LAWRENCE — Thirty-three Central Catholic High School alumni received Advanced Placement Scholar Awards for their achievement on AP exams while at the high school.
More than 150 students at Central Catholic enroll in at least one of the 12 College Board accredited AP Exams offered by the school at 300 Hampshire St. All students enrolled in an AP course are required to take the exam. During the academic year of 2008-2009, 165 students took 233 exams. Out of these, 92 percent of students scored a passing grade and 72 percent achieved a score of four or better, with 50 percent getting a perfect score of five. Nationally, 60 percent of students earn "competency" scores while only 28 percent earn "mastery" scores.
"These excellent results are a tribute to the extraordinary work ethic of our students and the expertise of the school's AP teachers," Principal David DeFillippo said in a statement.
The College Board recognizes several levels of achievement based on students' performance on AP Exams.
At Central Catholic, 10 graduates qualified for the AP Scholar with Distinction Award by earning an average grade of at least 3.5 on all AP exams taken, and grades of 3 or higher on five or more of these exams. They are: Daniel Blackwell (St. Louis University) and Lindsay Fague (Gonzaga University), both of Andover; Robert Taylor (Northeastern University) and Timothy Duty (Emory University), both of Haverhill; Kathleen Murphy (Boston College) and Phillip Picardi (New York University), both of North Andover; Danielle Letayf (Boston University) of Salem, N.H.; and Kathy Tran (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) of Lawrence.
Ten Central Catholic graduates qualified for the AP Scholar with Honor after getting an average grade average of at least 3.25 on all AP Exams taken, and grades of 3 or higher on four or more of these exams.¬ They are: Daniel Bradley (Boston University) Nicholas Forgione (College of the Holy Cross), Justin McDevitt (New York University) and Patrick O'Neil (College of the Holy Cross), all of Haverhill; Alessandra Caruso (George Washington University) of North Andover; Stephanie Tran (Northeastern University) and Lanh Dang (University of Rhode Island), both of Lawrence; Kristen DiGloria (Villanova University) and Christopher Michaud (College of the Holy Cross), both of Methuen.
Central Catholic students completing three or more AP Exams with grades of 3 or higher were: Andrew Buckley (Northeastern University), Alexandria DelRosso (Northeastern University), Matthew Kirkham (Merrimack College), Kayla Shields (Catholic University of America) and Nicole St. Germain (Northeastern University), all of Haverhill; Anthony O'Leary (Rochester Institute of Technology), Emily Gaudiano (Boston College), Amanda DeMarco, Jessica Gurka, and Matthew Perry, all students at Merrimack College and of Methuen; Brian George (University of Michigan) of Andover; Shain Jowett (U.S. Naval Academy) of Atkinson, N.H., and Anna Van Massachusetts (College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences) of Lawrence.
