Charles R. Drew Charter School salutatorian, Frances Nicolson, gives advice to fellow students.
Charles R. Drew Charter School STAR Student, Niles Holt, discusses what it takes to achieve academic honors.
Charles R. Drew Charter School valedictorian, Morgan Walker, shares words of wisdom for fellow students
Atlanta Public Schools continues to celebrate the success of the class of 2024 and is proud to share that our scholars earned a total of $228,947,153 in scholarship offers!
North Atlanta led the charge with more than $40 million in scholarship offers earned, while both Midtown High School and Benjamin E. Mays High School pulled in more than $20 million in scholarship offers each. This year’s senior class surpassed the APS 2023 school year total of $221 million.
“This remarkable achievement is a testament to the hard work, dedication, and talent of our students,” APS interim superintendent Dr. Danielle Battle said. “I want to congratulate each and every one of them for their outstanding accomplishments and wish them continued success in their future endeavors. I would also like to thank our amazing teachers and supportive families for helping our students reach this tremendous milestone. This is truly a proud moment for the APS community.”
Congratulations to the APS class of 2024 for this incredible accomplishment!
| School | Total Scholarships offered (including athletics) |
| Atlanta Classical Academy | $5,824,016 |
| Benjamin E. Mays High School | $20,531,832 |
| B.E.S.T. High School Academy | $3,104,645 |
| Booker T. Washington High School | $20,561,950 |
| Charles R. Drew Charter Jr. Sr. Academy | $14,144,060 |
| D.M. Therrell High School | $16,534,538 |
| Frederick Douglass High School | $6,735,125 |
| G.W. Carver High School Early College | $19,500,000 |
| G.W. Carver High School STEAM | $11,096,140 |
| Midtown High School | $26,115,384 |
| KIPP Atlanta Collegiate Charter School | $17,632,822 |
| Maynard Jackson High School | $10,624,460 |
| North Atlanta High School | $42,793,948 |
| South Atlanta High School | $9,529,339 |
| Total | $228,947,1153 |
What better way to start the spring semester than celebrating the 13 APS scholars who earned a four-year, full-tuition scholarship through The Posse Foundation?
After returning from the holiday break, The Posse Foundation held an acceptance ceremony for the 60 students and their families at The Gathering Spot, where they congratulated the students for their achievements. More than a few proud tears were shed as the students and their families shared how thankful they were for this great opportunity.
The 13 APS Posse scholars accounted for over $3 million in scholarship money.
2024 APS Posse Scholarship Recipients
| Minnah Dunlap | Maynard H. Jackson High School | Bard College – Posse 16 | $251,160 |
| Imani Johnson | Midtown High School | Bard College – Posse 16 | $251,160 |
| Luke McCullough | North Atlanta High School | Boston University – Posse 17 | $255,192 |
| Sanai Conoly | Charles R. Drew Charter School | Brandeis University – Posse 14 | $257,392 |
| Isla Edwards | Charles R. Drew Charter School | Brandeis University – Posse 14 | $257,392 |
| Shemaiah Perry | KIPP Atlanta Collegiate | Brandeis University – Posse 14 | $257,392 |
| Shelby Terry | North Atlanta High School | Brandeis University – Posse 14 | $257,392 |
| Niya Colbert | KIPP Atlanta Collegiate | Texas A&M University – Posse 10 | $162,428 |
| Caydence Walker | Coretta Scott King Young Women’s Leadership Academy | The College of Wooster – Posse 17 | $238,200 |
| Adriana Claudio | North Atlanta High School | The George Washington University – Posse 9 | $258,800 |
| Stella Maximuk | Midtown High School | The George Washington University – Posse 9 | $258,800 |
| Joseph Muche | Midtown High School | The George Washington University – Posse 9 | $258,800 |
| Eamon Walsh | Midtown High School | The George Washington University – Posse 9 | $258,800 |
“APS is one of our best partners,” Jamaal Greer, director of Posse Atlanta, said. “We really thrive on trying to affect the city of Atlanta and get as many APS scholars as possible.”
The Posse Scholarship is a leadership training, merit-based scholarship that partners with six colleges and universities to offer 10 scholarships each. As they prepare to enter their respective colleges, the students will meet with their Posse weekly for team building experiences and already have a group of peers to lean on when they reach campus.
The Posse Foundation remains connected with their scholars throughout their first two years on campus to help guide them through college life by providing a campus mentor and meeting throughout their college careers.
KIPP Atlanta Collegiate senior Shemaiah Perry was excited to be accepted by the Posse Foundation, and already has a plan for his college career.
