Dear David (it’s me again),

This is a follow up to my original letter titled Dear David: An Open Letter to The College Board written in May of 2019. The link to the article is here should you wish to read it:

https://www.thecounselinggeek.com/2019/05/dear-david

I doubt you will, David, as you are too busy flying around on a private charter or in first class counting your $2mil+ annual salary and sitting on your 2 BILLION DOLLAR mountain of assets. 

A little background for anyone new or unfamiliar with The College Board

The College Board, a major educational “nonprofit” organization in the United States that operates around the world, is perhaps most famously known for its administration of the SAT and Advanced Placement (AP) exams. These tests are deeply embedded in the school system and in the academic journey of many high school students, claiming to prepare them for college and beyond. However, beneath the surface of this educational giant, there lies a growing controversy related to the working conditions of educators and the organization’s financial decisions. This blog post aims to uncover the hidden burdens placed on educators who often manage the entirety of the College Board’s AP programs without appropriate (or realistically any) compensation, and how the financial practices of the College Board raise questions about its operation as a nonprofit entity.

The Burden on Educators

Educators are at the frontline of the College Board’s Advanced Placement program, dedicating countless hours to student preparation for these demanding and labor intensive exams. The role of an AP teacher is multifaceted, involving extensive lesson planning, student coaching, and the administration of mock exams—all of which often extend far beyond their contractual obligations. 

For instance, AP teachers are required to align their teaching with the high standards set by the College Board, which involves creating detailed course materials that meet specific curriculum requirements. Furthermore, these educators frequently spend their evenings and weekends providing extra tutoring, grading practice exams, and offering emotional support to their students. Despite the significant investment of time and energy, many of these educators report that they receive no additional compensation from their institutions or the College Board for their efforts.

Financial Overview of the College Board

The financial stature of the College Board often contradicts its status as a nonprofit organization. Examination of their financial filings reveals a robust revenue stream primarily generated from exam fees, course materials, and various other services, many of which can predatorily sell student data to interested partners in return for payment. For example, in recent years, the organization reported earning several hundred million dollars annually, with a substantial portion retained as profit.

Between 2011 and 2022, College Board’s 990 filings indicate that they have earned a net income of $812,460,312 with only 2 of the years indicating a deficit income (2014 and 2020). In 2014 – they announced large scale changes to their exam structure and scoring system which I am assuming caused a large scale increase in costs. In 2020, the worldwide pandemic, digital learning, the scramble to create and release 45 minute digital AP exams as well as the cancellation of nearly all SAT exams and colleges forgoing that requirement explains the deficit in that year. So in just over 10 years, they have nearly amassed 1 billion dollars in PROFIT from students, families and educators around the world.

This financial prosperity is accompanied by generous compensation packages for its executives. Reports have highlighted that several top executives at the College Board receive salaries in excess of $2 million, which stands in stark contrast to the uncompensated overtime work by teachers. The disparity between the profits earned and the lack of financial support provided to the educators raises important ethical questions about the distribution of resources within the College Board.

I am not a lawyer, CPA or even pretend to be well versed in finance (but I do file my own taxes). However when I peruse College Boards 990 filings, which are published for all non-profits on ProPublica – it sheds an awful lot of light on the focus, mission and massive amounts of profit being raked in on the backs of the uncompensated educators (teachers, school counselors, administrators and other staff) who are forced to run their myriad of exams and programs throughout the year. College Board does not compensate schools or districts for the monumental staff and space required to meet their ever increasing space and security requirements.

This often also requires that school staff start and end their day outside of their contractual hours and this also is often unpaid and viewed as professional duties to run these academic programs.

In my initial blog post – I tallied up my time on task for just the 2-3 weeks of AP Exam administration and proctoring adding up to 80-100 hours. Extrapolating that to the number of HS’s in the US that offer AP programs (22,169 at that time in 2019) and accounting for an average hourly wage of school counselors at $20/hour (wow…) – College Board conservatively steals over $34 million dollars of time for money from schools in just the US. That also assumes it only takes 1 person that much time. This doesn’t account for cost for proctors, needing to rent tables or space to host the exams, transportation costs if hosting off site, extended and exception time tests or the mountains of work required leading up to the exam windows.

The vast majority of the funds used to pay staff is coming from public tax payer pockets and going straight into the coffers of one of the most profitable non-profits out there.

Impact on Education

The operational and financial strategies of the College Board have significant implications for both educators and students. Teachers, stretched thin by their workload and lack of compensation, may experience burnout, which can adversely affect their performance and, consequently, the quality of education delivered to students. This situation is compounded by the high stakes associated with AP exams, creating a pressure-laden atmosphere that can hinder a balanced and inclusive educational environment.

