Fayette County SAT Performance in Top 25 Percent of State

2010 SAT scores of Georgia high schools released Monday by The College Board show that all five of Fayette County high schools finished in the top 25 percent.

Both McIntosh and Starr’s Mill finished in the top 5 percent with average scores of 1624 and 1617, respectively. Whitewater, with an average score of 1518, posted in the top 14 percent; Fayette County, with an average score of 1491, ranked in the top 16 percent; and Sandy Creek, with an average score of 1436, finished in the top 24 percent.

Out of the 438 high schools on the list, McIntosh had the 23rd highest average score followed by Starr’s Mill at 25; Whitewater, 60; Fayette County High, 69; and Sandy Creek, 104.

It is important to note that many of the schools on the list had under 100 students tested compared to Fayette with between 192 and 329 test takers at each school.

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Fayette County SAT Participation Increases, Scores Top State and Nation

With a gain in the number of students taking the test, Fayette County's 2010 high school graduates topped the average scores of both the state and nation on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT), according to results released today by the College Board.

Fayette’s students posted an overall average score of 1547 – 94 points above that of the state and 38 points over the national average.

The breakdown of Fayette’s scores is as follows: 520 critical reading, 524 mathematics and 503 writing. Fayette outscored both the state and the nation in all test sections. The county’s score is 32 points above the state and 19 points above the nation in critical reading, 34 above the state and 8 above the nation in mathematics and 28 above the state and 11 above the nation in writing.

Nearly 3 percent more graduates took the test in 2010; participation totaled 1,358. The number of test takers has steadily declined since 2008. Participation went from 1,480 (the highest in the last five years) in 2007 to 1,394 in 2008; a 5.8 percent decrease. The decline continued in 2009 with 1,320 high school graduates tested, a 5.3 percent decrease.

Both McIntosh and Starr’s Mill High had the highest average scores in the county with 1624 and 1617, respectively. Fayette County High had the highest average score increase with 1491, a 39-point jump from 2009. Whitewater High also saw an increase with a score of 1518, up 17 points from 2009. Sandy Creek High posted an average score of 1436.

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Number of Fayette County Scholarship Semifinalists Almost Double

The number of semifinalists for the 2010 National Merit Scholarship Program has nearly doubled from last year.

A total of 13 seniors from Fayette County, McIntosh, Starr’s Mill and Whitewater high schools are among the approximately 16,000 semifinalists nationwide competing in the 55th annual National Merit Scholarship Program. Last year seven Fayette students were semifinalists.
The 2010 semifinalists are (Fayette County High) Sonika Reddy; (McIntosh High) Lauren Anderson, Christopher Hrvoj, Nicholas Marette, Timothy Morris, Martine van Voorthuysen, Matthew Winn, Shawn Yavari; (Starr’s Mill High) George Hagler, Jessica Lambing, Kathryn McCord, Elliot Tanner; (Whitewater High) Patrick Loeffler.

These scholastically talented high school seniors have the opportunity to continue in the competition for some 8,200 Merit Scholarship awards worth $35 million that will be offered next spring. To be considered for a Merit Scholarship award, semifinalists must fulfill several requirements and advance to the finalist level of the competition. About 90 percent of the semifinalists are expected to become finalists, and approximately half of the finalists will be selected as Merit Scholarship winners.

More than 1.5 million juniors in nearly 22,000 U.S. high schools entered the 2010 National Merit Program by taking the 2008 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT), which served as an initial screen of program entrants. The nationwide pool of semifinalists, which represents less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors, includes the highest scoring entrants in each state. The number of semifinalists in a state is proportional to the state’s percentage of the national total of graduating seniors.

To become a finalist, a semifinalist must have an outstanding academic record throughout high school, be endorsed and recommended by the school principal and earn SAT scores that confirm the student’s earlier qualifying test performance. The semifinalist and a school official must submit a detailed scholarship application, which includes the student’s self-descriptive essay and information about the semifinalist’s participation and leadership in school and community activities.

Merit scholarship winners of 2010 will be announced April-July.

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Fayette County SAT Scores Rise, Tops State and Nation

Fayette County's 2009 high school graduates topped the average scores of last year’s graduating seniors, resulting in an increase for the second consecutive year on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT), according to results released today by the College Board. The county’s increase comes as both state and national averages decrease.

Fayette County students posted an overall average score of 1555 – 4 points above last year’s average, 95 points above that of the state and 46 points over the national average. While Fayette’s average score increased, the state’s score fell 6 points from last year and the national average dipped two points.

“We are very pleased with how our students performed on the SAT and are proud of the hard work that they and their teachers, administrators and parents put into raising our overall average for the second year in a row. Once again Fayette’s score is above both the state and national average. While Fayette’s scores are high, there is room for improvement. We will continue to work toward raising our scores by researching methodologies and measures that will help all of our students perform at their personal best,” says Superintendent John DeCotis.

The breakdown of Fayette’s scores is as follows: 519 critical reading, 529 mathematics and 507 writing. Fayette outscored both the state and the nation in all test sections. The county’s score is 29 points above the state and 18 points above the nation in critical reading, 38 above the state and 14 above the nation in mathematics and 28 above the state and 14 above the nation in writing.

A total of 1,320 high school graduates took the SAT in Fayette. Both McIntosh and Starr’s Mill High tied for 16th place in the state with the highest scores.

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