Freshman History AP Course Removed from Prep Curriculum: Hawk Honors Program to Replace

As of this school year, a popular course was removed from the Program of Studies here at the Prep. Commonly referred to as “HUG,” a history class called AP Human Geography was offered to freshmen who met the score requirement on the entrance exam. At the Prep, lots of stigma was held against the course. Students often complained about tedious vocabulary homework and difficult tests and quizzes. According to the Prep’s website,“The purpose of the course is to introduce students to the systematic study of patterns and processes that have shaped human understanding, use, and alteration of Earth's surface.”, the class mainly focuses on identifying trends of humans, and understanding why they made the choices they did. HUG tasks students to dig deeper and apply what they know, and this can trip a lot of freshmen up. This academic rigor builds up to the AP exam, where students are given multiple choice questions and free response questions. Exams are scored on a one to five scale, one being the worst, five being the highest. Three and up is a passing score, and many students do not pass. “The 2025 mean score was a 3.14, the first exam with a passing average since 2003,” says the College board. Even if a student manages to squeeze out a passing score, a lot of colleges don’t accept HUG as credit. The whole point in taking an Advanced Placement course is to get out of introductory level classes in college, and HUG does not check that box. Schools such as Duke, Penn, Georgetown, and Yale don’t offer exemption. 

In replacement, the Prep is offering tons of new classes to this year's freshman(Class of 2030), and will hopefully be offered for years to come. A program titled “The Hawk Honors Program,” which includes all honors level courses, with a new level called Honors Experience. “The three classes listed as Honors Experience constitute an interdisciplinary, team-taught class with three teachers, one per discipline,” says the Prep Website. This teaching style is new and unlike something the Prep has ever seen before. This program is a four year path at the Prep, and if stuck with for the full duration of a student's time here, he will have taken eleven AP courses. If a student decides not to embark on the Honors Program journey, there are still new classes. Honors World History and Honors Biology are now offered to incoming freshmen who meet the prerequisites. In conclusion, APHUG may have been removed, but it was replaced with a meaningful program that will impact the development of the students at the Prep for the better.