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Los Angeles Times
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
How a Times column about loquats became required high school reading
This month saw your humble columnist notch two huge literary achievements, the kind ink-stained wretches dream about. I was a Pulitzer Prize finalist in the commentary category for my coverage last year about the political evolution of Latinos, making me just the third-ever Latino to achieve that distinction. Maybe even more impressive, however, was that portions of a column I wrote a few years ago became mandatory reading for hundreds of thousands of high schoolers across the country. The occasion was the AP English Language and Composition exam, that annual ritual for smarty-pants high schoolers that allows those who get a great score to earn college credit. The exact column, you may ask? Not the subject of my Pulitzer finalist nod, or my arcane stuff, or my street-level coverage of Southern California life. Or even my rants against In-N-Out, which is overrated. Nope, the subject was… loquats. The small, tart fruit currently ripening on trees all across Southern California, which forever puzzle newcomers and delight longtimers and squirrels. In 2021, I wrote a columna arguing that loquats, not citrus or avocados, are our 'fruit MVPs' because they're so ubiquitous and beloved by many of SoCal's immigrant groups, including Latinos, Asians, Armenians and more. The piece also ridiculed an East Coast reporter who alleged that no one eats loquats in Southern California. I'm very proud of it, but if I were to use one of my columnas to test college-bound high school seniors on their mastery of analysis and rhetoric, I wouldn't have used that one. Someone tell that to CollegeBoard, the nonprofit that administers the Advanced Placement exams along with the SATs. I found out about my columna's inclusion last week after the second round of AP English tests concluded. Friends of mine texted me that their children who took it were bragging to friends about how they knew the 'loquat guy.' Students across the country took to TikTok to shout me out. Some called it their favorite reading prompt. Others ridiculed my columna's description of a loquat tree heavy with fruit as 'glow[ing] like a traffic cone' or my stance that people who say no one eats loquats is an affront to Southern California's 'culinary soul.' Still others wondered what loquats were in the first place, how did they taste and where could they buy some. In response, I created a TikTok account and filmed a short video of me silently staring at the camera while eating a loquat from my 4-year-old tree, which gave fruit for the first time this spring. 'Hello I'm Gustavo Arellano the Loquat King,' a caption read. 'What loquat questions can I answer?' 180,000 views later, I'm a TikTok loquat star. But what exactly the AP test asked students about my piece remains a mystery. A friend's kid told me test takers were required to read a passage from my piece in the multiple-choice section and then answer questions about 'word choice, claims, examples used, figurative language' and the like. (I'm granting anonymity to the kid because CollegeBoard's exam policy states that anyone who shares any content from exams that haven't been publicly released will have their test scores 'canceled, no retest will be permitted, and you may be banned from future testing.' Gosh, can't you just give them detention?) A CollegeBoard spokesperson declined to share the test questions about loquats with me because students are still taking it. They also asked I 'not disclose any information about them' because CollegeBoard sometimes uses the same questions in future tests 'and when information about them is shared, we have to discontinue their use.' Too late! I'm flattered, CollegeBoard. I'm not even angry that you didn't bother to at least give me a head's up. But I guess it's par for the course: Although I did take AP English at Anaheim High with Ms. Sinatra, I skipped out on the test because I figured it was for dorks and goody two-shoes and I didn't think I was either. Oh, how wrong I was. I'll stuff my sorrows by eating a bunch of loquats this weekend, because no one else eats them. Gustavo Arellano, metro columnistKevinisha Walker, multiplatform editorAndrew Campa, Sunday writerKarim Doumar, head of newsletters How can we make this newsletter more useful? Send comments to essentialcalifornia@ Check our top stories, topics and the latest articles on
Forbes
26-05-2025
- Business
- Forbes
The College Board Exposed: Nonprofit Or $1.6 Billion Testing Monopoly In Disguise?
Students testing on computers Founded 1900 to democratize college access, the College Board now straddles an uncomfortable line between its nonprofit mission and corporate-scale revenues. While technically structured as a member organization—with 6,000 high schools and colleges paying annual dues—its financial reality tells a different story. The math reveals a stark imbalance. Since its inception, cumulative membership dues may total $1.5 billion when adjusted for inflation, but that pales next to the $10+ billion reaped from SATs and AP exams since 1990. This reliance on testing revenue has reshaped the organization's priorities, transforming it from a collaborative membership alliance into a de facto corporate entity with a testing monopoly. Three strategies underpin the College Board's financial dominance. First, its testing empire operates like a well-oiled machine. The SAT suite—taken by 2 million students annually—generates $200–300 million from base fees and ancillary charges like $15 score reports. Meanwhile, the Advanced Placement (AP) program, which administered 5 million exams at $99 each in 2025, rakes in nearly $500 million, supplemented by millions from course materials and teacher training . Even middle schoolers are monetized through the PSAT 8/9, a controversial exam for 13-year-olds that locks schools into multi-year testing contracts. Second, the organization has funneled $1.32 billion to Caribbean subsidiaries since 2011; a maneuver critics allege minimizes taxes on its approximately almost $2 billion in assets. Third, perhaps most ethically fraught, is its reliance on underpaid educators. Teachers grade AP exams for about $30/hour—less than half the rate of private tutors—similar to the honorarium paid to SAT proctors. Schools generally pay the cost of proctoring the PSAT. This labor model saves the College Board millions of dollars annually, often subsidizing profits through public school budgets. Recent controversies highlight how financial incentives increasingly override educational goals. The 2025 digital SAT rollout was plagued by technical failures, the launch stranded students mid-test, with critics accusing the College Board of rushing to outpace its rival, the ACT . Technical issues with AP Classroom and this year's AP Psychology exam further erodes confidence. Its handling of the AP African American Studies curriculum sparked outrage when the organization diluted course content amid political pushback. Even the pandemic failed to curb revenue-first thinking. Despite 1,900 colleges adopting test-optional policies post-COVID, the College Board lobbied aggressively to preserve SAT mandates. Such decisions align with CEO David Coleman's over $2.5 million compensation package—triple the average for nonprofit leaders—raising questions about whom the organization truly serves. The Advanced Placement program embodies the College Board's contradictions. While studies show AP courses improve college readiness for underserved students, barriers persist. Exams cost $99 each—a burden for low-income districts—and recent recalibrating of test scores have sparked concerns about score inflation. Moreover, schools often narrow curricula to align with AP frameworks, sidelining electives and critical thinking. AP's benefits are real but uneven. The program's success hinges on equitable access, yet the College Board profits from the very inequities it claims to address. The College Board does offer discounts for documented low income students, but the over $50 fee is still steep for low-income students. The College Board's legacy is a study in contrasts. On one hand, AP courses correlate with higher college graduation rates, and standardized metrics help colleges evaluate applicants across diverse educational backgrounds. On the other, its products perpetuate systemic inequities. SAT scores, for instance, continue to be highly correlated with family income. At the same time, the PSAT 8/9 exemplifies profit-driven priorities, subjecting 13-year-olds to high-stakes testing with scant evidence of academic benefit. Compounding these issues is the organization's labor exploitation. By outsourcing proctoring and grading to underpaid educators, the College Board extracts value from public schools while privatizing profits—a dynamic that mirrors gig economy practices more than educational stewardship. The College Board must undergo a radical transformation to reclaim its nonprofit mission. Executive pay should align with nonprofit norms (under $500,000), not corporate benchmarks. Testing for students under 16 ought to be eliminated entirely, freeing schools from costly, developmentally inappropriate mandates. Proctoring and grading labor must be fairly compensated, and offshore financial dealings must be disclosed to the public. Until these reforms materialize, the organization's 125-year legacy will remain shadowed by a question at the heart of its identity: Who benefits most—students or shareholders? The College Board's nonprofit status hinges on a delicate balance—one increasingly tilted toward Wall Street, not classrooms. As education evolves, stakeholders must demand accountability from an organization that shapes millions of futures… and profits immensely from uncertainty.
