AP enrollment soars; principal credits new schedule

TRUMBULL — Principal Todd Manuel credits a revised bell schedule with contributing to the rising enrollment in AP courses by Trumbull High students.

“We have actually seen an increase in our enrollment in these classes, partially I think due to the new bell schedule, but also because students have the opportunity for access and choice that they have not had before,” he said.

Manuel gave a presentation at a Board of Education meeting Oct. 10 and shared that enrollment in advanced placement courses has increased by over 150 percent since the 2015-16 school year.

Manuel reported that 1,500 students have enrolled in AP courses for the 2023-24 school year compared the 2015-16 academic year, which showed only 590 students enrolled.

The school currently offers 27 AP courses and, following a two-year decline to 1,294 students participating last year, rebounded this year, according to the presentation.

The current eight-period, drop-two schedule was approved by the Board of Education in late 2022, and was adopted to provide more instruction time for teachers and fewer classes each day for students.

Students can now choose up to eight courses, of which they attend six each day on a rotating basis. The schedule adds more instructional time by 22 minutes, without lengthening the school day.

“I’m proud to say we have 27 opportunities at the high school for AP,” Manuel said. “That is a significant amount of opportunities, and none of those opportunities are new for this school year.”

Manuel also presented data that showed 1,277 AP exams were administered last year, the most since 2016-17. According to Manuel, 72 percent of students who took the AP test passed with scores of three and over on a five-point scale.

“This past school year, we administered more exams than we ever have before and we had more individual exam scores in the 3+ range than we ever had before,” he said.

“I think that’s a tremendous compliment and it really does speak to the approach not only of the school, but the commitment our community has made to offering these types of courses and offering support for students to find success with these courses.”

The district’s SAT performance in 2023 ranked the thirdhighest after districts Region 9 and Fairfield.

According to U.S. News and World Report, Trumbull High School is ranked 19th in the state and ninth among Bridgeport Metro Area Schools.

“The data shows that Trumbull students are doing exceptionally well when compared to our DRG B peers and surrounding schools,” said Superintendent Martin Semmel.

“As we move forward the district is working with our talented teachers to further refine our curriculum and provide new courses.”