Average ACT Score For Arizona’s High School Class Of 2022 Declines

The national average ACT Composite score for the high school class of 2022 was 19.8, the lowest average score in more than three decades. That low score was the average for Arizona students tested in 2021.

Arizona’s composite score dropped even lower in 2022 — down to 18.4.

“The magnitude of the declines this year is particularly alarming, as we see rapidly growing numbers of seniors leaving high school without meeting the college-readiness benchmark in any of the subjects we measure,” said ACT CEO Janet Godwin, whose organization administers the college readiness exam.

“These declines are not simply a byproduct of the pandemic. They are further evidence of longtime systemic failures that were exacerbated by the pandemic,” argued Godwin. “A return to the pre-pandemic status quo would be insufficient and a disservice to students and educators. These systemic failures require sustained collective action and support for the academic recovery of high school students as an urgent national priority and imperative.”

Critics say the decline is a major reason why parents are pulling their children out of traditional public schools and are opting for programs like the Empowerment Scholarship Accounts (ESA) available in Arizona. The ESA program was expanded to cover all K-12 students in Arizona thanks to a bill introduced by Rep. Ben Toma as part of the 2022 Legislative Session. According to the Arizona Department of Education, families submitted over 12,100 ESA applications as of September 30th. According to sources, that number stands at closer to 30,000 families as of October 15th.

An effort by the teachers’ union to stop the expansion failed last month, when supporters could not get enough signatures to meet the deadline for referring a challenge the law onto the 2022 General Election ballot.

Despite not getting on the ballot, the issue is an election year talking point for Republican candidate and former Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne. Horne points to higher test scores when he served as Superintendent and he holds Democrat Kathy Hoffman, the current Superintendent who is seeking re-election, largely responsible for the decline.

Kathy Hoffman’s administration has failed to hire new employees to administer ESAs as required by law. She’s giving parents who have questions an email address that doesn’t work. We need someone who supports school choice and will follow the law. Vote @electtomhorne #ESAs4All https://t.co/yvwPKwG98q

— Taylor 🌵 (@TaylorinAZ5) October 15, 2022

For her part, Hoffman has focused on attacking school choice efforts and the ESA accounts in particular, saying that only children from affluent families are taking advantage of the largest school choice program in the nation.

However, activists like Janelle Wood, founder of the Black Mothers Forum, say through the ESAs “our black children have an opportunity to live and breathe in a safe and supportive community whether that be a learning community, in their living community or in their homes.”

Table includes the average Composite score and percent meeting ACT College and Career Readiness Benchmarks by subject.