Miami Herald
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Miami Herald
College Board cancels award program for high-performing Black and Latino students
The College Board this month changed the criteria for its National Recognition Program awards in a move that could shift tens of thousands of scholarship dollars from Black and Latino students to white students. Colleges used the awards to recruit and offer scholarships to high-performing students from groups underrepresented in higher education. The award previously recognized academic achievement by students in five categories - Black, Hispanic, Native American, first-generation and those living in rural areas or small towns. The racial categories have been eliminated. Now, students living in small towns and rural areas can still earn the award if they score in the top 10 percent among all small-town and rural students in their state on the PSAT - a precursor to the SAT that is administered in high schools around the country. The same is true for first-generation students but not for students in underrepresented racial categories. Related: Interested in more news about colleges and universities? Subscribe to our free biweeklyhigher education newsletter. Critics said they were disappointed by the College Board's decision. "They believed racial inequality was something important to address yesterday, and by changing that, they're implying that it's not something important to fight for now," said Rachel Perera, a fellow in government studies at the liberal Brookings Institute. "That's the heart of the question that's being debated - although it's not being debated in explicit terms - does racial discrimination exist?" In a statement on its website, the College Board noted the 2023 Supreme Court ruling that prohibited the use of race in admissions, although the National Recognition Program awards were used for scholarships and recruitment, not admissions. "Recent legal and regulatory actions have further limited the utility of these awards for students and colleges," the statement says. Also, President Donald Trump has repeatedly made clear his disapproval of race-conscious policies in higher education, and some states have banned consideration of race in scholarship decisions. In 2023-24, the College Board issued 115,000 recognition awards, and a little less than half were in the racial categories. The previous year there were more than 80,000 awards and the majority were for Black, Hispanic and Native American students. While the College Board doesn't hand out money itself, universities use it to select students for scholarships. The Board has not maintained a list of which institutions used the racial categories, according to Holly Stepp, College Board's director of communications. The College Board started the program in 1983 to recognize high-performing Hispanic students. In 2020, the other two racial categories and the small town and rural designations were added. First-generation students could win the award starting last year. Small towns could include those with modest incomes or wealthy enclaves like Aspen, Colorado. All students must also have at least a B+ average. Related: Cutting race-based scholarships blocks path to college, students say While students of all races can now earn the awards, the removal of the racial categories will likely disproportionately affect Black and Hispanic students. On average, Asian and white students score higher on PSATs. White students' average score on the PSAT last year was 994 last year compared with 821 for Black students - a gap of 173 points. Asian students' average was even higher at 1108 while Hispanic and Native American students averaged 852 and 828 respectively. "It's a move towards race-blind categories when we know that education and access to education isn't race-blind," said Wil Del Pilar, senior vice president at the left-leaning policy and advocacy group EdTrust. Some conservatives praised the move, however, arguing that race-conscious scholarship and recruitment programs were ways to get around the Supreme Court's rulings on affirmative action and that they were a form of reverse discrimination. Jonathan Butcher, senior research fellow in education policy at the conservative Heritage Foundation, said he believes that racial discrimination does exist and should be addressed, but that race-conscious education policies were both illegal and ineffective. "If you are using racial preferences, you are setting students up for a loss of confidence when they struggle in a situation they're not prepared for," Butcher said. Related: How did students pitch themselves to colleges after last year's affirmative action ruling? In place of the racial categories, a new designation has been added this year that recognizes students who score in the top 10 percent of their high school on the PSAT. Experts say colleges are unlikely to offer scholarships to all students who score in the top 10 percent of every high school in the country, given the cost that would entail. Officials at the University of New Mexico, for example, said they would stop using the College Board designations beginning in the 2026-27 school year. "We're currently analyzing our scholarship strategy, but changes will be made across the board," said Steve Carr, the university's director of communications, in an email. In 2023-24, the University of New Mexico awarded scholarships worth $15,000 each to 149 Black, Hispanic and Native American students. The University of Arizona also offered scholarships to students who earned National Recognition Program awards in the racial designations last year. "The university was already evaluating its scholarship strategy and will consider the College Board's announcement as we determine how best to move forward and support our students," said Mitch Zak, spokesman for the University of Arizona, in an email. In addition to the PSAT scores, students are eligible for the College Board award if they score a 3 or higher out of 5 on two Advanced Placement exams taken during their ninth and/or 10th grade year, although many high schools don't uniformly offer AP courses to freshmen and sophomores. "We can't really have a conversation around merit if we're not all at the same starting point in terms of what we receive from our K-12 education," said Del Pilar, "and how we're able to navigate the test prep environment, or the lack of test prep that certain communities receive." Contact senior investigative reporter Meredith Kolodner at 212-870-1063 or kolodner@ or on Signal at merkolodner.04 This story about the College Board was produced by The Hechinger Report, a nonprofit, independent news organization focused on inequality and innovation in education. Sign up for the Hechinger newsletter. The post College Board cancels award program for high-performing Black and Latino students appeared first on The Hechinger Report.
