CMCSS Gets $1.6 Million Grant to Expand AP Program

?DALLAS – The National Math and Science Initiative (NMSI), a non-profit organization launched in 2007 to transform math and science education in the United States, announced today that its highly successful Advanced Placement* (AP) program for military families is being expanded this fall to Clarksville High School, Northeast High School, and Rossview High School, near Fort Campbell in Tennessee, thanks to a grant from the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA).
“This innovative program can open doors to college for so many more students by providing them with more rigorous, project-based coursework to help them succeed in the highly competitive fields of science, technology, engineering, and math,” said Sara MartinezTucker, CEO of the National Math and Science Initiative. “The partnership with these high schools will help make a huge impact on young students’ lives.”
A special event was held today at The Ann Hunter Board Room in the schools’ central administrative offices, to announce the expansion of the NMSI program to these three schools in fall 2013. NMSI’s AP program for military families is currently in 52 schools in 15 states. Next year, further expansion is anticipated to reach more than 70 schools in 18 states.
“The school district and our community have joined in a commitment to encourage our students to take more rigorous courses. As a result, we have seen an increase in both enrollment and success in Advanced Placement classes,” said Dr. B.J. Worthington, Director of Clarksville-Montgomery County School System. “This grant, however, will take us to a much broader and deeper level of participation by students, teachers and administrators. This grant allows us to better prepare our students to be college or career ready.”
The addition of these high schools was made possible by a $1,667,330 grant from DoDEA who has awarded nearly $10 million total in grant funds to NMSI for its AP program supporting military families. DoDEA’s mission is to plan, direct, coordinate, and manage education programs for eligible dependents of U.S. military personnel and civilian personnel of the Department of Defense.
“DoDEA is proud to be able to provide grants and partner with NMSI’s AP program for military families,” said Adrian B. Talley, DoDEA’s Deputy Director. The expansion of this program for students attending
Clarksville High School, Northeast High School, and Rossview High School opens a new level of opportunity and possibility for children of military families and their peers to excel in math and science. This investment in the AP program for math and science is truly transformational and innovative and raises the bar academically in our public schools. The results are proven, consistent and speak for themselves – in the schools that have been supported by DoDEA’s NMSI AP grant funds, students have increased the number of qualifying AP scores by more than 60 percent,” Mr.Talley said.
College Board results for high schools participating in the military families program during the 2011-12 school term showed a 64 percent increase in qualifying scores on AP math, science, and English exams. The increase in AP math and science scores alone was 85 percent — nine times the national average.
Although NMSI’s AP program targets schools serving military dependents, the program is open to all students in participating high schools who are eligible for AP classes. Program components include study sessions outside of normal school hours as well as intense training for grades 6-12 teachers who will build the pipeline of students who are AP-ready. Access to the college-level AP courses not only gives students the opportunity to earn college credit, but also increases their chances of succeeding in college. Students who pass an AP exam are three times more likely to complete their college education.
Inaugural funding to launch NMSI’s program for military families was provided by Lockheed Martin Corporation. Major funding to expand the program to more schools is being provided by the Army Education Outreach Program, BAE Systems, The Boeing Company, the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA), Exxon Mobil Corporation, the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, the Office of Naval Research, and Northrop Grumman.
NMSI is leading this public-private effort in partnership with the Military Child Education Coalition (MCEC), the Military Impacted Schools Association (MISA), and the White House Joining Forces campaign to support military families. About National Math and Science Initiative: NMSI, a non-profit organization, was launched in 2007 by top leaders in business, education, and science to transform education in the United States. NMSI has received national recognition for training K-12 teachers and improving student performance through the rapid expansion of these highly successful programs: NMSI AP program, NMSI Teacher Training program, and UT Austin’s UTeach program. NMSI’s AP program dramatically increases the number of students taking and passing AP math, science, and English exams, and expands access to traditionally underrepresented students and students in military families. NMSI’s Teacher Training program has trained over 60,000 teachers to deliver more rigorous lessons in the classroom and was selected by PARCC as a premier partner to deliver common core teacher training. The UTeach program, which is now in 35 universities in 17 states, will produce a new generation of content-trained teachers that will impact millions of students in the next decade. Inaugural funding for NMSI, was provided by the Exxon Mobil Corporation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation.
For more information, please visit www.nms.org.
*Advanced Placement and AP are registered trademarks of the College Board.
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