Parents Press Board to Fight College Board Over Botched AP Exams
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Two residents used public comment to describe their children's AP exams being ruined by College Board technical failures, part of what they said were tens of thousands of similar failures nationwide. Shari Dreier said her son's AP Chemistry exam file failed to upload through no fault of his own, leaving retesting in June as the only option College Board offered, and asked Board President Elisabeth Ginsburg -- who also serves as executive director of the Garden State Coalition of Schools -- to organize a coordinated response with other districts. Mark Hoebee described a similar upload failure affecting his daughter's exam and said College Board had told his family she was at fault. Ginsburg agreed to reach out to peer districts and professional organizations, and Superintendent Dirk Phillips said affected students would not lose weighted GPA credit or face any penalty over the failures, regardless of whether they chose to retake the exam.
The board opened the meeting by honoring Glen Ridge Police Officer Rob Roberts, who died the previous week, offering condolences to his wife Alice, a district teacher, and their children, and thanking police officers and first responders for their continued work during the pandemic.
The board accepted a $120,436 CARES Act Emergency Relief Grant, approved $1,165,798.24 in bills and claims, and ratified $2,083,008.41 in payroll and related payments. It also accepted a $2,475 donation from the Glen Ridge Educational Foundation to support the district's Virtual High School program.
- Accepted a $120,436 CARES Act Emergency Relief Grant
- Approved $1,165,798.24 in bills and claims and ratified $2,083,008.41 in payroll and related payments
- Accepted a $2,475 Glen Ridge Educational Foundation donation for the Virtual High School program
- Approved a revised 2019-2020 school calendar, shifting two unused emergency days to May 22 and June 18
Watch key moments
- 0:47 — Board President Ginsburg opens the meeting with a tribute to Police Officer Rob Roberts
- 25:52 — Shari Dreier describes her son's AP Chemistry exam failure and calls on the board to organize districts against College Board
- 30:37 — Mark Hoebee backs her up, saying College Board blamed his daughter for its own upload failure