By AP/KWMU
Springfield, Ill. – After a year of delays and mishaps with a company charged with getting standardized tests to schools, the state of Illinois is going with a new company.
The State Board of Education on Thursday approved a contract with Iowa-based ACT, the same organization that administers the college entrance exam.
It will administer the Prairie State Achievement Examination, which is taken by high school juniors. The PSAE had been run by Texas-based Harcourt Assessment. But Harcourt had major problems earlier this year with another Illinois test, and many schools had to delay testing.
ACT can make $52 million in the new deal, but state officials say the company faces major financial penalties if anything goes wrong.