When Benjamin Greenberg saw the envelope he received from the College Board, he thought it was junk mail.

Good thing he didn’t throw it away.

Inside was a letter, saying he would receive a $2,000 college scholarship from the Siemens Foundation.

“It was pretty remarkable,” said Greenberg, a 17-year-old Free State High School junior. “You don’t see that every day.”

Greenberg earned the scholarship because of “exceptional performance” on the College Board’s Advance Placement tests he took about a year ago. Two tests were in physics, and one was in calculus. He received scores of 5 on all the tests – the score needed to be considered for the scholarships.

Only two students in each state – one male and one female – receive the $2,000 scholarships. The female winner in Kansas was Wendy Zhang, a student at Shawnee Mission South High School in Johnson County.

The College Board is a nonprofit membership association that offers college-level tests, including the SAT and Advanced Placement programs. It partners with the Siemens Awards for Advanced Placement to recognize the students who do well.

Greenberg, the son of Marc Greenberg and Marta Pirnat-Greenberg, said he thought the tests were difficult. He said he paid a fee and took the tests, which are voluntary, because he could earn college credits if he did well. He didn’t know scholarships also were a possibility, he said.

“I’ve always been interested in math,” Greenberg said. “I hadn’t studied physics until last year. I really enjoyed it.”

Benjamin Greenberg, Free State High School junior and winner of the Siemens Foundation Award for Advanced Placement.

Greenberg isn’t sure where he will go to college. He is keeping his options open and studying possible colleges and universities with his parents. He also isn’t sure yet what profession he wants to enter.

“I’m pretty sure I want to major in math or physics or both,” he said.

Whatever he decides to do, his teachers expect he will do it well.

“He’s an outstanding student, and I think he is going to make a wonderful contribution to the world of science and mathematics,” said Rebecca Blocher, gifted education facilitator at Free State.