Bloomsburg Area High School

As of 2014, Bloomsburg Area High School offered 4 Advanced Placement (AP) courses at a higher cost than regular courses. Students have the option of taking College Board approved courses and then taking the College Board's examination in the Spring. Students, who achieve at least a certain score on the exam, may be awarded college credits at US universities and colleges. Each higher education institution sets its own standards about what level of credits are awarded to a student based on their AP exam score. At Bloomsburg Area High School, 63% of students who took an AP course earned a 3 or better on the exam.[7]

Bloomsburg Area School District offers a wide variety of clubs, activities and an extensive sports program. The school board sets policies regarding eligibility to participate in these activities.[8][9] Varsity and junior varsity athletic activities are under the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association and the regional Pennsylvania Heartland Athletic Conference.[10] The Pennsylvania Heartland Athletic Conference is a voluntary association of 25 PIAA High Schools within the central Pennsylvania region.

By Pennsylvania law, all K-12 students in the district, including those who attend a private nonpublic school, cyber charter school, charter school and those homeschooled, are eligible to participate in the extracurricular programs, including all athletics. They must meet the same eligibility rules as the students enrolled in the district's schools.[11]

According to Pennsylvania’s Safety in Youth Sports Act, all sports coaches, paid and volunteer, are required to annually complete the Concussion Management Certification Training and present the certification before coaching.[12][13]

Coaches and all those who assist in student activities must have criminal background checks. Like all school district employees, they must also attend an anti child abuse training once every three years.[14][15][16] Coaches receive compensation as outlined in the teachers' union contract. When athletic competition exceeds the regular season, additional compensation is paid.[17]

The District funds:

Middle School Sports

According to PIAA directory July 2012 [18]

Among Pennsylvania's 500 public school districts, graduation requirements widely vary. The Bloomsburg Area School Board has determined that a pupil must earn 27.25 credits to graduate, which are: 4 credits of mathematics, English, social studies, and science; 2 credits of physical education; 1 credit of art/humanities, health, and business tech; 0.5 credit of personal finance; and 0.25 credit of drivers ed. In addition, pupils are required to take electives.[19]

The state has some additional requirements for Bloomsburg students. By Pennsylvania School Board regulations, beginning with the class of 2017, public school students must demonstrate successful completion of secondary level course work in Algebra I, Biology, and English Literature by passing the Keystone Exams.[20][21][22] For the class of 2019, a composition exam was added. In addition, for the class of 2020, passing a civics and government exam will be added to the graduation requirements.[23]

In 2014, the graduation rate at Bloomsburg Area High School was 92%.[24]

In 2014, Bloomsburg Area High School achieved 83.9 out of 100 on the School Performance Profile (SPP). This measurement reflects how many students are on grade level reading, mathematics and science achievement. In reading/literature, 85% of pupils were on grade level. In Algebra 1, 81% showed on grade level skills at the end of the course. In Biology, 73% demonstrated on grade level science understanding at the end of the course.[29][30] Statewide, the percentage of high school students who scored proficient and advanced in Algebra I increased from 39.7% to 40.1%. The percentage of high school students who scored proficient and advanced in reading/literature declined to 52.5%. The percentage of high school students who scored proficient and advanced in biology improved from 39.7% to 41.4%.[31]

Pennsylvania System of School Assessments, commonly called PSSAs are No Child Left Behind Act related examinations which were administered from 2003 through 2012. The exams were administered in the Spring of each school year. In 2013, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania changed its high school assessments to the Keystone Exams in Algebra 1, Reading/literature and Biology1. The exams are given at the end of the course, rather than all in the spring of the student's 11th grade year.[32]

While the SAT is not a required test, it is a common barometer for college admissions, meaning that a significant number of pupils at Bloomsburg opt to take the exams yearly. The chart below is a compilation of the average scores of BAHS students.

According to a Pennsylvania Department of Education study released in January 2009, 19% of Bloomsburg Area School District's graduates required remediation in mathematics and or reading before they were prepared to take college level courses in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education or community colleges.[35] Less than 66% of Pennsylvania high school graduates, who enroll in a four-year college in Pennsylvania, will earn a bachelor's degree within six years. Among Pennsylvania high school graduates pursuing an associate degree, only one in three graduate in three years.[36] Per the Pennsylvania Department of Education, one in three recent high school graduates who attend Pennsylvania's public universities and community colleges takes at least one remedial course in math, reading or English.

