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Two Valley schools receive College Board recognition
By kalea hall
Senior students Julie Genel and Adam Weiss both hope to have their names printed on their math teacher’s wall for scoring perfect on the advanced-placement calculus test, just like several other former Canfield High School students.
Their teacher is confident he will have to make space on the wall for their names.
“These two will get fives,” said Carl Pennington, their math teacher.
Canfield and Boardman high schools both received the fourth annual Advanced Placement District Honor Roll award from the College Board, a title only 477 schools across the nation received — 30 schools in Ohio — for increasing participation in AP courses and test scores. Five Canfield students received the AP Scholar award for passing three or more AP tests with a score of 3 or higher; and four students received the AP Scholar with Honor award for receiving an average score of 3.2 or higher on all AP exams taken and a score of 3 or higher on four or more of the exams.
“All of those countries you hear that are at the top of their math performances, these students compete with,” Pennington said.
Canfield Principal John Tullio has progressively added AP classes to the curriculum at Canfield High School for the past six years.
He started with two classes, and now, the high school offers 11 AP courses from art to English and calculus.
Tullio said the students not only receive college credit for scoring high on the test, but just for simply taking the course.
Colleges “wanted to see students have taken a rigorous course of study,” Tullio said. “It shows the students are really prepared.”
Weiss, 18, is one of those students who knows he has to be prepared for the future, and AP courses will help him be prepared for the rigorous college courses he will take. He is enrolled in AP calculus, biology, physics and English, and he takes an online computer-science course. Last year, he took the U.S. history and chemistry AP tests and scored a 5, a perfect score, on both.
He applied for the biomedical sciences program at Ohio State University.
“Each class brings something different to the table,” Weiss said. He is taking them “just to be well-rounded.”
Weiss said his heavy course load is not what takes up most of his time since he also is on the swim team, newspaper staff and is the president of his youth group.
Genel, 17, plans to study chemical engineering at OSU, which is why she chose to get involved in AP courses. She is in AP calculus, physics, English and U.S. government.
“It is difficult and rigorous, but if you stay motivated, it is worth it in the long run,” she said.
Pennington already has seen several of his former students move on to go into the medical field.
“I know that you are going to be very successful,” he said. “They achieved all of their dreams. That’s why I am so confident in you guys.”
Boardman High assistant principal and AP coordinator Dave Kornbau echoed the same belief of AP courses benefiting students in various ways. The high school has eight such course offerings.
Kaye Moyer, 16, a junior at Boardman High, has two AP courses this year, government and English. She feels fortunate to go to a public school that encourages its students to take AP courses.
“I think it’s important to challenge oneself and do the best for the future, and these classes allow that,” Moyer said. “I feel blessed to be here.”