Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) targets students in the academic middle—B, C, and even D students—who have the desire to go to college, the willingness to work hard, and are capable of completing rigorous curriculum, but often move through school without any special recognition, and fall short of their potential. These students are often the first in their families to attend college and many are from socio-economically disadvantaged families. In the AVID elective class and throughout the school, students are held to higher expectations, enroll in more rigorous classes, and get the support they need to succeed and prepare for college.

Currently, AVID is in seven schools: Benjamin Banneker, Forest Oak, Col. E. Brooke Lee, and White Oak middle schools, and Northwood, Paint Branch, and Rockville high schools. This year, Paint Branch High School made a local school decision to institute AVID, which the school is supporting using local school funds. The annual cost of the program in the six schools is $122,656, which includes membership fees, professional learning, travel costs for teachers, and costs for college-age tutors to support the students in the AVID elective classes.

In 2013–2014, 299 students were enrolled in AVID at the six schools. The following shows the ethnicity/FARMS status of AVID students in these schools:

• Asian—14 (5%)
• Black or African American—89 (30%)
• Hispanic or Latino—156 (52%)
• Multi-Racial—10 (3%)
• White—30 (10%)
• FARMS—205 (67%)

Provided below is data on seniors in the AVID program at Rockville and Northwood high schools for 2009–2013.

AVID has been offered at Forest Oak Middle School for three school years and at Benjamin Banneker, Col. E. Brooke Lee, and White Oak middle schools for two school years. Each school introduced the AVID elective class in Grade 7 and added a grade-level each year. Currently, Forest Oak Middle School offers the class in Grades 6-8, while the other three middle schools offer it in Grade 7-8. In Grades 6-8, the process of introducing students to more rigorous courses begins more gradually than in high school. The table below shows the percentage of middle school students enrolled in AVID who took honors level courses or higher level mathematics courses:

The table below shows percentage of students who have earned honor roll status with a B average this school year. Students can earn no more than one C and no grade below C to be eligible for honor roll.