Education Department Expands Funds For Advanced Placement Courses

Jet, Oct 22, 2001

Education Secretary Rod Paige recently announced that thousands of low-income students would have access to Advanced Placement (AP) courses and tests under a new grant program.

The Education Department will give 18 states, the District of Columbia and Guam $6.5 million to share in the AP Incentive Program.

The money will pay for disadvantaged students, particularly in urban areas, to prepare for and take the rigorous academic courses and exams, Secretary Paige said.

In locations where the courses are not generally available, such as rural areas, the grants will pay for the courses to be conducted online.

Students typically pay $78 for each AP test that they take. Successful scores on the examinations can lead to college credit, reports USA Today.

"These grants can help encourage students to challenge themselves and our schools to close the achievement gap between students from disadvantaged backgrounds and their peers," said Paige.

The largest grant in the new program will be awarded to the state of Wisconsin at just under $1 million. New York will receive $890,000 while California finishes in the top three with $800,000.

Among the other states to receive grants are Delaware, Florida, Iowa, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, North Dakota, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Vermont and West Virginia.