Mass Insight Education Welcomes New Schools to AP STEM and English Program at State House Event

BOSTON (September 30, 2016) – Mass Insight Education (MIE), a Boston-based national nonprofit dedicated to improving student achievement and increasing college success through rigorous academic programs, held an event at the Massachusetts State House on Monday to welcome the 10 schools that have joined its highly successful AP STEM and English program this year. The program, which reaches more than 10,000 students at 75+ schools across the Commonwealth, encourages more students and students from diverse backgrounds to take AP classes.

“Every day this program is making a difference,” said Dr. Susan F. Lusi, president and CEO of MIE. “Students are taking hard college courses like AP Statistics and AP Biology and discovering, perhaps for the first time, that they can do college level work; that college is a reality for them.”

Speakers at the event included Secretary of Education Jim Peyser, Speaker of the House Robert DeLeo, Sen. Mike Moore, Rep. Paul Brodeur, and David Adams of the College Board.

Leaders from each of the 10 new schools also were in attendance: Avon Middle-High School (Avon), Ayer Shirley Regional High School (Ayer), Grafton High School (Grafton), Joseph P. Keefe Regional Technical School (Framingham), KIPP Academy Lynn Collegiate (Lynn), Madison Park Technical Vocational High School (Boston), Pathfinder Regional Vocational Technical High School (Palmer), Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High School (Franklin), Urban Science Academy (Boston), and West Roxbury Academy (Boston).

Massachusetts is facing a “degree gap” – according to a recent Massachusetts Department of Higher Education report, college graduation rates are lagging behind state goals, especially for students of color, and by 2022 the overall rate at which young residents earn college degrees will pivot from growth to decline. Currently, more than 50 percent of students at state colleges and universities do not graduate within six years.

Of the 23,000 students who participated in the AP STEM & English program and graduated from high school since the 2008-2009 school year, 78 percent have gone on to attend college – 90 percent of those students have persisted through two years of college, and 81 percent have either graduated from college or are on track to graduate. The numbers are similar for students of color – 88 percent have persisted through two years of college, and 78 percent have either graduated from college or are on track to graduate.

The program is funded through a combination of state, district and philanthropic support.

About Mass Insight Education

Founded in Boston in 1997, Mass Insight Education (MIE) is a national nonprofit at the forefront of education reform. It is dedicated to improving student achievement and increasing college success through bold district restructuring and rigorous academic programs. To close the achievement gap and prepare the leaders of tomorrow, MIE inspires students to go to college, and gives them the academic tools and training they need to thrive and earn a degree. For more information, visit www.www.equitytools.massinsight.org.