Press Releases

Monterey, Calif. - October 10, 2005 - Thirty-six students at Santa Catalina School have earned the designation of AP Scholar by the College Board in recognition of their exceptional achievement on the college-level Advanced Placement Program® (AP) Exams.

The College Board's Advanced Placement Program offers students the opportunity to take challenging college-level courses while still in high school, and to receive college credit, advanced placement, or both for successful performance on the AP Exams. About 18 percent of the more than one million high school students in more than 15,000 secondary schools worldwide who took AP Exams performed at a sufficiently high level to merit the recognition of AP Scholar.

Students took AP Exams in May 2005 after completing challenging college-level courses at high schools across the country. The College Board recognizes several levels of achievement based on student's performance on AP exams.

Santa Catalina 2005 graduate Shannon McKenna qualified for the National AP Scholar Award by earning an average grade of 4 or higher on a 5-point scale on all AP Exams taken, and a grade of 4 or higher on eight or more of these exams. 

Eleven students qualified for the AP Scholar with Distinction Award by earning an average grade of at least 3.5 on all AP Exams taken, and grades of 3 or higher on five or more of these exams. These students are Kendall Asmuth, Jocelyn Chu, Jennifer Founds, Jessica Hightower, Katherine Kennifer, Christina Korting, Shannon McKenna, Lynsay Peden, Megan Pollacci, Olivia Russell, and Hillary Smith.

Ten students qualified for the AP Scholar with Honor Award by earning an average grade of at least 3.25 on all AP Exams taken, and grades of 3 or higher on four or more of these exams. These students are Sophia Areias, Hiu-Man Chiu, Hayoung Chung, Maria Costa, Louisa Crosby, Kira Frenzen, Kimberly Friedrich, Emily Intersimone, Justyna Maslowska, and Monique Smith.

Fifteen students qualified for the AP Scholar Award by completing three or more AP Examinations, with grades of 3 or higher. The AP Scholars are Bayley Aronson, Michelle Balch, Alexandra Burn, Christina Carnazzo, Hillary Darnell, Katelynn Duffel, Elizabeth Frawley, Minwuk Kim, Catherineros Mountain, Valentina Polyakova, Taylor Riggs, Ariel Robertson, Tara Smith, Farrell Topham, and Miyabi Yu.
Of this year's award recipients at Santa Catalina, six students were juniors: Valentina Polyakova, Ariel Robertson, and Farrell Topham. These students have at least one more year in which to complete college-level work and possibly earn another AP Scholar Award.
 
Most of the nation's colleges and universities award credit, advanced placement, or both based on successful performance on the AP Exams. More than 1,400 institutions award a full year's credit (sophomore standing) to students presenting a sufficient number of qualifying grades. In 2005, thirty-four AP Exams were offered in a wide variety of subject areas, each consisting of multiple-choice and free-response (essay or problem-solving) questions (except for the Studio Art exam which evaluates students' original artwork).

The College Board's mission is to connect students to college success and opportunity. We are a not-for-profit membership organization committed to excellence and equity in education. Founded in 1900, the association is composed of more than 4,700 schools, colleges, universities, and other educational organizations. Each year, the College Board serves over three and a half million students and their parents, 23,000 high schools, and 3,500 colleges through major programs and services in college admissions, guidance, assessment, financial aid, enrollment, and teaching and learning. Among its best-known programs are the SAT(r), the PSAT/NMSQT(r), and the Advanced Placement Program(r) (AP(r)). The College Board is committed to the principles of excellence and equity, and that commitment is embodied in all of its programs, services, activities, and concerns.

Santa Catalina School is dedicated to the education of young people between the ages of 5-18 by giving careful consideration to the individual abilities and potential of each child. The school's mission is to balance intellectual growth with spiritual awareness, creativity with order, and individuality with compassion. Santa Catalina School is enriched by the diversity of socioeconomic, religious, geographic and cultural backgrounds represented by students and faculty. The all-girls Upper School includes boarding students from 16 states and 8 countries. Local students in the co-ed Lower School and the Upper School come from the Central Coast, Gilroy, King City, Santa Cruz, San Jose and Santa Clara.