Basis Tucson

THE PHILOSOPHY

It is no secret that American students are lagging further and further behind their international peers. Overcoming and reversing this overall trend requires a new approach to American education. Ten years ago, Olga and Michael Block set out to create a model for the “New American” school utilizing Arizona’s convention defying charter law. With the goal of offering best education in the United States, the Blocks combined the depth and rigor of the European and Asian college prep schools with the expansiveness of the American curriculum and the openness of the American classroom.

BASIS Tucson offers the type of education students receive in other industrialized countries and the type of education, according to founders Michael and Olga Block, Americans will need to compete in the global economy. Within just ten years of opening its doors, BASIS Tucson earned top marks in national rankings, being named one of the best high schools in the nation by both U.S. News and Newsweek. Locally, the Arizona Republic declared “BASIS Charter Schools may offer the best free public education in the U.S. At BASIS Tucson we have assembled a stellar faculty that is devoted to teaching at “world standards” and who hold both their students and themselves to very high levels of accountability

THE RESULTS

BASIS Tucson is unique — both nationally and locally — in making Advanced Placement Exams part of our graduation requirements. While AP Exams are by no means the goal of our curriculum, we believe in raised academic expectations and rigorous college preparation for all students. To that end, AP Exam results are used as a means of assessing our success in helping students achieve their goals. Of equal importance, BASIS Tucson pays for all students’ AP testing, to ensure that every student has access to academic success.

In the 2006/2007 school year, 89 students took 202 exams. Out of these 89 students:
44% were 9th Graders.
75% of all students scored 3 or higher on at least one of their exams.
The BASIS graduating class of 2007 had an Equity and Excellence Ratio of 92% (reflecting the percentage of Seniors scoring 3 or higher on at least one of the AP Exams).