“It was great to be accepted. I know now that my mom doesn’t have to pay as much as she would have, so that’s really good,” he said. “Now that I have a Posse, it’s a lot easier for me because I know I can go to people, I can have college readiness courses, and that’s going to help me excel at the collegiate level.”
Perry was accepted into the Brandeis University Posse and plans on pursuing and completing the MBA program in five and a half years.
“KIPP Atlanta Collegiate was very helpful. They kept getting on us about applying for scholarships before the deadline and not on the deadline at like 11:59 p.m. on the day,” he said. “They really helped me, and I know they helped my classmates as well find out what they want to do after high school.”
The Charles Drew Charter High School boys team won the Georgia High School Association cross country state championship in the Class A Public division, last Saturday in Carrollton. It is the first state championship for Drew Charter.
Dr. Charles Drew is remembered most for his ground-breaking work as a great physician, surgeon and researcher, whose pioneering work in the field of blood plasma preservation has helped save millions of lives over the years. But most people do not know that Dr. Drew was a phenomenal athlete in high school and in college.
Now, students at the Atlanta school named in his honor are following in his footsteps of being high achievers in academics and athletics. Atlanta Public Schools’ Charles Drew Charter High School won its first state championship last Saturday in Carrollton, Ga., as the boys’ cross country team dominated the 13 other schools in the Georgia High School Association Class A Public Schools division.
The Eagles defeated second-place Georgia Military College (Milledgeville) – which had won two of the last three state titles – by 50 points, 42-92, in the cross country scoring system in which a runner is assigned a point total based on the place in which he or she finishes the five kilometer (3.10 miles) course. A team is comprised of seven runners with only the top five finishers on each team earning points (one point for first place, two points for second place, 10 for tenth place, etc.). Thus, the team with the lowest point total wins.
Five of Drew’s seven runners placed in the top 20 of the field of 96: Henry Cox, Jeremiah Furlow, Isaiah DuBose, Joseph Jones, and Roland Blanding. This was only the second year Drew has competed in the championship meet.
It is the first cross country state championship for an APS school since the Crim girls won the Class AA title in 1992, and is the first cross country state championship for an APS boys’ team since North Fulton won the Class AA title in 1979.
Drew’s performance leads the list of outstanding performances by APS fall sports teams:
Cheerleading
The Benjamin E. Mays cheerleading squad won the Region 6AAAAA championship and advanced to the Georgia High School Association State Cheerleading Championship competition.
— Benjamin E. Mays won the Region 6AAAAA championship, earning a birth in the Georgia High Schools Association State Championship competition, Saturday, Nov.14, in Columbus, Ga.
— Frederick Douglass and Maynard Jackson placed third and fourth, respectively, in the Region 4AAA competition, good enough to earn spots in the GHSA State Sectional competition, Friday, Nov. 13, in Columbus, Ga. If the Astros and Jaguars place in the top eight (out of 24 teams) in the sectional, they will advance to the state competition on Saturday.
Cross Country
— Henry Grady had both of its teams place in the top 10 of the Class AAAA division at the GHSA state championship meet. The girls placed fourth and the boys placed seventh.
— The North Atlanta boys placed 11th in the Class AAAAA division at the GHSA state championship meet.
— Jackson had both of its teams place in the top 25 of Class AAA. The boys placed 20th while the girls placed 23rd.
Football
Benjamin E. Mays is ranked No. 5 in Class AAAAA by the Atlanta Journal Constitution
and is going into the first round of the Georgia High School Association state football playoffs.
Four APS schools advanced to the state playoffs (all games are 7:30 p.m., Friday, Nov. 13, unless otherwise noted):
— Mays finished the regular season 9-1, ranked No. 5 in the Class AAAAA division of the Atlanta Journal Constitution Top 10 poll. The Raiders are the No. 2 seed from Region 6AAAAA and will host the Creekview Grizzlies (Cherokee County), the No. 3 seed from Region 7AAAAA, in the first round of the state playoffs.
— George Washington Carver (7-3) is the No. 4 seed from Region 6AAAAA. The Panthers will travel north to Dalton, Ga., to face the Dalton Catamounts (Dalton City), the Region 7AAAAA champions.
— Grady (6-4) is the No. 3 seed from Region 6AAAA. The Grey Knights will travel north to Tunnel Hill, Ga., to face the Northwest Whitfield Bruins (Whitfield County), the No. 2 seed from Region 7AAAA.
— Jackson (6-4) is the No. 4 seed from Region 4AAA. The Jaguars will travel south to Eastman, Ga., to take on the undefeated Dodge County Indians (Dodge County), the Region 1AAA champions.