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Avon High School reports strong graduation, rising AP participation and targeted SAT strategies
Summary
Avon High School principal Matt Shockley told the board the graduation rate is about 97–98%, AP participation rose to 1,070 students (1,965 exams) this year and diploma waivers fell to two. Trustees discussed AP four/five breakdowns and expanding SAT preparation across grades.
Avon High School Principal Matt Shockley presented the high school’s annual academic report June 8, telling the board that graduation rates remain high (about 97–98%) while AP participation and test-taking expanded substantially.
Shockley said the district has seen five years of improvement in students scoring 3 or higher on AP exams through 2025 and reported that this year 1,070 students took AP exams (1,965 exams administered). "Up until 2025, we were having five years of consecutive improvement in regards to students earning a three or above on exam scores," Shockley said. He added that AP participation has grown in 2026 and credited dedicated teachers for growth in AP results.
Shockley also detailed diploma-waiver counts — 11 waivers in 2024, 14 in 2025 and only two this year — crediting school counselors and student-support teams for interventions that kept students from needing waivers. He explained that waivers can affect the district’s graduation-rate calculation and that being below the state waiver threshold (3%) protects the graduation metric.
On the SAT, Shockley reminded the board that under Indiana’s accountability rules graduation rate and SAT results each count 10% toward a school’s overall rating; he noted the SAT now adapts to student responses, which limits item-level question analysis but still provides category-level feedback (for example, "heart of algebra"). Board members asked for a breakdown of AP scores (the number of 4s and 5s) and for data that more precisely profiles the cohort of students who drive small percentage changes (the "bubble" students near benchmark). Shockley committed to providing additional AP breakdowns and described steps to align instruction across grades using performance-level descriptors and targeted supports.
Board members praised teachers and counselors for work on credit recovery and AP programming and encouraged continued emphasis on earlier preparation in grade 9 and 10 to avoid concentrated junior-year "boot-camp" preparation.
