In an effort to help students at Homewood-Flossmoor High School improve their ACT test scores, the District 233 board of education agreed to a contract with test-prep company Kaplan at its Jan. 20 meeting.
The $265,000 contract with Kaplan ACT Preparation Services will have representatives on campus to work twice a week with the 650 members of the junior class starting in fall 2026. The instructors will offer review sessions during a 40-minute bloc of time after the lunch period to get students ready for the exam offered in March.
An H-F teacher will be in the room with the Kaplan instructor. Students will be expected to participate and will receive a grade that will affect their GPA.
Each student will get an account and will be able to access Kaplan materials through that account.
The ACT score is part of the school’s Illinois Report Card measurement of preparedness. Administrators believe the test-prep program will have a two-fold benefit: 1) it will help students earn a higher score on ACT, a tool that is important for college admissions, and 2) the higher score will help boost H-F’s standing and help move H-F’s Illinois Report Card ranking from commendable to exemplary, the top ranking.
Asa Gordon, director of college and career pathways, said the reviews will help reduce test anxiety and give students an understanding of the test strategies. Students also will have access to test-prep videos and practice questions.
“The beautiful part of this arrangement is although the instructors are here for six months, the students will still have access to that (Kaplan) platform for another six months,” Gordon said. That will be an added benefit to students who want to retake the ACT exam in October. “They will still have access to the platform all summer and into the fall” to use Kaplan materials as a refresher, Gordon explained.
“I will tell you, when I used to do test prep, it works,” Gordon said. There are other test prep packages, but he said the difference with Kaplan is the instructors will be on campus. Those instructors will also be available online to help students with individual questions or study needs.
After Gordon’s presentation to the board’s Planning Committee Jan. 16, member Nate Legardy said, “This is an investment” and added that he believes it will help improve H-F’s ACT scores.
