Winter 2008

ACT's Activity Publication

Volume 46/Number 1

ACT State Organizations Make a Difference Across the Country in Education and the Workplace

Why do hundreds of members of ACT state organizations—secondary and postsecondary officials throughout the country—lend their time and expertise to building a community of educators helping people achieve education and workplace success?

One word: Opportunity.

Involvement in ACT state organizations offers the opportunity to grow professionally, to share information, and to make a difference in education and workforce issues.

State organization members are people like:

  • Alan Tuchtenhagen, Wisconsin state representative and associate vice chancellor for enrollment services, University of Wisconsin-River Falls
  • Janet Alberson, Montana state representative and advisor, certification and field experience, University of Montana-Billings
  • Dale Kuiper, Michigan state representative and director of admissions and financial aid, Calvin College, Grand Rapids
  • Kip Howard, chair of the South Carolina state organization and assistant vice provost for enrollment management, University of South Carolina, Columbia
  • Bennie Lambert, chair of the Texas state organization and vice president, student and organizational development, North Harris College, Houston
  • Rebecca Mims, