East Jackson High School and Jackson County High School have been recognized as 2026 AP Honor Schools by the Georgia Department of Education, according to a May 8 announcement. The honors are based on the results from Advanced Placement (AP) courses and exams taken in 2025.
The recognition highlights the achievements of both schools in offering rigorous academic programs that prepare students for college-level coursework. East Jackson High School was acknowledged in five out of eight possible categories: AP Humanities School, AP Humanities Achievement School, AP School of Distinction, AP STEM School, and AP STEM Achievement School. Jackson County High School earned distinctions in three categories: AP School of Distinction, AP STEM School, and AP STEM Achievement School.
To qualify as an AP Humanities School, a school must administer at least five exams across specific subjects including English Language Arts (ELA), social studies, fine arts, and world languages with a minimum total of 25 exams. The Humanities Achievement designation requires at least half of all humanities exam scores to be three or higher. For the distinction category, at least one-fifth of students must take an exam with half earning scores above two. In the STEM fields—science, technology, engineering and mathematics—schools must test at least five students in four different courses with at least half scoring three or higher for achievement status.
AP exams are managed by the College Board alongside other standardized tests such as the SAT. Students who score three or above may receive college credit for their performance on these exams.
Jackson County’s school system operates educational facilities across seven elementary schools, three middle schools, two high schools—including East Jackson High and Jackson County High—and a career center serving more than 11,200 students from pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade. The district focuses on academics as well as arts and athletics to foster well-rounded development; it has also been recognized as a Top Workplace by both Atlanta Journal-Constitution and USA Today according to the official website.
In February 2025 awards listings show that East Jackson earned similar honors while Jackson County was named an Expansion School along with receiving distinction recognitions.
