Brighton High adds first AP Spanish course under 42-year veteran

Brighton High School students can take Advanced Placement Spanish for the first time, a milestone for the Cottonwood Heights school where Kevin McMahon has taught the language since 1985.

McMahon, a Spanish teacher with 42 years in the classroom, is leading the new AP Spanish Language and Culture course, the BHS Times reported. He arrives at the school by 4:30 a.m. each day, a routine he has kept for decades.

Before joining Brighton, McMahon spent a year teaching in Detroit, a stint he jokes was "worth ten." Over his time at Brighton, he has watched education shift with the rise of the internet, new materials and school remodeling. But one thing has stayed the same, he said: the students themselves.

McMahon told the BHS Times the AP course had been discussed for years before it became a reality. He called the launch "a work in progress" since neither he nor his students know exactly what to expect from the first year.

For McMahon, a perfect score of five on the AP exam is not the ultimate goal. He wants students to gain practical fluency they can carry into the job market.

"If you ever have a dream, even partially in Spanish, that means you're on your way," McMahon said.

The new AP offering arrives amid a long-running debate over Brighton's trimester schedule. Brighton runs three five-period trimesters, giving students 15 class slots per year. Other Canyons School District high schools use block scheduling with 16 slots. The local community council has raised concerns that the trimester format limits room for both AP and arts courses, according to the Cottonwood Heights Journal.

Brighton's spring 2026 graduating class numbered 550 students and earned $15 million in college scholarships, Canyons School District Board President Amber Shill told the Cottonwood Heights City Council at its July 20 meeting. Seventy students scored 30 or higher on the ACT, compared with a typical range of 30 to 40, Shill said.

Enrollment figures for the new AP Spanish course have not been released. McMahon said he is confident his students can reach proficiency both inside the classroom and out.