Recently, the Mississippi Department of Education released final results for the scores earned on the ACT by this year’s group of test takers. Students from the Union Public School District reeled in scores giving the district an average composite score of 19.8 compared to the statewide composite average of 17.3. This ranks the district 9th out of roughly 140 Mississippi school districts. In Mississippi, all students take the ACT in February of their junior year of high school regardless of whether or not their after high school plans involve college. The students then have opportunities to improve scores throughout their senior year of high school.
Dr. Tyler Hansford, Superintendent of UPSD, said the district has been making an intentional focus on ACT preparedness for the last 3 years and that UHS now has 3 ACT Certified educators in Ms. Clancy Cleveland, Mr. Jonathan Winstead, and Mrs. Mandy Feasel. Hansford stated, “We started to see some of the returns on these efforts last year, but this year we really got it and it paid off for these students and families. Preparation for the ACT starts much earlier in students’ educational careers than high school by building skill sets. The work done, specifically later in high school, is about refining the approach and being intentional about where individual students can improve and gain more points. We are thrilled, but we’re not done yet. We’re going to keep working to improve and we’re going to continue our work in also preparing students for the ACT Workkeys because we know that not all students intend to go to college and that many can earn a great living by learning a trade. The ACT Workkeys gives them that opportunity.”
Deanna Rush, UHS school counselor, said, “I’m so very proud of our students’ performance on the ACT. ACT affects not only scholarship money for students, but also what courses they can go straight into as college freshmen and whether or not they can get into certain programs of study. We have really put a lot of emphasis on the importance of the test for our students, and they have bought in. I’m very appreciative that our district funds several opportunities such as teacher training and ACT boot camps to help our students be as prepared as possible. UHS also became a national testing site last year because we felt like giving our students the opportunity to test in a familiar environment would help ease some unnecessary anxiety on test day, and I think that has helped.”
Shelby Ferguson, a senior at UHS, had this to say, “I had no clue how important the ACT really was until I got into high school. Throughout the past four years, my teachers have drilled the phrase ‘money in your pocket’ into my head when encouraging us to take the ACT. The teachers urge each and every student to take the test as many times as possible because only good can come out of it such as money, scholarships, and better opportunities.”
In addition to ACT aligned course content and helpful test taking tips, all UPSD juniors have access to ACT prep materials from JumpStart Test Prep and all UHS students have access to online ACT prep through TutorMe. Students should see the school counselor or one of their teachers for assistance with either of those platforms.
You can view the full state level ACT results as presented to the State Board of Education at this link.
