High Scores Pay Top Dollar

If kids attend school as if it were a job, it should only reason that they get paid  as such — and the better the grades, the bigger the check. And for many New York City high school students, studying has literally paid off.

The Rewarding Achievement program (REACH) provides incentives for top scores on Advanced Placement exams. A top score of 5 will get you $1,000, then $750 for a 4 and $500 for a 3. Not too shabby. According to the New York Daily News, African-American and Latino students made all of the gains. REACH founder Whitney Tilson says, "Given that the focus of our program is on narrowing the achievement gap that was particularly heartening to see."

And the program continues to pay dividends. Top grades in AP courses open the otherwise closed doors to top universities, and the money allows kids to focus solely on their schoolwork — not a part-time job slinging burgers. Dartmouth-bound DeWitt Clinton High School senior Alan Salas tells the News, 18, didn't have to get a part-time job and could take eight AP classes in two years. "It took the pressure off," he said. "I paid for my college applications."

The program, funded by the Council of Urban Professionals, will issues checks amounting to $850,000 this week, but the real good news is that for the first time ever, students from the Frederick Douglass Academy will be attending MIT and the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania.

Photo courtesy of AMagill, via Flickr