In the last few years, an increasing number of Huntsville High School students have made the decision to participate in advanced placement classes.

Not only have they chosen to participate in the classes — which consist of much more rigorous, college-like subject matter as compared to regular classes — but their scores on the final exams known as “AP Tests” have ranked closely with national averages.

“It’s a program that’s growing,” HHS assessment specialist Colleen McMillian said. “This is my second year to head it up, and I expect to make strides each year.”

McMillian said a total of 123 students took 272 AP Tests in a variety of subjects during the last school year.

“The kids can score anywhere from a one to a five, and we had very few two’s, mostly three’s and four’s, a sprinkling of five’s,” she said. “Both our junior and senior AP English scores and our AP Calculus scores were right up there with the national averages, which is really an excellent thing.”

Students who get high scores on the AP Tests, McMillian said, could gain college credit depending on course requirements.

“A lot of junior colleges will accept three’s for course credit,” she said. “If their college doesn’t award course credit, the student could still receive an elective credit.”

Even students who make lower grades on the test still benefit from taking an advanced placement course, McMillian said.

“If they only score a one or a two, they’ve still been exposed to a more rigorous curriculum than a regular class,” she said. “Even without having taken the test, their college performance is still higher in the long run.”

This year, McMillian said students have already shown a strong interest in advanced placement options.

“All of our freshmen pre-AP classes are full, so it’s going pretty well so far,” she said. “They literally have wall to wall kids which is great. We definitely saw an increase and we’re really pleased.”

In an effort to facilitate more interest in advanced placement courses, the Advancement via Individual Determination Program (AVID) was initiated this semester.

The program provides students with the tutoring needed to handle more advanced courses and requires them to enroll in at least one of the classes.

“The AVID Program is for servicing those kids that are in the middle,” McMillian said. “Maybe they come from a first-generation college family, or maybe they just lack the skills needed in the more rigorous classes.

“Either way, they’re bright enough to be successful, they’re just often overlooked.”

McMillian said she and others involved in the program started looking for students who would benefit from the program last spring during the TAKS tests.

“If a kid has the intelligence to pass TAKS, then they have skills necessary to be successful in the pre-AP classes,” McMillian said. “We’re trying to get them involved earlier, and what we’re hoping is that when they see they can be successful with pre-AP classes, they’ll continue to step up to a more rigorous curriculum.”

In addition to looking at students’ grades, McMillian said their personalities are also taken into account.

“Anytime we have a chance to visit with kids on discipline issues, we look at their grades and performance,” she said. “If part of the reason they’re distracted is because they’re not being challenged, the program could benefit them, too.”

McMillian said she hopes more students will take advantage of the advanced placement program each year.

“Even if they don’t test, which we encourage them to do, it’s still the exposure to the curriculum,” she said. “We’re really excited about it.”