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It addresses how postsecondary preparation gaps affect college readiness and graduation outcomes, then identifies policies and practices linked to improved academic achievement. During years of participation in ACT’s EPAS programs, both schools show rising ACT performance, narrowing achievement gaps, broader adoption of college-preparatory curricula, increased college enrollment, and reduced need for remedial courses.",{"@graph":69,"@context":122},[70,84,105],{"@type":71,"itemListElement":72},"BreadcrumbList",[73,77,79,82],{"item":74,"name":75,"@type":76,"position":8},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":78,"name":9,"@type":76,"position":14},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/",{"item":80,"name":40,"@type":76,"position":81},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/research-report/",3,{"item":83,"name":65,"@type":76,"position":19},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/breaking-barriers-a-case-study-of-two-high-performing-schools-introduction/529300/",{"url":83,"name":65,"@type":85,"image":86,"author":91,"headline":65,"publisher":94,"fileFormat":97,"inLanguage":63,"description":67,"dateModified":98,"datePublished":99,"encodingFormat":97,"isAccessibleForFree":100,"interactionStatistic":101},"DigitalDocument",{"url":87,"@type":88,"width":89,"height":90},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/breaking-barriers-a-case-study-of-two-high-performing-schools-introduction/529300.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":92,"@type":93},"Mary Man","Person",{"url":74,"name":95,"@type":96},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-14","2026-10-09",true,{"@type":102,"interactionType":103,"userInteractionCount":52},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":104},"ViewAction",{"@type":106,"mainEntity":107},"FAQPage",[108,114,118],{"name":109,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":111},"Why does the report emphasize postsecondary preparation after high school?","Question",{"text":112,"@type":113},"It explains that economic success depends on postsecondary education, yet many students graduate underprepared for college-level work, especially low-income and racial/ethnic minority students.","Answer",{"name":115,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":116},"Which ACT programs are discussed in the study, and how are they used?",{"text":117,"@type":113},"The report describes EPAS, including EXPLORE, PLAN, and ACT, and summarizes how each is administered in the two schools and linked to planning, progress review, and curriculum evaluation.",{"name":119,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":120},"What improvements are reported during EPAS participation for the two schools?",{"text":121,"@type":113},"The study reports increases in average ACT scores across subjects, reduced racial/ethnic achievement gaps, more students taking recommended core curricula, greater readiness for college coursework, more graduates choosing postsecondary education, and fewer students needing remedial classes.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":83,"og:type":124,"og:title":65,"og:site_name":95,"og:description":67},"article",{"robots":126,"canonical":83},"index,follow",{"doc_id":128,"site_id":62},529300,1791586223,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":131},{"doc_id":128,"user_id":132,"nickname":92,"user_avatar":133,"doc_module":4,"category_id":39,"category_name":40,"doc_title":65,"doc_description":67,"doc_content":134,"file_id":135,"file_url":136,"file_type":137,"file_size":138,"view_count":52,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":8,"is_downloadable":8,"audit_status":8,"page_count":139,"language":140,"language_code":63,"site_id":62,"html_lang":63,"table_of_contents":141,"faqs":142,"seo_title":143,"seo_description":67,"update_tm":144,"read_time":145},7421720224475,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_276721f389ce27ea32af1340a28f341c","Breaking Barriers: A Case Study of Two High-Performing Schools  \nIntroduction  \nCurrent education and workforce projections indicate that postsecondary education is necessary for the economic success of both individuals and society. However, despite the importance of postsecondary education, many high school students graduate underprepared for college-level courses. This is especially true for low-income students and for students from racial/ethnic minority groups, who are less likely to take the college-preparatory curriculum in high school and graduate prepared for college-level work than other students (ACT, Inc., 2006a) . Compared to other students, African American, Hispanic American, and Native American graduates are less likely to enroll in college (Green & Forster, 2003) and more likely to take remedial courses when they enter college (ACT, Inc., 2004; Green & Forster, 2003) . Students who take remedial courses in college are also more likely to drop out before earning a degree (McCabe, 2000; U.S. Department of Education, 2001) .  \nFortunately, there are schools that have made a commitment to bring about a change in the academic preparation of their students. These high schools have committed to prepare all of their students for success, whether they elect to enter college, workforce training programs, or the workforce upon graduating from high school.  \nThis study focused on two such schools. Both schools have substantial enrollments of low-income and racial/ethnic minority students and, despite the odds, are successfully preparing students for their post–high school goals. Our purpose was to identify the policies and practices that appear to be contributing to the schools’ success. Such information can help teachers, administrators, and other stakeholders who are seeking to improve the academic preparation of their students, particularly those in high-poverty and high-minority schools.  \nThis study profiles two high schools with high enrollments of low-income and racial/ethnic minority students: Thornton Fractional North High School (TF North) and Dumas High School (DHS) .∗ The charts on the following page describe some of the demographic characteristics of each school.  \n∗ For detailed profiles of each school, please see the appendices.  \n© 2006 by ACT, Inc. All rights reserved. The ACT® is a registered trademark of ACT, Inc. , in the U. S.A. and other countries. EXPLORE®, PLAN®, and  \nASSET® are registered trademarks ofACT, Inc. EPAS™ and College Readiness Standards™ are trademarks ofACT, Inc. 0508A1070  \nThornton Fractional North High School  \nLocation: A southeast suburb of Chicago  \nEnrollment: About 1,600  \n|  African American | Hispanic | White |\n| --- | --- | --- |\n\nDumas High School  \nLocation: A small rural town in Arkansas  \nEnrollment: About 400  \n|  African American | Hispanic | White |\n| --- | --- | --- |\n\nBoth schools participate in the ACT Educational Planning and Assessment System (EPAS™) 1. The following table summarizes use of the three EPAS programs in the two schools and (for eighth grade) their corresponding school districts.  \nParticipation in ACT’s Educational Planning and Assessment System  \n(EPAS)  \n\n| EPAS Program | Dumas High School (Dumas School District) | Thornton Fractional North (Thornton Fractional High School District 215) |\n| --- | --- | --- |\n| EXPLORE\u003Cbr>How Used | Administered to all eighth gradersin the district since 1996. | Administered to all eighth gradersin the district and administered to all ninth graders since 2000. |\n|  | Results are used in developing students’ educational plans for high school and post–high school careers, and for placing students in AdVentures program (starts in ninth grade) . | Results are used in developing four-year academic plans that reflect students’ desired post–highschool goals. |\n| PLAN\u003Cbr>How Used | Administered to all tenth graders since 1996. | Administered to all tenth graders since 2000, and to all eleventh graders since 2003. |\n|  | R","cbCaikPnTcdayADL","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaikPnTcdayADL","pdf",238015,31,"English","# Introduction\n## Participation in ACT’s Educational Planning and Assessment System (EPAS)\n## Improvements in Academic Achievement and College Readiness\n### Average ACT scores increased across most subject areas","[{\"question\":\"Why does the report emphasize postsecondary preparation after high school?\",\"answer\":\"It explains that economic success depends on postsecondary education, yet many students graduate underprepared for college-level work, especially low-income and racial/ethnic minority students.\"},{\"question\":\"Which ACT programs are discussed in the study, and how are they used?\",\"answer\":\"The report describes EPAS, including EXPLORE, PLAN, and ACT, and summarizes how each is administered in the two schools and linked to planning, progress review, and curriculum evaluation.\"},{\"question\":\"What improvements are reported during EPAS participation for the two schools?\",\"answer\":\"The study reports increases in average ACT scores across subjects, reduced racial/ethnic achievement gaps, more students taking recommended core curricula, greater readiness for college coursework, more graduates choosing postsecondary education, and fewer students needing remedial classes.\"}]","Breaking Barriers - A Case Study of Two High-Performing Schools - Introduction | PDF",1791520888,78]