Washington
Washington students scored high on ACT — but few take the test – My Edmonds News
Washington high school students continue to test better on the ACT college admissions exam than their peers across the United States, according to data from the organization that administers the test.
This year’s nationwide average was 19.4, a 0.1 decrease from last year, making it the lowest average since 1991. In contrast, Washington’s average score was 24.5, the same as last year and up from 21 a decade ago.
However, only 5% of Washington’s class of 2024 took the ACT, making it tough to compare to the nationwide average. Across the country, 36% of students from the class of 2024 took the test — roughly 1.4 million.
The SAT is much more popular in Washington: 37% of the state’s high school students took the SAT last year, according to the College Board. SAT data for 2024 is not yet available.
There’s an “East Coast bias” to the ACT, said the state Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction, and Washington’s bias toward the SAT may be because the National Merit Scholarship program is tied to the PSAT or preliminary SAT. The PreACT does not have a comparable scholarship program for the top 1% of exam takers.
“We are working to expand our state and district testing program in Washington,” said Catherine Hofmann, senior vice president of government and public affairs at ACT. “We are seeing more schools nationally reinstating test requirements for admission, which may increase participation in Washington.”
Washington’s public four-year universities do not require SAT or ACT scores for admission.
Hoffman also said ACT sees it as “promising” that there wasn’t a statistically significant difference from the 2023 ACT average score, considering that “a broader mix of students” are taking the test due to policy changes across the country expanding free access to the ACT during the school day.
When broken down by subject, average ACT scores in Washington were highest in reading, at 25.6, and lowest for math, at 23.7. More than 60% of Washington students who took the ACT met college readiness benchmark scores in math, reading and science, and 78% of Washington students met the English benchmark.
Nationwide, only 57% of students met one or more of the ACT’s college readiness benchmarks. Students who meet the benchmarks have about a 50% chance of earning a B or better in the corresponding first-year college courses and a roughly 75% chance of earning a C or better, according to ACT’s data.
Students who took the exam this year were freshmen during the first full year of COVID-19 learning disruptions; last year’s students were freshmen when lockdowns began.
Data from prior graduating classes shows that 84% of students who met all four benchmarks graduate with postsecondary degrees within six years. Only 38% of students who meet zero benchmarks and 56% of students meeting one benchmark graduate in that time.
Editor’s note: A previous version of this story misspelled Catherine Hofmann’s name as “Hoffman.”
— By Grace Deng, Washington State Standard
Washington State Standard is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Washington State Standard maintains editorial independence.
WASHINGTON – Coming up this month, spring’s most colorful new event: Tulip Day Washington.
What we know:
On March 15, 2026, Tulip Day Washington will transform DC’s National Mall into a vibrant tulip-picking garden beautiful views of U.S. Capitol
This one-day event will take place from 11:15 AM – 4:15 PM, offering a floral showcase of approximately 150,000 tulips; visitors are invited to pick their choice of 10 tulips for free upon arrival.
Dig deeper:
The registration site for Tulip Day is currently down, showing users “This site is currently unavailable. If you’re the owner of this website, please contact your hosting provider to get this resolved.”
Users on social media say the event may be sold out.
Check tulipday.eu for updates.
The backstory:
The event is organized by the Embassy of the Netherlands and Royal Anthos, a Dutch trade association, in honor of America’s 250th birthday. The display of tulips will be in the shape of the number 250.
The bulbs come from the Netherlands, but are being grown in Virginia and New Jersey.
These won’t be the first tulips on the National Mall, however. The Floral Library, also known as the Tulip Library, features 93 beds of flowers near the Tidal Basin. The Floral Library was established in 1969, and is maintained by the National Park Services. These flowers, though, are to be enjoyed only – not to be picked.
The562’s coverage of Dirtbags Baseball for the 2026 season is sponsored by P2S, Inc. Visit p2sinc.com to learn more.
Long Beach State dropped a 9-7 decision against Washington State on Sunday afternoon, closing out a busy weekend on Bohl Diamond at Blair Field.
The visiting Cougars took the lead for good in the eighth inning when Long Beach Poly grad Ryan Skjonsby delivered a game-winning two-run single with two outs and the bases loaded. Skjonsby was 2-for-4 with a walk, a run scored and three RBIs for Washington State in their road victory.
For the Dirtbags, catcher Damon Valdez scored twice and had a key two-run single in the sixth to help lead a Long Beach comeback. Trevor Goldenetz had a pair of hits at the top of the order, including an RBI triple. Camden Gasser walked twice and singled, improving his on-base percentage to .574 on the season.
Long Beach State (4-7) will be back in action at home on Tuesday with an exhibition match against Waseda University from Japan. The Dirtbags will then visit San Diego State on Wednesday and open Big West play at UC Santa Barbara this weekend.
WASHINGTON (Gray DC) – Operation “Epic Fury” — the weekend military operations carried out by the U.S. and Israel against targets in Iran — tops the agenda for Congress as lawmakers return to Washington.
Sunday, President Donald Trump said the new leadership in Iran wants to talk to the Trump Administration.
Democrats in both chambers called for Congress to return as soon as possible for classified briefings on Iran, followed by a move to vote on the War Powers Act. The Constitution gives Congress the power to declare war on another country.
Congress’ return to Washington was originally delayed due to the start of the 2026 midterm elections cycle.
Tuesday, voters in Arkansas, North Carolina and Texas head to the polls for primary elections.
North Carolina and Texas are drawing significant attention, as both states are facing congressional redistricting and competitive primary races for Senate seats.
In Texas, incumbent Sen. John Cornyn (R) is facing primary challenges from state Attorney General Ken Paxton and Rep. Wesley Hunt. On the Democratic side, Rep. Jasmine Crockett is facing state Rep. James Talarico.
In North Carolina, candidates are vying to replacing retiring Sen. Thom Tillis (R) . They include former Governor Roy Cooper (D) and former Republican National Committee Chair Michael Whatley.
Also this week, the Rev. Jesse Jackson is laid to rest. He will be honored Wednesday in Washington before a final memorial service Saturday. Jackson died Feb. 17.
Copyright 2026 Gray DC. All rights reserved.
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