Moreover, the focus on standardized testing may detract from broader educational goals, such as fostering critical thinking and creativity. As a teacher from New York City put it, “There’s so much emphasis on scoring well on AP exams that it sometimes feels like real learning takes a backseat to test preparation.”

In addition – many coordinators and/or proctors perform other primary roles on their school site, of which they often are unable to attend to during these weeks of testing. I, for example, am a high school counselor and have seniors on my caseload this year. I have been essentially unavailable to them over the past two weeks to assist those STILL struggling to submit their FAFSA, evaluating college decisions, assisting students struggling make it to the finish line and working on our schedule for students next year. So not only is College Board making large amounts of money hand over fist, they are also taking essential school staff off the playing field and into a completely different sport playing for a different team.

Calls for Change (a non-exhaustive list)

The growing dissatisfaction among educators has sparked calls for reform in how the College Board operates and compensates its teachers, test coordinators and others involved with their monopoly on student dreams and aspirations.. Educators and educational advocates are increasingly vocal about the need for the College Board to reallocate a portion of its profits towards those who contribute most directly to their programs.

Proposals include:

• Direct financial bonuses or stipends for AP teachers and other staff in charge of running exams and programs. This may look like direct stipends or reimbursement to districts for running exams (greater than the piddly amount currently provided) that accurately reflects the time and costs it takes to run exams.
• More substantial support for teacher training and resources including compensation for teachers attending a summer institute (which is required to be able to teach an AP course). These programs happen outside compensated months for most staff and schools actually have to PAY to participate. These should be provided free of cost and teachers should be reimbursed by College Board for their attendance and time.
• Reduced fees for students to decrease the financial burden on families. A fee waiver should be just that – not a reduction but a complete waiver. Zero dollars. College Board profits have gone up and up – but so has their exam fees.
• Provide schools more flexibility related to exam timing and dates. Other exams provide schools a way to offer exams within a greater window of time to reduce conflicts with things like sports or academics, balance the need of staff to be out of their office in key times of the year and avoid the need to extend the 2 weeks of standard testing into 3-4 weeks of testing in a very busy time of year.
• Work with coordinators to better organize exams and when they are offered. For example – stop putting 3+ hour long exams in the afternoons. They don’t get done until 4-5pm. This causes many issues including students not having access to school transportation home for many schools. Run longer exams only in the morning and put shorter exams (like Environmental Science and Human Geography in the afternoon time slots.
• Appropriately staff and train staff on support lines. It is not uncommon to sit on hold for over an hour to address questions or issues. Often – the information the agent provides is blatantly incorrect. I get better answers and quicker responses from my colleagues on the Facebook AP Coordinator Network group.
• College Board should ideally run their own exams from start to finish. At minimum – they should be collecting registration AND payment directly within their systems.

These changes would not only start to provide much-needed support to educators but also demonstrate a commitment to prioritizing educational quality over profits.

In my strong opinion – College Board (and other educational non-profits) should not be running hundreds of millions of dollars in the black, year after year, while increasing costs to students, expectations without compensation to educators, and sitting on an asset valuation of over 2 BILLION dollars. 

The choke hold that the College Board has over education in the US is monopolistic, predatory and frankly should be illegal. 

Conclusion

The College Board consistently shows its disregard towards professional educators, many of which are tax payer funded government employees, and their time. This causes significant impacts to those working directly with students and whose jobs are not related to testing. We are not employed by College Board, but are treated and threatened as if we were. The exam security procedures are exhaustive, ever increasing and frankly too much for functioning schools to accommodate. School is in session and happening at most schools where AP exams are given during the exam windows. Expecting space, quiet and disruption free environments in already understaffed and under-resourced schools is getting out of control. Students now need 5 feet between students to meet testing requirements. Nothing ever gives, we only get told new and more extravagant things to implement to judge high school student learning.

In summary, the practices and financial approaches of the College Board demand a critical reassessment to align better with the needs and welfare of educators and students. As someone intimately involved with the workings of educational institutions, it is evident that the burdens placed on educators are not just a minor inconvenience but a significant oversight in how we value and support those at the front lines of education. While the College Board benefits from substantial revenues, it is imperative to revisit their nonprofit status and the accountability associated with such a designation. We must advocate for a model where the profits generated are redistributed to better support the educators and reduce the financial burdens on students and families. Only through these changes can we hope to see an educational landscape that genuinely prioritizes learning and equitable access over profit margins.

The time for change is now; it is overdue that the College Board re-evaluates its priorities and operations to better reflect its stated mission of expanding access and opportunity to students across the nation.