Milbank Exceeds ACT State Average Scores

According to data released recently, Milbank student’s average composite ACT score is slightly above the state and national average as reported by the South Dakota Department of Education. Milbank’s score for the graduation class of 2015 was 22.3. The state average was 21.9 while the national average was 21.0.

“Our score is pretty close to what our historical average for the past several years has been,” noted Superintendent Tim Graf. “It is also close to what the state average has historically been as well.”

The 2014 class score for the Milbank district was 22.2 while 2013 was 23.9. Other scores within the past five years include 2012 (21.6) and 2011 (22.2).

Seventy-six percent of the state’s 2015 graduates took the ACT, which is an impressive percentage in a state that does not require ACT. “The high ACT participation rate is an indicator that many of our students are considering pursing some sort of post-secondary education,” stated Dr. Melody Schopp, Secretary of Education. “ACT’s report also shows that many of these students are considering schools right here in South Dakota, which is great news for building the state’s workforce.”

When students take the ACT, they can indicate which institutions of higher education they would like their scores sent to. Of the top 12 mentioned, 10 are in South Dakota and include both public and private universities as well as technical institutes.

For many years, ACT has been an important indicator when considering students’ readiness to take college-level courses. Moving forward, South Dakota’s public universities will also be looking at performance on the state assessment at grade 11 as another indicator of a student’s readiness. The ACT consists of curriculum-based tests in the areas of English, mathematics, reading and science and are designed to measure the skills needed for success in first-year college coursework.