Samo offers free SAT for seniors

On the morning of Oct. 11, 2017 Samo seniors will be missing out on their late start Wednesday to come to school to take the SAT. This year the test is being offered free of cost as part of the College Board’s worldwide SAT school day. Districts who choose to take part in this are able to eliminate many of the things that often prevent students from taking the SAT.This all started when Director of Assessment, Evan Bartelheim, and the Local Control Accountability Plan committee noticed that less than half of the seniors in the SMMUSD district were taking the SAT before they graduated. For many of them, they were either unable to pay for the test or to take it on the Saturdays it was offered. After realizing this, the district decided it would be worthwhile to invest in creating this opportunity for the seniors. “Purchasing the test seemed like a great option for all of our students – even those who already took it in 11th grade. For some students, it presents the first time they will take the test, and it might open doors for them that they weren’t aware existed,” Bartelheim said. The funding that made this possible came from a new source of school funding called the Local Control Funding Formula. This requires schools to spend a portion of the Supplemental Grant on students whom might be struggling the most, such as English learners, low income and foster children. Around 27% of students in the SMMUSD district fall into one or more of these categories, and the district thought that spending it in this way would be the best way to benefit these students. “We are using the Supplemental Grant to pay for the SAT School Day, because our data suggests that these are the students who are least likely to take the SAT at all. In this instance, the expenditure will also benefit other students also,” Bartelheim said. The district decided to provide students with the SAT rather than the ACT for a few reasons. They already offer the PSAT for free for sophomores, so offering these two tests for free align with each other. Then, they use the data of these two tests to evaluate the impact of their courses in preparing students for college. Also, offering the SAT for free allows them to also promote free SAT prep courses that Khan Academy offers. All seniors are automatically registered, and will get their testing locations soon. Julie Markussen, who is coordinating the SAT school day at Samo, stressed the importance of taking the SAT. “Even if you don’t think you’re going to a four year college right away it’s still nice to have it in your back pocket cause you never know. And if you got the opportunity and you never took SAT, then you have limited your opportunities,” Markussen said.