Most college-going African-American students aren’t getting the education they need to succeed there, according to a new study from the ACT testing company.
Only 10 percent of African-Americans who graduated high school in 2013 met at least three of the act’s four College-Readiness Benchmarks, compared to 39 percent of all graduates who took the test. According to research by the Iowa City, Iowa, test-maker, students who meet these benchmarks are more likely to stay in college.
Among African-American students who met at least two benchmarks, 71 percent persisted into a second year of postsecondary study—the same rate achieved by all ACT-tested graduates who met two or more benchmarks.