College Board

Guess who flunked the SAT?The College Board itself.Admitting it made a mistake in a math problem, the organization that oversees the Scholastic Assessment Test, the most widely used college admissions exam, is adjusting the scores of 45,000 students -- upward, by as much as 30 points.The mistake was detected by a student who alerted the College Board and the Educational Testing Service, which devises the questions, that an algebra item had more than one correct answer, depending on how part of it was interpreted.

Not surprising to any parent receiving a tuition bill, but the College Board reports that the cost of college continues to dramatically increase. Worse, funding from cash-strapped states haven't kept up with growing enrollments. According to the College Board, an advocacy group promoting higher education,  in-state tuition, fees and room and board at public four-year schools averaged $17,131 for the current academic year, up 6 percent for the year before. Out-of-state total costs at public institutions rose 5.2 percent to $29,657.

Anne Arundel Community College students may not have to walk a mile for their Camel, but they may have to go at least 50 feet from the main entrance of any campus building to smoke it.The Anne Arundel Community College board of trustees is considering revisions to the college's smoking policy that would prohibit smoking in all campus buildings and within 50 feet of main entrances, effective Feb. 1.Last night, the trustees deadlocked 3-3 on a vote to approve...

Concerned about the academic achievement of students at Baltimore City Community College, Gov. Martin O'Malley has overhauled its board of trustees, replacing the majority of its members. "The governor has been monitoring the overall situation at BCCC, particularly student achievement and the relationships between faculty, students and administration," said Raquel Guillory, a spokeswoman for the governor. "The governor has been disappointed with the lack of progress, and he believes now is the time to infuse the board with new leadership.

Anne Arundel County schools Superintendent Eric J. Smith has been elected chairman of the College Board, continuing his emergence as a national figure in the education community. Smith, who has been a member of the nonprofit organization's board of trustees since 2000, becomes only the second schools superintendent to hold the two-year unpaid post. Traditionally, the board has been led by post-secondary education officials. The College Board, a membership association of more than 4,200 schools and colleges, administers the SAT college entrance exam and created the Advanced Placement Program.

Four graduates of South Carroll High School's Class of 1994 have been named Advanced Placement (AP) scholars by the College Board for outstanding achievement on the college-level Advanced Placement Examination.T. Paul Callis qualified for the AP Scholar with Honor award by earning a grade of three or above on four or more AP examinations, with an average grade of 3.25.Elizabeth Mariner, Michael O'Connell and Douglas Zwiselsberger won AP Scholar Awards by completing three or more AP Examinations with grades of three or higher.

John Cornillon, an English teacher at Harbor City High School, an alternative school in Baltimore, is one of six teachers in the nation who have been awarded the first College Board Bob Costas Grants for the Teaching of Writing. Cornillon will receive a $2,000 grant for his methods to inspire students and develop their writing skills. He will be recognized Feb. 16 at the College Board's Middle States Regional Forum in Philadelphia. The award was named for Bob Costas, a broadcaster and author, for his work on behalf of the College Board's National Commission on Writing.

Anne Arundel County schools Superintendent Eric J. Smith has been elected chairman of the College Board, continuing his emergence as a national figure in the education community. Smith, who has been a member of the nonprofit organization's board of trustees since 2000, becomes only the second schools superintendent to hold the two-year unpaid post. Traditionally, the board has been led by post-secondary education officials. The College Board, a membership association of more than 4,200 schools and colleges, administers the SAT college entrance exam and created the Advanced Placement Program.

Holly McGreevy was in the top 5 percent of her class at North Harford High School, took honors and Advanced Placement courses and studied for the Scholastic Assessment Test by reading through the sample test booklet provided by the College Board.But during the drive to the test site, she panicked."My friend was quizzing me with vocabulary words from handmade flash cards during the trip," she said. "It made me feel really stupid because I didn't know any of the words."The College Board, the organization that administers the SAT, says this type of cramming the morning of the test isn't the right thing to do. It will only stress students.

Baltimore County public schools and the College Board are expected to enter into an alliance today - the first effort of its kind in Maryland - to help students better prepare for college and the often rigorous admissions process. Under the agreement, scheduled to be signed this morning, all sophomores at the county's public high schools would take the PSAT, a preliminary version of the standardized college test, next month. The pact also includes provisions for test analysis, workshops for students, teachers, parents and counselors and expanded Advanced Placement course offerings.

