Urban League to sponsor ACT prep program to address achievement gap

In a further effort to address the achievement gap in Madison, the Urban League of Greater Madison, will run a summer program to prepare low-income students and students of color for ACT college entrance exams. 

The Urban League hopes their ACT College Readiness Academies will address the achievement gap by encouraging students to apply to college. Vice President of Learning for the Urban League, Nichelle Nichols, explained that low-income students and students of color generally have lower ACT scores and turnout than their peers.

“Without preparation and exposure to the ACT college entrance exam, we find that there are a lot of racial disparities in terms of kids of color who either just don’t take the test or when they take it, score really low,” said Nichols. “Kids who are probably college-bound and can be college ready may need more opportunities to be prepared for such an important test.”

The Urban League ran two pilot classes during the fall semester, with funding from the Great Lakes Higher Education Corporation. The League applied for a new grant with the same corporation after deeming the pilot program a success.

For the summer, they received funding to conduct 14 courses with 200 students from the Madison Metropolitan School District, as well as Middleton, Monona Grove, and Sun Prairie school districts.

The first academy ran from March 5 through April 7, followed by the official ACT test on April 14. The courses last four weeks and precede each of four scheduled exams through fall 2012. A new cohort will soon begin to prepare for the June 9 exam. The Urban League covers the $49.50 test fee for students who participate in the course.

Students of color, first generation college students, and students who qualify for free or reduced cost lunch are encouraged to participate in the Academies.

Stephen Perez serves as the coordinator of the ACT College Readiness Academies, and recruits students at high schools in the area. Guidance counselors, coaches, and other faculty and staff help Perez identify students who need a little extra help on their road to college.

“We support the Urban League in whatever way we can,” said MMSD Deputy Superintendent, Sue Abplanalp.

Beyond recruitment assistance, participating school districts provide staff and space for the prep classes. Licensed teachers from the schools apply to teach the classes, which take place at the Urban League, community centers, and schools in the area.

The courses cover test-taking and literacy strategies, along with math, social studies, and literature reviews. In the course, students learn about and consider enrollment at various four-year universities.

“A lot of them are going to start at local community colleges, because that is what is dictated to them, because of their financial situations,” said Perez. “We spend time in every meeting talking about ‘where else could you go?’”

The students receive 30 hours of instruction as well as a pre-test and a final practice test. Perez explained the immediate goal of the program is to increase each student’s score by two points on the ACT grading scale which ranges from one to 36.

Perez hopes the program will ultimately “start to create a college-bound culture for more students.”