooper, Margaret Davis, Caroline Deese, Austin Falconer, Catharine Fennell, William Hamil, Melanie Quinton, Hampton Toole and Christopher Watt have earned this accolade.
“AP Exams demand demonstration of critical thinking skills, content knowledge and synthesis of concepts into a theme that covers an entire year of work,” Grooms said. “All this must be done in a limited amount of time.”
Grooms added a note of praise for his faculty, who “work diligently throughout the year to guide students in the mastery of the skills, concepts and content necessary for the students to achieve at these high levels.”
Saunders said that even though his workload increased, the challenge his AP classes posed to him was worth all the effort.
“Though taking multiple AP classes surely frustrated me at times, I feel as if they prepared me for potential academic difficulties further on in my life, which is surely the goal of a college-preparatory school,” he said. “Taking AP classes livened up my Upper School experience, even if that meant a bit of stress.”
Students in schools all over the globe take Advanced Placement exams every spring. Over the past five years, Brookwood students have passed 90 percent of the AP exams that they have taken.
Globally, the pass rate has been 61 percent for the past five years and 57 percent in the state of Georgia.
“Our goal is to prepare student for success in college and in life,” said Brookwood School Headmaster Randy Watts. “We know that the academic preparation of all of our students is superior and their scores on AP exams are proof of that work.”
Brookwood School
Located in Thomasville, GA, Brookwood School is a private school for grades JK-12. Students benefit from a challenging academic program, fine and performing arts, competitive athletics, and a wide selection of extracurricular activities.