Georgia Superintendent of Schools Richard Woods released the names this week of the state’s 2021 Advanced Placement (AP) Honor Schools. Habersham Central is among dozens of Northeast Georgia area schools recognized for outstanding performance.
“I extend my heartfelt congratulations to this year’s AP Honor Schools,” said Woods in a news release. “I commend them for their hard work to build strong Advanced Placement programs and, as a result, provide high-quality opportunities for Georgia students.”
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Habersham Central earns multiple AP honors
Habersham Central earned honors in AP HUMANITIES and AP STEM in recognition of the number of AP courses offered within each discipline. The school also earned distinction in AP STEM Achievement in recognition of students earning a 3 or higher on at least 50% of all AP exams in STEM subjects, joining nine other area regional high schools for that honor.
Habersham Central was also recognized as an AP HUMANITIES Achievement school along with two other area schools – Chestatee High School and Flowery Branch High School.
Last year, 309 Habersham County students took 482 AP exams in 17 subject areas. Habersham Central students earned a total of 75 AP Scholar awards in recognition of high scores on multiple AP exams, including two National AP Scholars. Seventeen members of the Class of 2020 earned the distinguished AP Capstone Diploma.
“These are outstanding achievements under normal circumstances – but the performance of HCHS students is even more significant in light of the interruptions caused by the pandemic which necessitated a switch to remote learning in mid-March last spring,” said Habersham County Schools College Planning Coordinator Martha Cantrell.
“It is a great compliment to the faculty and staff of Habersham County Schools for Superintendent Woods to designate Habersham Central as an AP Honor School in the areas of AP Humanities and AP STEM,” said HCHS Principal Jonathan Stribling. “Habersham Central remains committed to providing our students with opportunities to gain a competitive edge over others as they seek elite, post-secondary opportunities.”
Northeast Georgia AP Honor Schools
Listed below are the 2021 AP Honor Schools in Northeast Georgia. To access a complete list of schools honored statewide, click on the link for each category.
AP ACCESS AND SUPPORT SCHOOLS: Schools with at least 30 percent of AP exams taken by students who identified themselves as African-American and/or Hispanic and 30 percent of all AP exams earning scores of 3 or higher
- Cedar Shoals High School – Clarke County
- Chestatee High School – Hall County
- East Hall High School – Hall County
- Gainesville High School – Gainesville City Schools
- Johnson High School – Hall County
- West Hall High School – Hall County
AP CHALLENGE SCHOOLS: Schools with enrollments of 900 or fewer students and students testing in English, math, science, and social studies:
- Cherokee Bluff High School – Hall County
- Commerce High School – Commerce City
- Rabun County High School – Rabun County
AP SCHOOLS OF DISTINCTION: Schools with at least 20 percent of the total student population taking AP exams and at least 50 percent of all AP exams earning scores of 3 or higher:
- Clarke Central High School – Clarke County
- Flowery Branch High School – Hall County
- North Oconee High School – Oconee County
- Oconee County High School – Oconee County
AP EXPANSION SCHOOLS: AP schools with 25 percent growth in AP student participation from May 2019 to May 2020 and a minimum of 2t5 students testing in May 2019:
- Cherokee Bluff High School – Hall County
- Union County High School – Union County
AP HUMANITIES SCHOOLS: Schools with a minimum of five students testing in each of the following AP categories: one ELA course, two history/social science courses, one fine arts course, and one world language course:
- Chestatee High School – Hall County
- Flowery Branch High School – Hall County
- Habersham Central High School – Habersham County
AP HUMANITIES ACHIEVEMENT SCHOOLS: AP Humanities schools (see above definition) with at least 50 percent of all AP Humanities exams earning scores of three or higher:
- Chestatee High School – Hall County
- Flowery Branch High School – Hall County
- Habersham Central High School – Habersham County
- Jefferson High School – Jefferson City
AP STEM SCHOOLS: Schools with a minimum of five students testing in at least four AP STEM courses (AP Calculus AB, AP Calculus BC, AP Statistics, AP Biology, AP Chemistry, AP Environmental Science, AP Physics 1, AP Physics 2, AP Physics C, AP Computer Science A, AP Computer Science Principles):
- Cedar Shoals High School – Clarke County
- Cherokee Bluff High School – Hall County
- Chestatee High School – Hall County
- Clarke Central High School – Clarke County
- East Jackson Comprehensive High School – Jackson County
- Flowery Branch High School – Hall County
- Gainesville High School – Gainesville City Schools
- Habersham Central High School – Habersham County
- Jackson County Comprehensive High School – Jackson County
- Jefferson High School – Jefferson City
- Madison County High School – Madison County
AP STEM ACHIEVEMENT SCHOOLS: AP STEM schools (see above definition) with at least 50 percent of all AP STEM exams earning scores of 3 or higher:
- Chestatee High School – Hall County
- Clarke Central High School – Clarke County
- Flowery Branch High School – Hall County
- Gainesville High School – Gainesville City Schools
- Habersham Central High School – Habersham County
- Jefferson High School – Jefferson City
- Madison County High School – Madison County
- North Hall High School – Hall County
- North Oconee High School – Oconee County
- Oconee County High School – Oconee County
