TURNERS FALLS, MA  — Classes started this week at Franklin County Technical School for the 38th time, but for the first time with advanced college placement classes.

The Technical School this year added junior and senior AP English classes and an AP statistics class to its academic program, and an AP computer science class in the programming and Web design vocational shop.

Superintendent Richard “Rick” Martin said the absence has been felt in the past.

“A lot of our students over the years have inquired, and their parents have inquired, why don’t we have advanced placement courses, and we needed to build a foundation and to increase our honors level courses first, and as we began to do that it started to prompt us going in that direction,” Martin said.