Hope Chinese Charter School Becomes Certified AP Exam Testing Site, Immediately Fills Test Seats

Beaverton, Oregon — October 2024 — Hope Chinese Charter School (HCCS) has announced its certification as an official Advanced Placement (AP) Chinese exam testing site, offering 20 test seats. However, within days of sharing this news with HCCS alumni and the Beaverton School District, all spots available for the May 2025 testing date were filled.

In becoming an AP testing site for Chinese language, HCCS demonstrates their commitment to promoting Chinese language proficiency, not just for their own students but for other Chinese language students in the area. While there are several Chinese immersion preschool options and a handful of Chinese immersion elementary school programs operating in the Beaverton-Portland area, HCCS stands out as having been the first when they opened their doors in 2012. At least for now, HCCS is still the only K-8 Chinese immersion program.

“This is a major step forward for Chinese language education in our community…” – Oregon Chinese Coalition

Many HCCS alumni have continued their Chinese language studies and could qualify for college credit if they could take an AP Chinese Exam. Unfortunately, that isn’t always possible.

“Many schools do not offer the AP Chinese exam. This situation has been a concern for us, as it may discourage students from pursuing Chinese language studies.” The Oregon Chinese Coalition posted in their Facebook status update on October 25th.

“Chinese language teachers across different schools have been asking around and advocating on this matter. Finally, the new principal of Hope Chinese Charter School, who is Chinese herself, took it upon herself to apply for AP exam eligibility for the school and decided to open up exam opportunities to students from other schools who otherwise would not have access. This is a major step forward for Chinese language education in our community, and we deeply appreciate school’s generous efforts.”

Marilyn Mi, the new Head of School at HCCS, says they will see if they can create more test seats in the future. Right now, they limited by the number of chrome books they can spare and the amount of space they have for students to come in and take the exam. HCCS’s own school building is cramped and crowded and, as the AP Exams are four hours long and take place during the school day, HCCS must rent space from their neighbors, the Beaverton Elk’s Lodge. 

Chinese is the fastest growing language learning market globally according to a study published in 2023 by education market platform HolonIQ. The number of people outside China learning Chinese as a second/foreign language exceeded 25 million in 2021, with over 200 million individuals learning and using the language (China’s Ministry of Education, 2023). 

For more information about the AP exam offerings and other educational programs at Hope Chinese Charter School, please visit contact Hope Chinese Charter School.