According to educational analysts (Petrilli, Griffith, Wright & Kim, 2016), the passage of ESSA has afforded states the opportunity to narrow excellence gaps. Although excellence gaps have been defined as “differences between subgroups of students performing at the highest levels of achievement,” (Plucker & Peters, 2016, p. ix), research exploring the growth of diverse groups of racially and economically high-achieving students remains limited. The following study utilized a national database (ECLS-K) to explore the growth and placement patterns of racially and socioeconomically diverse cohorts of high-achieving students prior to the passage of ESSA (1998 to 2007). Demographic statistics provided evidence of excellence gaps [as defined by Plucker et al. (2010), Plucker, et al. (2013), and Plucker & Peters (2016)] prior to students’ exposure to formal schooling; however, examinations across cohorts (ANOVA, Tukey’s Honest Significant Differences post-hoc test) also indicated that Black and low-income students experienced less growth than their academic counterparts in reading and mathematics. Findings also revealed that Black and low-income students were less likely to remain in the top 20% and less likely to be recommended for AP or Honors courses. The results of this study suggest that the narrowing of excellence gaps will demand much more than measures of recruitment. Policies and procedures must also be put into place to ensure that equitable opportunities for growth and AP/Honors course placement are provided to all students – regardless of race or socioeconomic status.