Baltimore County school officials are baffled by a 24-point drop in SAT scores for 2011 seniors, the sharpest decline in the Baltimore area in results released this week by the College Board. "It's always devastating, because you would like to keep a constant upward trajectory," Assistant Superintendent Barbara Walker said Thursday. "We were surprised, because it was a very smart class that pulled in a record amount of scholarship dollars. " Average critical reading scores on the test, considered an indicator of college readiness, dropped from 492 to 486, average math scores dropped from 499 to 490 and average writing scores dropped from 492 to 483. The county was below the state and national averages in every area.

Maryland's graduating seniors scored slightly lower on the SATs this year, mirroring a national trend that the College Board attributed to an increase in the number and diversity of students who take the tests. This year nearly three-quarters of Maryland graduating seniors took the test — considered an indicator of college readiness — and nearly half were minorities. The students were from all schools, including public, parochial and independent, as well as home-schooled. The mean Maryland SAT scores in math dropped by 3 points to 502 from 2010 and remains significantly below the national average of 514, but the critical reading score of 499 and the writing score of 491 are above the national average.

Some programs would be embarrassed that their leading scorer is 25 years old, but not Stevenson lacrosse coach Paul Cantabene. He calls attackman Steve Kazimer one of the school's greatest success stories. Nearly six years ago, Kazimer had struggled academically and torn an anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee during his first year at Onondaga Community College in Syracuse, N.Y. He then worked for a while with his dad in the heating and air conditioning business before getting a phone call from Cantabene about returning to college.

Maryland again ranks first in the nation in the percentages of high school seniors taking and passing Advanced Placement exams, according to a report released Wednesday by the College Board. Maryland surpassed longtime leader New York last year and has improved its numbers since then, with 24.8 percent of high school seniors earning a score of 3 or higher on one AP test compared to 23.4 percent the previous year. Maryland also became the first state in which more than 40 percent of seniors took at least one AP exam.

Maryland again ranked first in the nation in the percentages of high school seniors taking and passing Advanced Placement exams, according to a report released Wednesday by the College Board. Maryland surpassed longtime leader New York last year and has improved its numbers since then, with 24.8 percent of high school seniors earning a score of 3 or higher on one AP test compared to 23.4 percent the previous year. Maryland also became the first state in which more than 40 percent of seniors took at least one AP exam.

Despite already high tuition, Howard Community College's trustees are preparing to raise the rates in order to give faculty members at the growing college a pay raise next fiscal year. College board Chairman T. James Truby said with state and county revenues flat or falling, the only way the college can avoid forcing instructors to go without even a minimal cost-of-living increase for a second year is by increasing the $114-per-credit tuition charge perhaps as much as $5 a credit.

THE BALTIMORE COUNTY Community College Board of Trustees last week presented the County Council with an $80 million budget that includes $1.15 million for a free-standing child care building at Dundalk Community College.But Dundalk already has a child care facility in one of its buildings, and Chancellor Daniel J. LaVista has described the school as "overbuilt." Nonetheless, the board said, Dundalk must have a free-standing child care facility because it is the only one of the county's three community colleges that doesn't.

WASHINGTON - The cost of higher education across the United States has risen more than 40 percent over the past 10 years, according to a study released yesterday by the College Board. The annual report, "Trends in College Pricing," said declines in state funding, endowments and fund raising contributed to soaring tuition costs at four-year public and private universities. "In a troubled economy, colleges are faced with ... holding down prices without sacrificing educational quality," said Gaston Caperton, president of the College Board, a nonprofit group that owns the SAT, a standardized test that many colleges require for admission.

Alexander Gray "Sandy" Jones, a retired Somerset County lawyer who had been a civil rights activist, public school advocate and a longtime member of the board of visitors and governors at Washington College, died Saturday of multiple organ failure at his Chestertown home. He was 82. Mr. Jones, the son of a lawyer and homemaker, was born and raised in Princess Anne. After graduating from Princess Anne High School in 1945, he served in the Army during the waning days of World War II. After the war, he attended Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and Salisbury State before transferring to Washington College, where he earned a bachelor's degree in 1951.