“Someone came in to school [and] talked with us about AP classes. She showed me the apple on my profile…[where] a teacher said they thought I could take it [an AP class]…that was the point where I was like, ‘If …

“I’m glad I took an AP class because I got to meet new people from different countries.” As a 10th grader, Catalina had primarily only heard negative things about Advanced Placement (AP) courses at this Chicagoland high school. Even with …

“I discipline myself to work hard no matter what academic obstacle comes my way. I had little to no education freshman year, if anything it was poor since there was no money to ship books and materials to me, and …

AP is a lot of work, but it does help you in a lot of ways too — you feel safe, you feel much safer for your future, you feel more comfortable knowing that if you do this and you …

“I am a very good student with a lot of potential.” As an incoming 10th grader, Dora was concerned that her courses weren’t challenging and was interested in taking upper-level courses. She carried a 2.89 GPA, but she didn’t believe …

“At the time, I played football and one of the guys [on the AP student panel], played football too. I looked up to [and] knew he wouldn’t lead me in the wrong direction. So, I told myself, ‘You know what, …

“Teachers and peers see your grades, and say, ‘Oh, you do really good, you should consider AP,’ and you take that advice because you know them on a personal level and you trust them.” Cecilia had heard about AP in …

“The only regret I have is not taking [AP] earlier in high school.”  By the spring of his junior year of high school, Bruno knew that he was interested in pursuing an advanced degree and a career in math or …

“I try to get A’s because I know I’m capable of doing it.” When Anna, an immigrant from Mexico City, first arrived at a Chicago suburb High School for 9th grade, she was placed in all “shelter” classes reserved for …