The Department of Education Wednesday announced $28.4 million in grants to assist low-income students with the costs associated with taking Advanced Placement (AP) Exams.
The grants, which will be available for students in 38 states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands, will seek to encourage students across the country to not just enroll in higher level courses, but to take (and pass) the tests, which could grant them college credit and reduce the time and expense associated with obtaining a college degree.
“Participation in the course isn’t enough,” said John King, senior adviser delegated duties of deputy secretary of education. “We want students to be able to pass the test” and get college credit for their efforts.
King sees the grants as a vehicle for not only expanding opportunities in high school, but for expanded success in college as well.
“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,” he said.
“We want to see a college-going culture in all of our students, and we particularly want to see that culture … in our low-income students and in our African-American and Latino students,” said King.
But Akil Bello, director of strategic initiatives at The Princeton Review, said he is not sure the announcement will mean more low-income students and students of color in college.
