- Five Alachua County high schools were named to the 2025 AP Honor Roll by the College Board for increasing access and success in AP exams.
- Buchholz and Eastside high schools earned Gold Status, with Eastside having 87% of seniors taking AP tests and Buchholz 70%.
- Gainesville and PAM at Loften received Silver status, while Santa Fe earned Bronze status on the 2025 AP Honor Roll.
- Buchholz and Eastside achieved Platinum recognition in two categories, reflecting high AP participation and passing rates among students.
Five Alachua County Public Schools (ACPS) high schools were recently named to the 2025 Advanced Placement (AP) Honor Roll by the College Board.
According to an ACPS release, Buchholz, Eastside, Gainesville, Professional Academies Magnet (PAM) at Loften and Santa Fe high schools all made the Honor Roll, with Buchholz and Eastside earning Gold Status.
On its website, the College Board, which administers the AP program, said the Honor Roll program “recognizes schools whose AP programs are delivering results for students while broadening access.” Schools can earn the recognition annually based on criteria that reflect a commitment to increasing college-going culture, providing opportunities for students to earn college credit and maximizing college readiness. The program provides four levels of recognition – Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum.
“The AP School Honor Roll recognizes schools that have done outstanding work to welcome more students into AP courses and support them on the path to college success,” said Trevor Packer, College Board’s head of AP and Instruction.
According to the release, the schools are recognized on three criteria: the percentage of all full-time graduating seniors who took an AP test, the percentage who earned a score of three or above on an AP exam (which results in college credit) and the percentage who took at least five AP courses, including at least one as a freshman or sophomore.
For a school to achieve Gold Status, at least 65% of its graduating seniors must have taken an AP exam, with at least 35% having passed and 10% or more taking five or more AP exams, with one of those exams taken in ninth or 10th grade.
The release stated that Eastside and Buchholz “were well above those standards,” with 87% of the graduating seniors at Eastside taking an AP test before graduating, 45% passing and 47% taking five or more exams. For Buchholz, those numbers were 70%, 61% and 27%.
Gainesville and PAM at Loften earned Silver status for 2025, while Santa Fe earned Bronze status.
The College Board also announced the status each of the schools earned in each of the three categories. All five of the local high schools received higher status in one or two individual categories.
Buchholz and Eastside earned Platinum recognition for two of the three categories; Gainesville and PAM at Loften received a Platinum and a Gold, and Santa Fe earned two Silvers.
“This recognition confirms that our district is providing students the access and support they need to be successful in higher-level courses such as AP,” interim Superintendent Kamela Patton said in the ACPS release. “The result is that our students are better prepared for college and the workplace.”