For the Junior Class, taking the SAT will be a requirement in accordance with the new education accountability laws the state has set in place, with the date tentatively set for them to do so is March 2. 

Starting with the Class of 2023, the state will use the SAT instead of the ISTEP. The law requires that 95% of a high school’s students take the test to meet the school’s participation goal. There is no specific score a student must earn, but the school’s results will be used as part of a new A through F grading of schools. 

Mr. Martin Kirkwood, College Board test coordinator and counselor, said the March 2 SAT will be three hours and 45 minutes for standard test takers. Currently, there is not a set schedule for the day of the test or a specific plan in place regarding room assignments for the juniors. Kirkwood said he expects details will be announced one month prior to the test day. 

Many of the details of the test day are still undetermined. “March 2 is Ash Wednesday, so we are thinking about moving the date back a day or two,” Kirkwood said. 

Another question the counselors look to answer is where the SAT will be administered. “It could possibly take place in (facilities at) Brunette Park,” Kirkwood said. The other classes are expected to attend school with a normal schedule and potentially attend Mass as well. “If a junior is absent, they will not have a set make-up day, but they will have to take the test somewhere else,” Kirkwood said. 

Counselors and administrators expect the SAT day will be a motivator for juniors to do well, as the test can be used for college admissions and scholarship opportunities.  “I sit here today with a little bit of embarrassment having not taken it seriously, and I wish I had,” Kirkwood said, recalling his high school SAT experience. “The test is important and it should be taken seriously.”