Galloway Teacher Advances in AP Program

By Head of Community Engagement Gordon Mathis

Upper Learning political science teacher Sam Biglari has taught AP US Government for more than 25 years. In the fall of 2020, the College Board asked Biglari to record videos in support of students and teachers participating in the national exam in US Government. We are excited to announce that he has now advanced to the role of Exam Leader, one of four nationwide.  

For two decades during the summer months, Biglari has participated in the scoring process necessary for assessing the national exams. For years he was one of 700 readers, focusing on scoring one of the four Free Response Question (FRQ) essays on the national exam. Several years ago he advanced to Table Leader, in charge of a table of eight readers. In these two roles Biglari applied the rubrics for correctly responding to the FRQs – a skill that he brought back to Galloway to teach his students in their preparation for the national exam.

In his new role, Biglari will oversee the process for all four of the Free Response Questions.

There are two Question Leaders for each of the four FRQs – eight teachers from across the nation. Biglari has served in that capacity, adjusting the rubric for a particular question, compiling and editing the samples of student work posted online at the “AP Central” site.

In addition, he will serve as a mentor for both new and experienced AP teachers, leading monthly Zoom sessions for instructors from Illinois, New York, Maryland, and South Carolina; he will also write the manual for AP mentors, providing the framework for all groups across the country.

After 25 years of devotion to Upper Learning and the AP program, Biglari continues to bring his recognized expertise to his Galloway classroom, much to the benefit of hundreds of students throughout the years!