Students use vouchers to take ACT for free

An ACT college entrance exam score of 26 may be outstanding for some students, but for high school junior Todd Cheney it's not good enough.

The 17-year-old junior at Kelly Walsh High School is hoping to beat his brother's score of 31 when he uses his state voucher to retake the ACT for free during the June 9 testing.

Students like Cheney will have one chance to take the test for free under a new state law that requires all juniors take the test. During this past session, the state Legislature approved that as part of the success curriculum for the state's Hathaway Scholarship program.

Next year's juniors will be taking the test once for free in school. As for forcing students to take the test, state officials haven't looked at that possibility because it's not an issue yet, said Tim Lockwood, spokesman for the state Department of Education.

Special education students may be excused if their parents request it.

The new law requires students to take certain types of classes and maintain a certain grade-point average to qualify for the scholarship.

Cheney will be prepared this time when he uses his voucher. He's been working with a tutor, studying online and has an ACT preparation book.

"I didn't prepare the first time," he said. "My goal is to do better than my brother."

He also plans to continue to take the test as a senior if he doesn't beat his brother's score this time. If he does that, he will be paying for it himself.

Erin Lund, 17, and Jordan Merback, 16, both juniors at Kelly Walsh, also are preparing for the test. Lund will use her voucher to take it for the first time in June. Merback took it in February and used her voucher to get a reimbursement.

Lund has been preparing by reading ACT books from the school library, and she took the ACT practice test. She also took the PSAT last year.

"You can never really be fully prepared for this," she said.

Merback said she didn't do as well as she had hoped, but said she will try again next year and will continue to study for it.

Average scores on the ACT, which tests students in English, math, reading and science in a multiple-choice format, rose last year for the state, said Ed Colby, spokesman for ACT. In 2006, the average score was 21.6, which was up from 21.4 in the four years prior.

There were 3,871 state students tested last year, Colby said. Although all juniors have to take the test, Colby said that won't be a problem for ACT. Other states have instituted similar policies and the company has been able to meet those needs, he said.

The next national testing date for the ACT will be on April 14. The test will be at Casper College and about 320 students are registered to take it at the Wold Physical Science Center, said Kim Byrd, testing/single parent coordinator at the college.

The test will start at 8 a.m. and last until about noon, but students are asked to be at the school by 7:40 a.m. so they can be seated.

Students must register to take the test and there are deadlines that have to be followed. For the April 14 test, students had to register by March 9. For the test in June, students will have to register by May 4.

ACT offers the regular test and the ACT Plus Writing, which has a writing segment. The voucher covers the cost of the $29 regular ACT test only, Byrd said. The ACT Plus costs $43.

Although the June test will be the last nationwide testing date for this school year, Casper College will offer residual ACT testing three times during the summer. Those tests, however, are only for students who want to attend Casper College and want the Hathaway Scholarship, Byrd said.