AP test profit funds PSAT tests at Walter Johnson High School

The Great Mystery of the Free PSAT Tests has finally been solved. 

Parents of most MCPS 11th graders might recall having paid the standard PSAT fee of $13 this past fall.  For each PSAT test taken, the schools forwarded the entire $13 payment to the College Board, except for tests given to students who were granted fee waivers.

Some schools, such as BCC, Gaithersburg, and Seneca Valley, decided to turn the PSAT test into a fundraiser by tacking on an additional $1 to $2.  

But one school -- Walter Johnson (Bethesda) -- didn't charge anything for the PSAT test.

So we wondered:  How did Walter Johnson figure out a way to provide the PSAT test for free, when all of the other schools were charging $13 to $15 to each 11th grade student?

We asked the principal of Walter Johnson, Dr. Garran, how his school paid for the PSAT without collecting the $13 per test fee.  

All that Dr. Garran would tell us was that "discretionary funds" were used.  

As it turns out, a portion of the profit from previously administered AP tests was used to pay for the PSAT tests.  Of the $86 per AP test that students pay, the school gets to keep $8 to do with as they wish.  Walter Johnson administered 1,851 AP tests last spring, resulting in a profit of about $14,808.  (The actual profit may have been slightly less because the school forgoes the profit for any students who are entitled to a fee reduction.)  

What did the other high schools do with their AP test profit?  And why didn't they use their AP test profits to pay for PSAT tests?

The answer can be obtained from your child's high school principal -- but only if you ask.

Here are the financial records from Walter Johnson High School that show the transfer from the AP test account to the PSAT test account and the check request to pay the College Board for the tests.
Walter Johnson HS PSAT funding IAF Documents