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In today’s economy, a region’s competitiveness rests on one essential asset: its workforce. To strengthen that asset, nearly 600 communities across the U.S. have adopted ACT Work Ready Communities, a data-driven framework that aligns education, industry, and policy around one goal: developing a skilled, job-ready talent pipeline.

What is a Work Ready Community (WRC)?

A WRC is a community-wide workforce development ecosystem that:
Links education to workforce development by offering the ACT WorkKeys NCRC in school
Aligns talent preparation with regional economic needs
Helps employers match candidates to jobs based on verified skill levels

Together, these elements create a stronger talent pipeline while helping communities compete for new business and industry.

Tackling the skilled worker shortage

Ford CEO Jim Farley recently highlighted a troubling national trend: 5,000 open mechanic positions at Ford are unfilled because candidates lack necessary skills. This mirrors a widespread shortage across trades and technical fields.

WRCs address this challenge head-on. By using ACT WorkKeys assessments in high schools, colleges, adult education programs, and incumbent worker training, communities help residents validate foundational skills while giving employers access to qualified, job-ready talent.

The result: individuals gain meaningful employment opportunities, and businesses hire employees who have what it takes to train or work from day one.

The WorkKeys National Career Readiness Certificate: The heart of an ACT WRC

At the center of every WRC is the WorkKeys National Career Readiness Certificate (NCRC): the credential that turns workforce readiness into measurable, verifiable skill data. The NCRC evaluates three foundational skills employers say are most critical: Applied Math, Workplace Documents, and Graphic Literacy. According to ACT’s JobPro database, these skills are required for about 77% of U.S. jobs, making the NCRC a common assessment tool across education, employers, and workforce systems.

The NCRC delivers clear value:

ACT has long promoted the idea that postsecondary options should be accessible to every student, from every background. The ACT Fee Waiver Program supports this mission by covering registration for two ACT tests and providing free test prep, extra score reports, and potential college application fee waivers for eligible students.

Partnering with organizations that share ACT’s mission to provide access to testing and resources has afforded students even more opportunities to explore their postsecondary options.

Unite Inc., founded in August 2011 by Dr. Travis Smith while he was a student at Alabama State University, is dedicated to serving rural Alabama high school students. Its mission is to increase college access, academic achievement, and degree attainment, especially with HBCU colleges across the country.

Dr. Smith, executive director, and his team provide ACT college preparation courses, professional development workshops, and college transition coaching to expose students to a wide range of postsecondary opportunities.

A cornerstone of Unite’s work is leveraging the ACT Fee Waiver Program to eliminate financial barriers that often prevent students from taking the ACT, an essential step toward college admission and scholarship eligibility. Dr. Smith explains, “These waivers give students increased motivation, knowing they can now afford to take the test and ease the financial stress that is often exacerbated in rural communities. This makes studying and test prep materials more accessible when knowing you can actually register for the test.”

ACT College Readiness Benchmarks: predictor of college success

The ACT College Readiness Benchmarks are data-driven predictors that indicate how the ACT subject-specific skills translate into success in first-year college courses. Meeting these benchmarks means a student is likely prepared for college-level work in those subjects and represents the likelihood that a student will achieve at least a B (50% chance) or at least a C (approximately 75-80% chance) in related first-year college courses.

Current ACT benchmarks:

For decades, the ACT test has been one of the most trusted measures of college readiness. But educators are increasingly recognizing that its value extends far beyond a single test day.

With millions of students participating in ACT district testing and PreACT testing at their schools, educators have access to powerful data that can inform instruction, strengthen core learning, and ensure every student has a pathway to postsecondary success.

At MasteryPrep, we’ve seen this transformation firsthand. Through the ACT Online Prep, Powered by MasteryPrep platform, educators are integrating test preparation directly into the school day — not as an add-on, but as an enhancement to standards-based instruction.

The result: stronger engagement, better outcomes, and greater student access to college readiness support.

Why In-School Prep Matters

Traditional after-school test prep, whether through private tutoring or weekend workshops, has long been an option for some students. However, the reality is that it’s not available to all students. In-school preparation ensures every student, not just those with the resources or time outside of class, gets the support they need to reach college readiness benchmarks.

More than that, in-school prep benefits classroom instruction. ACT’s college and career readiness standards are tightly aligned with what’s being taught. They measure the foundational skills that predict success in reading, mathematics, English, science, and writing.

By embedding ACT-aligned lessons and practice into instruction, teachers reinforce these non-negotiable skills where they matter most: in real time, as part of everyday learning.

From Data to Daily Impact

The data provided through ACT and PreACT testing offers educators a roadmap for personalized instruction. With the practice and learning experiences available in ACT Online Prep, Powered by MasteryPrep, teachers can translate this data into action.

They use the platform to:

• Reinforce key skills daily through quick Bell Ringer exercises aligned to ACT standards.
• Review essential concepts from prior grade levels — such as grammar or foundational algebra — to close gaps before they hinder progress.
• Raise rigor by incorporating authentic ACT questions that challenge students to apply knowledge in complex, real-world contexts.
• Remediate learning gaps with adaptive study plans that guide students through customized skill-building paths.

This approach transforms ACT prep from a separate task into an integrated teaching strategy — one that helps both teachers and students stay aligned on what true college readiness looks like.

Enriching Standards, Not Teaching to the Test

There’s a common misconception that incorporating test prep into instruction means “teaching to the test.” In reality, it’s about enriching the standards. For example, a teacher addressing a standard like “order fractions” can meet the benchmark through a textbook exercise, but using an ACT question on the same concept deepens rigor and application.

Students aren’t just memorizing procedures; they’re learning how to transfer skills to unfamiliar problems, which is the essence of higher learning.

When students encounter ACT-style rigor throughout their coursework, they develop confidence, resilience, and long-term retention. Learning becomes active, relevant, and measurable — not confined to a single assessment window.

Building a Culture of Readiness

Ultimately, integrating test prep into the school day changes more than academic outcomes; it also transforms school culture.

When college readiness becomes part of the daily rhythm of instruction, students begin to see themselves as capable of success beyond graduation. Teachers gain a clearer picture of student progress, administrators can target resources where they’re needed most, and entire campuses align around a shared goal: ensuring that every student has the opportunity to thrive.

In-school test prep isn’t just about higher scores. It’s about giving all students, in every classroom, the chance to master the skills that open doors to their future.