$21.5 MILLION IN GRANTS AWARDED TO 43 STATES TO COVER FEES CHARGED TO LOW-INCOME STUDENTS FOR TAKING AP TESTS

The U.S. Department of Education today announced the award of more than $21.5 million in grants to 43 states to cover all or part of the fees charged to low-income students for taking Advanced Placement tests.

Based on the anticipated number of test-takers and other factors, the grants under the Advanced Placement Test Fee Program are expected to be sufficient to pay up to $38 per Advanced Placement exam for as many as three exams per student.

“Advanced Placement participation is an important element in creating a college-going culture in our high schools,” said U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan. “AP courses help students develop the study skills, critical reasoning and habits of mind that prepare them for the transition to college. They give students — particularly first-generation college-goers — the confidence that they can successfully handle college-level work.”

By subsidizing test fees for low-income students, the program is intended to encourage those students to take AP tests and obtain college credit for high school courses, reducing the time and cost required to complete a postsecondary degree.

“These funds will help eliminate financial roadblocks for more low-income students and allow them to fully benefit from the AP program,” Duncan said.

The grants can be used to help pay for low-income students taking AP tests administered by the College Board and the International Baccalaureate Organization.

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. Following is a list of the grant recipients.

2012 Discretionary Grants for the Advanced Placement Test Fee Program Office of Elementary and Secondary Education

# State Applicant Amount 1 AK State of Alaska Department of Education and Early Development $16,698 2 AL Alabama Department of Education $198,748 3 AZ Arizona Department of Education $506,352 4 CA California Department of Education $7,603,946 5 CO Colorado Department of Education $653,573 6 CT Connecticut State Department of Education $241,158 7 DE Delaware Department of Education $58,476 8 GA Georgia Department of Education $382,357 9 HI Hawaii State Department of Education $68,152 10 IA Iowa Department of Education $41,576 11 ID Idaho State Department of Education $75,239 12 IL Illinois State Board of Education $1,721,335 13 IN Indiana Department of Education $387,776 14 KS Kansas State Department of Education $85,765 15 KY Kentucky Department of Education $394,457 16 LA Louisiana Department of Education $46,568 17 MA Massachusetts Dept. of Elementary and Secondary Education $388,857 18 MD Maryland State Department of Education $558,611 19 ME State of Maine Department of Education $69,197 20 MI Michigan Department of Education $463,181 21 MO Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education $21,652 22 MS Mississippi Department of Education $187,710 23 MT Montana Office of Public Instruction $67,084 24 NC North Carolina Department of Public Instruction $702,847 25 NE Nebraska Department of Education $20,927 26 NH New Hampshire Department of Education $10,408 27 NJ New Jersey Department of Education $349,294 28 NM New Mexico Public Education Department $102,081 29 NV Nevada Department of Education $248,657 30 NY New York State Education Department $1,605,920 31 OH Ohio Department of Education $284,938 32 OR Oregon Department of Education $352,158 33 PA Pennsylvania Department of Education $487,964 34 RI Rhode Island Department of Elementary and Secondary Education $59,451 35 SD South Dakota Department of Education $9,868 36 TN State of Tennessee $202,006 37 TX Texas Education Agency $2,006,084 38 UT Utah State Office of Education $138,828 39 VA Virginia Department of Education $188,905 40 VI Virgin Islands Department of Education $13,472 41 VT Vermont Department of Education $18,168 42 WA Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction $461,578 43 WV West Virginia Department of Education $52,629

Totals $21,554,651 ###

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