High school proposes AP Precalculus course to replace honors precalculus starting 2025-26

Christine Bartzema, a high school math teacher, presented a formal proposal to add AP Precalculus to the Fountain Hills Unified high school curriculum beginning in the 2025–26 school year.

Bartzema said the AP Precalculus course would cover standard precalculus topics — polynomials, exponential and logarithmic functions, systems, complex numbers, induction and trigonometry — with an added AP review near the end of the course. "AP Pre Calc would it's our curriculum. You might just have to add a topic here or there or emphasize more vocabulary for this topic versus this topic," Bartzema said, describing planned adjustments and the use of AP College Board resources, including MyAP Classroom and practice AP tests.

The proposed course would run across three terms (rather than the current two-term honors precalc) to give students more time for topics and an AP review. Bartzema identified prerequisites (Algebra II or honors Algebra II) and said the school would require an AP audit and a syllabus aligned to College Board expectations before implementation. The board confirmed that the district requires AP students to take the AP exam (the exam does not count toward the high school grade but can qualify students for college credit) and discussed likely increases in homework and rigor compared with the honors offering.

District leaders framed the proposal as part of a broader push to expand AP access; the administration noted AP Capstone and other AP offerings have been revived and that adding AP Precalculus would create a fuller AP math pathway (AP Precalculus, AP Calculus AB/BC, AP Statistics). Board members praised the math department and asked for clarity about enrollment, grading and teacher preparation steps before final approval.

If the board proceeds, the course is slated for the 2025–26 academic year pending the College Board audit and final administrative steps.