It’s an award that not many have heard about.
Instead of an Oscar-like, gold-plated statue or a wooden “CIF” sports plaque that winners can hoist up in the air and celebrate with, this commendation was delivered digitally.
“No, I’ve never been shown what it looks like,” senior Ethan Castro said after The Accolade showed him the digital award for the first time.
Castro acknowledged he doesn’t check his school email inbox often to read principal Craig Weinreich’s weekly digital newsletters. Had he done that last semester, he would have seen the digital certificate included in the administrator’s Friday, Oct. 4, digital newsletter.
“I’m surprised, surprised that our school’s getting recognized for so many things that we don’t even know about.”
In that initial appearance from Weinreich, the principal also added the following: “SHHS Named AP Honor Roll School!” below a photo-collage recap of the week’s activities on campus.
Underneath Weinreich’s note about the “Honor Roll,” an image of the online certificate was displayed. It had a golden circular stamp labeled “AP HONOR ROLL GOLD” on the top right-hand corner with the College Board logo, an acorn and specifically mentioned Sunny Hills High School as the recipient of the 2024 award.
Castro said he was grateful to see the certificate received, despite its anticlimactic outer appearance.
“I mean, it looks–it’s very plain, but I mean if it’s an award, then it’s something to celebrate,” Castro said.
And that’s what the principal’s intentions were in that digital correspondence after he had received an email from the College Board along with an attachment of the digital certificate.
“It means our students are getting a chance to challenge themselves and take higher-level courses,” Weinreich said, adding this is the school’s second straight year to receive a Gold distinction. “We’ve opened a lot of access to that, so more students can do that; and yeah, we’ve been more successful at it.”
According to the College Board, the AP Honor Roll acknowledgment was launched in 2023 as a new initiative to recognize schools whose AP programs “reflect a commitment to increasing college-going culture, provide opportunities for students to earn college credit and maximize college readiness.”
Moreover, the eligible schools are placed into different levels to acknowledge those that have gone beyond the first set of requirements; those four tiers are “Bronze,” “Silver,” “Gold” and “Platinum.”
For Sunny Hills to reach Platinum status, 456 seniors have to take at least one AP test in their high school career, 285 score a three or higher on at least one exam and 86 take five or more assessments, one of those being in freshman or sophomore year.
These percentages reflect college culture, college credit and college optimization and are anchored in research-based relationships between AP and college outcomes, according to the College Board.
The College Board records 32% of schools registered in the AP program got listed on the AP Honor Roll — 9% reached Bronze, 10% Silver, 7% Gold and 7% Platinum.
Five schools from the Fullerton Joint Union High School District [FJUHSD] contributed to the 32% of schools that received the honor; three met the Bronze requirements while two qualified for Gold.
Out of the five, Troy High School was the other campus to obtain Gold status.
The three other Bronze levels went to Buena Park, Fullerton Union and Sonora high schools. The FJUHSD is yet to have a Silver or Platinum status standing among them.
“Honestly, I’m really happy for Sunny Hills because I feel like this school does a lot that flies under the radar,” said Ethan Hsu, a senior taking seven AP courses this year. “Sometimes it feels like we’re in Troy’s shadow, so to get these recognitions is really good for our school.”
To be the first school in the FJUHSD to reach Platinum status, Hsu suggested increased accessibility and knowledge about AP courses for students to boost the needed percentages.
“If we tried to introduce the idea of what an AP class is earlier on or have programs showing how it is feasible, I think more students will be encouraged to take more courses,” he said. “That’s the main thing that I was nervous about, or else I would’ve taken more APs.”
Social science teacher Robert Bradburn also had an outlook on reaching that top tier.
“I don’t know if our school will earn their Platinum award this coming school year, but in my opinion, all our students who dare to take AP and IB classes should get a Platinum plus award,” Bradburn said. “I wonder how many more students will reach for a new level next year.”
When more students become informed about this recognition, it could also ease their anxiety level of taking an AP course, he said.
“I hope the certificate will encourage more students because there are a lot of students who are afraid of AP and IB [International Baccalaureate] who would find that it’s really not that hard,” Bradburn said. “They’re scared, but they don’t need to be because when they try, they can do amazing things.”
Hsu attested to the potential encouragement the recognition could give to peers, including his past self.
“For me, I was a little intimidated by how hard I thought an AP class would be, so that’s why I didn’t take any my freshman year,” Hsu said. “[Knowing about the award] would have definitely encouraged me to push myself more.”
Castro, who is taking three AP classes this year, is one of the students who agree that Sunny Hills is a part of the top 7%.
“Almost all the students here are taking some sort of honors or AP classes and they’re excelling,” Castro said. “It’s really good that people are recognizing that our school is doing great things here.”
Likewise, senior Alex Rivera, who is taking four AP courses this year, agreed.
“It’s a privilege that you can start taking APs from freshman year,” Rivera said. “Having AP courses as we do really helps us diversify and get a taste of how diverse classes are in college, giving us a chance to experiment.”
As of now, school officials have no plans to do anything more to raise awareness to the student body about the Honor Roll and its tiers, leaving students like Castro in the dark as long as they continue to avoid school emails.
“I mean, the reality is, we weren’t aiming for this [award] here,” Weinreich said. “These are just things that AP measures of AP schools and then sends out recognitions based on; we don’t have a plan in place to say we’re aiming for the Platinum status.”
