The number of Frederick County Public Schools’ 2019 graduates who participated in SAT assessments rose significantly compared to 2018. More than 873 additional students took the exam in the 2018-2019 school year, according to data released by the College Board. The rise in the number of test takers brings FCPS to a 95 percent participation rate compared to 64 percent of the district’s class of 2018.
“Increased participation was due to the SAT school-day administration for all FCPS juniors, implemented in spring 2018,” says FCPS State Assessment and Accountability Supervisor Deborah Gilmartin. “Adding SAT administration on a school day was purposeful to increase access to post-secondary education for all students. The FCPS participation rate far exceeded Maryland’s rate of 77 percent.”
Even with 18 points higher participation than Maryland, FCPS continues to outpace scores state and nationwide. Frederick County’s combined score was 1058, which is 17 points higher than Maryland’s score of 1041 and 19 points higher than the nation’s score of 1039. The FCPS Evidenced-Based Reading/Writing score was 529. This is 3 points higher than Maryland’s score of 526 and 5 points higher than the nation’s score of 524. The FCPS math score was 529. This is 14 points higher than Maryland’s and the nation’s scores of 515.
“I am excited to learn our successful efforts to increase students’ participation in SAT testing resulted in test scores that continue to exceed both state and national averages,” said FCPS Superintendent Dr. Terry Alban.
The state and national SAT figures are based on reports from the Maryland State Department of Education. FCPS has posted the SAT data online at: (outdated link removed)