AHA Earns AP® Computer Science Female Diversity Award

 The Academy of the Holy Angels has received the College Board AP® Computer Science Female Diversity Award for achieving high female representation in AP Computer Science A. AHA is one of just 232 schools that were recognized in the AP Computer Science A category. Honorees are closing the gender gap in AP Computer Science courses.

Holy Angels offers young women an award-winning, nationally recognized STREAM curriculum that integrates science, technology, religion, engineering, art, and math. As a Female Diversity Award recipient, AHA is considered an inspiration and model for all American high schools, where overall, female students remain under-represented in computer science classes, comprising just 34% of AP Computer Science Principles participants.

AP Computer Science A students learn to design and implement computer programs that solve problems relevant to today’s society. Nationally, the number of female AP CSA exam-takers has grown steadily, up nearly 25% since 2017. Overall AP computer science course participation has increased 79% since 2017, broadening STEM career opportunities for more students.

“AHA’s students need the power to shape technology, not just cope with it,” said Stefanie Sanford, College Board chief of global policy and external relations. “Young women deserve an equal opportunity to become the next generation of entrepreneurs, engineers and tech leaders. Closing the gap in computer science education empowers young women to build the future they want.”

Providing female students with access to computer science courses is critical to ensuring gender parity in the industry’s high-paying jobs and to drive innovation, creativity, and representation. A code.org analysis of 2017 Bureau of Labor Statistics data finds women represent just 24% of the five million people in computing occupations. However, new College Board research about AP CSP indicates that female students who take AP CSP in high school are more than five times as likely to major in computer science in college, compared to similar female students who did not take CSP. The study also finds AP CSP students are nearly twice as likely to enroll in AP CSA, and that AP CSP serves as a stepping-stone to other advanced AP STEM coursework.

Founded by the School Sisters of Notre Dame in 1879, the Academy of the Holy Angels is the oldest private girls’ school in Bergen County. While AHA is steeped in Catholic tradition, this prestigious high school serves young women from a broad spectrum of cultural and religious backgrounds. Over time, thousands of women have passed through AHA’s portals. Many go on to study at some of the nation’s best universities, earning high-ranking positions in medicine, government, law, education, public service, business, arts, and athletics. The Academy’s current leaders continue to further the SSND mission to provide each student with the tools she needs to reach the fullness of her potential—spiritually, intellectually, socially, and physically, by offering a first-rate education in a nurturing environment where equal importance is placed on academic excellence, character development, moral integrity, and service to others.