Gonugunta

Bhat

By Hub City Times staff

MARSHFIELD – For the fourth time in its history, the Marshfield School District has both state AP Scholars in the same year.

The state Department of Public Instruction announced on Oct. 24 that 2018 Marshfield High School graduates Suhaas Bhat and Nikita Gonugunta are Wisconsin’s Advanced Placement Scholars for 2019.

Superintendent Dr. Ryan Christianson says the achievement continues Marshfield’s long-running success with the Advanced Placement program.

He said:

Marshfield also had both of Wisconsin’s AP Scholars in 2007, 2008, and 2009, and the district has the highest total number of AP scholars since 1994, with 18. The next closest is 13 at the University School in Milwaukee. Madison Memorial is in third place on the list with nine.

Christianson says the College Board grants the State AP Scholar Award annually to the top male and female students in each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia for their performance on advanced-placement exams.

Christianson said:

The AP program offers students the opportunity to take college-level courses while in high school, and then to take end-of-course exams in 38 subject areas. Students earning a score of three, four or five on AP exams generally receive college credit.

In May of 2019, Marshfield High School had 394 students take 851 exams. Marshfield High School students earned “qualifying scores” on 82 percent of those AP exams, which means they got a score of 3, 4, or 5 – out of 5 – and are eligible to earn college credit based on their qualifying exam score. The Wisconsin state average is typically 66 percent.

Bhat is currently attending Harvard University in Cambridge, MA. Gonugunta is attending UW-Madison.