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Secure Your Family's Future This National 529 Day with The Education Plan®
Santa Fe, NM, May 19, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- With education costs on the rise, more families are taking proactive steps to secure a brighter future for their children. Join thousands of families nationwide in celebrating National 529 Day by looking to the future and planning now, for a stronger path to financial security and a more attainable future education. Observed each year on May 29, National 529 Day highlights the importance of saving early and strategically for future education expenses. According to the Education Data Initiative, 35% of families are now using college savings plans—a number that continues to grow as education is one of the most significant investments many families will make. American families are increasingly taking advantage of 529 savings plans to save for education. According to the College Savings Plan Network, as of December 31, 2024, there are nearly 17 million 529 accounts with $525 billion in savings. It's easy to see why: earning a bachelor's degree at an in-state, public four-year university can cost over $100,000 when accounting for tuition, fees, room and board, and other expenses, according to College Board. With these costs climbing, starting early with a 529 education savings plan is more important than ever. The good news? Saving can be simple and accessible. Families can open a tax-advantaged 529 account with no minimum initial contribution required and may set up convenient automatic contributions to build savings automatically. Funds in a 529 account grow tax-free and withdrawals are tax-free when used for qualified education expenses. Many states, like New Mexico, offer state tax deductions or credits for contributions to 529 plans. 529 plans cover a wide range of qualified expenses, from tuition and housing to books, computers, internet access, and even K–12 tuition, apprenticeship expenses, student loan repayments, and more. The impact is powerful: research shows that a child with just $500 in education savings is three times more likely to attend college and four times more likely to graduate. One flexible option for families nationwide is The Education Plan®, a 529 education savings program sponsored by New Mexico. The Education Plan offers valuable resources for families, employers, and financial professionals, making it easy to start saving today. To learn more and start your education savings journey, visit today. CONTACT: Joanie Griffin The Education Plan 505-261-4444 jgriffin@
Business Upturn
19-05-2025
- Business
- Business Upturn
Secure Your Family's Future This National 529 Day with The Education Plan®
Santa Fe, NM, May 19, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — With education costs on the rise, more families are taking proactive steps to secure a brighter future for their children. Join thousands of families nationwide in celebrating National 529 Day by looking to the future and planning now, for a stronger path to financial security and a more attainable future education. Observed each year on May 29, National 529 Day highlights the importance of saving early and strategically for future education expenses. According to the Education Data Initiative, 35% of families are now using college savings plans—a number that continues to grow as education is one of the most significant investments many families will make. American families are increasingly taking advantage of 529 savings plans to save for education. According to the College Savings Plan Network, as of December 31, 2024, there are nearly 17 million 529 accounts with $525 billion in savings. It's easy to see why: earning a bachelor's degree at an in-state, public four-year university can cost over $100,000 when accounting for tuition, fees, room and board, and other expenses, according to College Board. With these costs climbing, starting early with a 529 education savings plan is more important than ever. The good news? Saving can be simple and accessible. Families can open a tax-advantaged 529 account with no minimum initial contribution required and may set up convenient automatic contributions to build savings automatically. Funds in a 529 account grow tax-free and withdrawals are tax-free when used for qualified education expenses. Many states, like New Mexico, offer state tax deductions or credits for contributions to 529 plans. 529 plans cover a wide range of qualified expenses, from tuition and housing to books, computers, internet access, and even K–12 tuition, apprenticeship expenses, student loan repayments, and more. The impact is powerful: research shows that a child with just $500 in education savings is three times more likely to attend college and four times more likely to graduate. One flexible option for families nationwide is The Education Plan®, a 529 education savings program sponsored by New Mexico. The Education Plan offers valuable resources for families, employers, and financial professionals, making it easy to start saving today. To learn more and start your education savings journey, visit today. Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you under an arrangement with GlobeNewswire. Business Upturn takes no editorial responsibility for the same.
