This past academic year the Manitou Springs student body had 48 AP Scholars. To become an AP Scholar, students must have earned a three or higher on three or more AP exams. After that, an AP Scholar can work to become an AP Scholar with Honor and an AP Scholar with Distinction.
The AP Scholars work hard to earn a 3 or above within their subjects, and they know what a big deal it is to become a scholar. “It’s a huge achievement, really. It shows dedication to school, to our education and it shows that I’m trying to learn what I want to go into,” Noah Rasmusen (12) said.
Not only are the AP Scholars and their teachers excited about their achievements, but so are the administration. “I am thrilled, over the moon excited. I think that it is such a spectacular representation of students’ work ethic across time,” Principal Anna Conrad said.
Teachers enjoy teaching AP students because there isn’t a struggle with motivation. “You have students that are motivated. They’re willing. They want to be there. They’re up to the challenge, at least they think they are. But they’re willing to take on the challenge, which takes a little courage on their part,” Mike Talbott said. “They are my favorite classes in general because you don’t have a motivation problem.”
These students see the positives that can come from students having motivation. “People here genuinely want to be in those classes, they are actively trying to learn and they’re supporting you in that way,” Rasmusen said.
Even with the support, the pre-AP curriculum has room for improvement. “I think we’re missing some other intermittent intermediary courses that would facilitate and help our students get to AP and do better on AP tests,” Talbott said.
Although many students earned a qualifying score last year, the school is working toward having even more students enrolled in AP classes. “We really increased our pass rate last year for AP classes, which I think is a huge testament to the number of not only students taking AP classes and challenging themselves across one or more classes, but also the work of our AP teachers,” Conrad said.
Manitou Springs offers 17 AP classes. CollegeBoard highly encourages open enrollment so any student who feels ready to take an AP class can. “I think it’s fun to have something that challenges you a little bit more than just a basic class. And I think they’re very interesting and fun to take because you’re challenged, but they also make it fun for you, so it’s not a class that you dread” Shaena Vigil (12) said.