US News and World Report ranked 21,000 public high schools in the United States, based on three factors. First, the schools were analyzed for the number of students who achieved above the state average on the reading and math tests. Then they considered how the economically disadvantaged students performed against the state average. Finally, they considered the participation rate and the performance of students in college readiness by examining Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate test data. Bloomsburg Area High School ranked 45th place in Pennsylvania and 1,758th among USA high schools, for a silver medal in 2014. Among Pennsylvania high schools (traditional, charter and private) 56 achieved gold or silver medals. Another 103 high schools achieved bronze rating out of 698 Pennsylvania high schools reviewed.[37] The Bloomsburg Area High School was ranked Silver in 2011 and was listed as #1,560 of all high schools in the nation.[38] In 2009, Bloomsburg Area High School was ranked Bronze. Seventy Pennsylvania high schools achieved bronze, silver or gold rating. Fifty three Pennsylvania high schools achieved bronze.[39] However, In 2013, Bloomsburg was not in the top rankings.[40]

Bloomsburg Area High School and Bloomsburg Area Middle School both took advantage of a state program called Science in Motion which brought college professors and sophisticated science equipment to the school to raise science awareness and to provide inquiry-based experiences for the students. The Science in Motion program was funded by a state appropriation and cost the school nothing to participate.[41] Susquehanna University provided the science enrichment experiences to schools in the region.

Bloomsburg Area High School offers a dual enrollment program. This state program permits high school students to take courses, at local higher education institutions, to earn college credits. Students remain enrolled at their high school. The courses count towards high school graduation requirements and towards earning a college degree. The students continue to have full access to activities and programs at their high school. The college credits are offered at a deeply discounted rate. The state offers a small grant to assist students in costs for tuition, fees and books.[42] Under the Pennsylvania Transfer and Articulation Agreement, many Pennsylvania colleges and universities accept these credits for students who transfer to their institutions.[43] The Pennsylvania College Credit Transfer System reported in 2009, that students saved nearly $35.4 million by having their transferred credits count towards a degree under the new system.[44] Under state rules, other students, that reside in the district, who attend a private school, a charter school or are homeschooled are eligible to participate in this program.[45]

Bloomsburg Area School District students have access to Bloomsburg University's Summer College and Advanced College Experience (ACE) during the summer of their sophomore, junior and senior years (after high school graduation). Tuition is deeply discounted to 75% of the regular student rate.[46] Successful students earn college credits that can be transferred to other Pennsylvania public colleges and universities through the Pennsylvania TRAC system.[47]

The Classroom for the Future state program provided districts with hundreds of thousands of extra state funding to buy laptop computers for each core curriculum high school class (English, Science, History, Math) and paid for teacher training to optimize the computers use. The program was funded from 2006-2009. Bloomsburg Area School District was denied funding in 2006-07. In 2007-08 the district administration did not apply for funding. The district received $83,441 in 2008-09.[48] Among the public school districts in Columbia County, the largest grant was awarded to Berwick Area School District $403,446. The grant program was discontinued by Governor Edward Rendell as part of the 2009-10 state budget.

In 2013, Bloomsburg Area School District did not participate in the state's Safe Schools Targeted Grant. The maximum of $25,000 grants were awarded through a competitive application process.[58] The funds must be used for research based interventions, like: peer mediation, staff training in managing behavioral issues and creating a positive school climate. The School also did not participate in the state's School Resource Officer and Police Officer grant which provided funding to have a police officer in the school.

In 2011, the High School received a $10,000 in grant funding through a Highmark Healthy High 5 grant. There funds were used to purchase equipment to complement existing physical education curriculum and to be able to monitor heart rates and evaluate through fitnessgram testing.[68] Beginning in 2006, Highmark Foundation engaged in a 5-year, $100 million program to promote lifelong healthy behaviors in children and adolescents through local nonprofits and schools.