Kentucky Seeks to Improve College Readiness

Kentucky’s governing body for higher education voted last week to put in place a statewide standard aimed at reducing the number of college freshmen who need remedial courses.

The policy, which will take effect next fall, guarantees all college freshmen placement in classes that they can count toward graduation, as long as they have the minimum skills required in mathematics and English.

“We keep saying that we are not getting students college-ready,’’ said Jim Applegate, the vice president of academic affairs for the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education, which came up with the plan to address that problem along with the state board of education, state universities, and ACT, the Iowa...