There are many exciting things to look forward to in the meantime. Here’s a look at upcoming events:

Our Annual Ball, AP of St. Petersburg’s major fundraiser, will be held April 24 at the Renaissance Vinoy Resort. Some of our best and brightest students will be on hand to greet and interact with the hundreds of guests that will attend. The eight students who will be in attendance have been handpicked for their accomplishments while at AP. We are proud of our students and want to showcase them at this key event.

On April 29, our first-ever Student-led Conference will be held on campus. This event gives parents and family members the opportunity to share in their children’s academic growth and achievements through the portfolio process.

The portfolio process provides a way for students to value themselves as learners. It is a way of monitoring student progress toward achieving essential academic outcomes.

Each student’s portfolio spans aspects of their academic year’s curriculum at AP. Portfolios contain samples of work on three levels: average, good and excellent. The samples are meant to show student progress in particular areas. Each sample is chosen by the students, and it must be meaningful for them in some way. Teachers do not decide what goes into the students’ portfolios.

Students complete a self-evaluation of each sample and provide a written reflection of their effort and learning outcome.

The idea is to allow the student to think about what he or she has learned; or, to identify specifically why he or she has experienced problems in learning.

It would be easy for each student to choose exemplary samples of their work to show their parents. It actually would be too easy, and defeat the purpose behind portfolio assessment.

We want students to examine their learning process and take responsibility for it. If they did not perform well on a particular assignment, there was a reason for it. We want students to identify that reason and bring it to the surface.

No child is perfect, and few maintain straight A’s. That’s okay! It’s progress, and not perfection, that counts, and portfolios are a wonderful way of demonstrating progress.

Parents, be prepared to observe a diversity of entries for each subject and for some heartfelt reflections about their academic experiences.

Portfolio night promises to be a very special night, and we look forward to seeing you there.

Finally, we will hold our graduation ceremony on May 18 at 6 p.m. at the Palladium Theater. This commencement will mark the first time we graduate a girls’ class from AP of St. Petersburg.

Ten young ladies will receive diplomas, and we are extraordinarily proud of them. These young ladies, comprising the inaugural girls’ class, carved out a niche in our formerly all-boys school, and paved the way for the current three girls’ classes behind them. We will honor them at graduation, along with our boys’ class of seven young men.

Most of these students will attend private high schools in the area. Several chose a public high school experience as an alternative. (Please see the article on the left for more details.)

Wherever they continue their education, they leave AP well-prepared to face their futures, and we wish them the best. AP will monitor their progress and assist them throughout.