AP "unused exam" fee dispute with high school

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP the original cost will have gone to the college board, the school does not profit from those fees. They will be expected to pay these $40 per no show and it's on you.

Just pay up and be done with it. The college board and the MCPS are not going to side with you on this. You should have been more on top of it.

Whoa. Wrong information. AP exams are a profit center for MCPS schools. They do make money off of them.

These fees have never been authorized by the Board of Education or the legislature and are not in any way tied to your child's graduation from high school.

The school is trying to extort money from you. Period.

Utter nonsense.

And Maryland law. There are no graduation fees and your child can not legally be prevented from graduating. Your child satisfied the legal graduation requirements.

Contact your state senator and delegates immediately.

I’d guess that whoever wrote that is at a private or in another state. MCPS will not prevent you from walking.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP the original cost will have gone to the college board, the school does not profit from those fees. They will be expected to pay these $40 per no show and it's on you.

Just pay up and be done with it. The college board and the MCPS are not going to side with you on this. You should have been more on top of it.

Whoa. Wrong information. AP exams are a profit center for MCPS schools. They do make money off of them.

These fees have never been authorized by the Board of Education or the legislature and are not in any way tied to your child's graduation from high school.

The school is trying to extort money from you. Period.

Utter nonsense.

Peddled by "the parents coalition".

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP the original cost will have gone to the college board, the school does not profit from those fees. They will be expected to pay these $40 per no show and it's on you.

Just pay up and be done with it. The college board and the MCPS are not going to side with you on this. You should have been more on top of it.

Whoa. Wrong information. AP exams are a profit center for MCPS schools. They do make money off of them.

These fees have never been authorized by the Board of Education or the legislature and are not in any way tied to your child's graduation from high school.

The school is trying to extort money from you. Period.

Utter nonsense.

Peddled by "the parents coalition".

And the Maryland Attorney General, Maryland State Department of Education and Maryland legislature.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Former AP Coordinator here: I believe the $40 fee is the total amount the College Board is charging the school for the exam. They won’t get billed for the full exam, at least according to page 22 of the AP coordinator manual. You might want to call the CB to clarify and then let the school know. Get a case number from CB. It could be that the school just interprets that as $40 in addition to the full payment. I wouldn’t make a huge stink about it though—you don’t to hold up your child’s graduation over something like this!

As for the extra money the school is charging you ($12), that cost (at most schools) covers the cost of proctors. We had to hire subs to proctor or cover the classes of teachers who were proctoring. CB does not pay the school for that, and it can get quite pricey.

Another AP teacher (and parent of a child who did not take all of his exams last year) - I agree with the AP Coordinator; someone is just giving you wrong information. I received a refund from the school for the original fee minus the $40. (This was at RM.)

[Anonymous]

I think you should pay the fee so that your child can graduate and not have to worry about it. But then continue looking into it and get a refund from the school after. The school is mistaken.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP the original cost will have gone to the college board, the school does not profit from those fees. They will be expected to pay these $40 per no show and it's on you.

Just pay up and be done with it. The college board and the MCPS are not going to side with you on this. You should have been more on top of it.

Whoa. Wrong information. AP exams are a profit center for MCPS schools. They do make money off of them.

These fees have never been authorized by the Board of Education or the legislature and are not in any way tied to your child's graduation from high school.

The school is trying to extort money from you. Period.

Utter nonsense.

Peddled by "the parents coalition".

And the Maryland Attorney General, Maryland State Department of Education and Maryland legislature.

No, just "the parents coalition".

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think you should pay the fee so that your child can graduate and not have to worry about it. But then continue looking into it and get a refund from the school after. The school is mistaken.

That’s how extortion works. Threaten the kid and force the parent to pay.
After graduation MCPS won’t talk to the parent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Former AP Coordinator here: I believe the $40 fee is the total amount the College Board is charging the school for the exam. They won’t get billed for the full exam, at least according to page 22 of the AP coordinator manual. You might want to call the CB to clarify and then let the school know. Get a case number from CB. It could be that the school just interprets that as $40 in addition to the full payment. I wouldn’t make a huge stink about it though—you don’t to hold up your child’s graduation over something like this!

As for the extra money the school is charging you ($12), that cost (at most schools) covers the cost of proctors. We had to hire subs to proctor or cover the classes of teachers who were proctoring. CB does not pay the school for that, and it can get quite pricey.

AP coordinator? Teaching extortion? MCPS makes millions off of illegal fees every year. How about if the police charge you $100 when you call 911 if your car is stolen. It’s extortion but you want your car back so don’t make a stink over it.

Please seek therapy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Former AP Coordinator here: I believe the $40 fee is the total amount the College Board is charging the school for the exam. They won’t get billed for the full exam, at least according to page 22 of the AP coordinator manual. You might want to call the CB to clarify and then let the school know. Get a case number from CB. It could be that the school just interprets that as $40 in addition to the full payment. I wouldn’t make a huge stink about it though—you don’t to hold up your child’s graduation over something like this!

As for the extra money the school is charging you ($12), that cost (at most schools) covers the cost of proctors. We had to hire subs to proctor or cover the classes of teachers who were proctoring. CB does not pay the school for that, and it can get quite pricey.

AP coordinator? Teaching extortion? MCPS makes millions off of illegal fees every year. How about if the police charge you $100 when you call 911 if your car is stolen. It’s extortion but you want your car back so don’t make a stink over it.

Please seek therapy.

If you were an educated person you'd know the definition of extortion and teach your child how to recognize it. You can also look up the definition of scam,
cheating
gouging
overcharging
highway robbery
fleecing
swindling
defrauding
skinning
chiselling
chiseling


extortion
noun
ex·​tor·​tion ik-ˈstȯr-shən
Synonyms of extortion
1
: the act or practice of extorting especially money or other property
especially : the offense committed by an official engaging in such practice
2
: something extorted
especially : a gross overcharge

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP the original cost will have gone to the college board, the school does not profit from those fees. They will be expected to pay these $40 per no show and it's on you.

Just pay up and be done with it. The college board and the MCPS are not going to side with you on this. You should have been more on top of it.

Whoa. Wrong information. AP exams are a profit center for MCPS schools. They do make money off of them.

These fees have never been authorized by the Board of Education or the legislature and are not in any way tied to your child's graduation from high school.

The school is trying to extort money from you. Period.

Utter nonsense.

Peddled by "the parents coalition".

And the Maryland Attorney General, Maryland State Department of Education and Maryland legislature.

No, just "the parents coalition".

Sad that you have so little respect for your elected officials and Maryland law. But that is the way of the country now with Trump and DeSantis in charge.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The college board is such a racket

Yep. Had this happen to my kid in FCPS, ie school he decided to go to wouldn't give credit for any score on the exams but didn't know this until after he'd accepted which was after the AP exam sign up. I was so pissed. To make matters worse the school was requiring him to take the exams ie he couldn't just no show for the exams. He wasn't about to study for them and didn't want a "bad" score out there. I just called him in sick that day. So OP no solution, just know I feel ya'.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The college board is such a racket

Yep. Had this happen to my kid in FCPS, ie school he decided to go to wouldn't give credit for any score on the exams but didn't know this until after he'd accepted which was after the AP exam sign up. I was so pissed. To make matters worse the school was requiring him to take the exams ie he couldn't just no show for the exams. He wasn't about to study for them and didn't want a "bad" score out there. I just called him in sick that day. So OP no solution, just know I feel ya'.

You made a parenting mistake. Those exams are worthwhile as preparation for college exams. Teach your child to follow through and complete their classes to the best of their ability. If your child would have received a "bad" score on an exam that he prepared for all year, then all the more reason to have him exert extra effort to learn the content (which is the whole point of the class.)

[Anonymous]

OP here with a non-update update.

I sent an email to the two school administrators who had requested payment from me, pointing out that the College Board simply wanted a $40 fee from the school for each unused exam, not the full $101 payment I had already made to the school; I sent them the language used by the College Board, where they explicitly say this; and then asked for a REFUND OF THE DIFFERENCE. To wit, $61 for each unused exam.

This was Tuesday night.

I have not heard a peep from them since.

Nothing like asking for money to get them to shut up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The college board is such a racket

Yep. Had this happen to my kid in FCPS, ie school he decided to go to wouldn't give credit for any score on the exams but didn't know this until after he'd accepted which was after the AP exam sign up. I was so pissed. To make matters worse the school was requiring him to take the exams ie he couldn't just no show for the exams. He wasn't about to study for them and didn't want a "bad" score out there. I just called him in sick that day. So OP no solution, just know I feel ya'.

You made a parenting mistake. Those exams are worthwhile as preparation for college exams. Teach your child to follow through and complete their classes to the best of their ability. If your child would have received a "bad" score on an exam that he prepared for all year, then all the more reason to have him exert extra effort to learn the content (which is the whole point of the class.)

Not PP you replied to, but get back to us when you have a burnt-out senior on the verge of a breakdown who has already taken 12 AP courses and who knows that any extra exams he takes won't make any sort of difference, since the college does not give extra credit for those scores.

As a parent, you have to recognize what the best decision is here, and it's not "following through". No. These kids have worked like crazy for 4 years of high school to get where they are. They have already followed through. They have already demonstrated work ethic.

Shame on you for thinking they're flakes. They're probably harder working than you ever were.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:


OP here with a non-update update.

I sent an email to the two school administrators who had requested payment from me, pointing out that the College Board simply wanted a $40 fee from the school for each unused exam, not the full $101 payment I had already made to the school; I sent them the language used by the College Board, where they explicitly say this; and then asked for a REFUND OF THE DIFFERENCE. To wit, $61 for each unused exam.

This was Tuesday night.

I have not heard a peep from them since.

Nothing like asking for money to get them to shut up.

Excellent