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Washington, DC - The U.S. Department of Education announced today that it has awarded $28.4 million in Advanced Placement (AP) grants to 38 states, Washington, D.C., and the Virgin Islands as part of its efforts to boost college- and career-readiness for historically underserved students. The grants will help defray the costs of taking advanced placement tests for low-income students.

“Advanced Placement classes and the corresponding exams come with very high expectations for our students, as well as important early exposure to the demands and rigor of college-level courses, all while still in high school,” said John King, senior advisor delegated duties of deputy secretary of education. “These grants are a smart investment in equity and a way to eliminate barriers for low-income students, level the playing field and allow more students to access the college-level critical thinking and reasoning skills taught in AP courses.”

The grants are used to help pay for low-income students taking approved advanced placement tests administered by the College Board, the International Baccalaureate Organization and Cambridge International Examinations. By subsidizing test fees for low-income students, the program is intended to encourage those students to take advanced placement tests and obtain college credit for high school courses, reducing the time and cost required to complete a postsecondary degree.

Levels of funding per state were determined on the basis of state estimates of the numbers of tests that would be taken by low-income students. From 2014 to 2015, preliminary results show that the number of tests for low-income students covered by the program increased from 768,772 to 831,913, an improvement of more than 7 percent.

Based on the anticipated number of tests to be taken, the grants under the Advanced Placement Test Fee Program are expected to be sufficient to pay all but $12 of the cost of each advanced placement test taken by low-income students. States may opt to require students to pay a portion of the costs.

The Obama Administration’s commitment to equity in education underlies nearly every significant activity of the Education Department—from programs focused on early learning to college affordability and tools for reducing student debt. Expanding students’ access to and successful completion of rigorous courses was also an initial recommendation of the President’s My Brother’s KeeperTask Force. By expanding access to college-level courses, more low-income students are able to graduate high school with the tools they need to excel in college and beyond.

The Advanced Placement Test Fee program is administered by the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education. For additional information on the program and these new awards, visit http://www2.ed.gov/programs/apfee/index.html.

FY 2015 Awards
Advanced Placement Test Fee Program

State

Grantee

Total Awarded

AK

State of Alaska Department of Education & Early Development

$27,043

AL

Alabama Department of Education

$763,325

AZ

Arizona Department of Education

$682,609

CA

California Department of Education

$10,588,226

CO

Colorado Department of Education

$601,856

CT

State of Connecticut Department of Education

$249,803

DC

District of Columbia Office of State Superintendent of Education

$37,883

HI

Hawaii State Department of Education

$114,168

IA

Iowa Department of Education

$101,642

ID

Idaho State Department of Education

$58,247

IL

Illinois State Board of Education

$2,576,890

IN

Indiana Department of Education

$307,618

KS

Kansas State Department of Education

$80,893

KY

Kentucky Department of Education

$505,958

LA

Louisiana Department of Education

$264,852

MA

Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

$714,141

MD

Maryland State Department of Education

$642,666

ME

State of Maine, Department of Education

$59,955

MI

Michigan Department of Education

$512,926

MO

Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

$150,402

MS

Mississippi Department of Education

$133,255

MT

Montana Office of Public Instruction

$22,351

NE

Nebraska Department of Education

$36,931

NH

New Hampshire Department of Education

$15,300

NJ

New Jersey Department of Education

$556,673

NM

New Mexico Public Education Department

$127,443

NV

Nevada Department of Education

$296,978

NY

New York State Education Department

$2,948,266

OH

Ohio Department of Education

$595,306

OR

Oregon Department of Education

$61,921

PA

Pennsylvania Department of Education

$673,738

RI

Rhode Island Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

$45,248

SD

South Dakota Department of Education

$6,246

TN

State of Tennessee

$256,637

TX

Texas Education Agency

$2,602,879

VA

Virginia Department of Education

$447,300

VI

Virgin Islands Department of Education

$13,623

VT

Vermont Agency of Education

$22,067

WA

Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (WA)

$500,292

WV

West Virginia Department of Education

$79,443

 

 

 

 

Total

$28,483,000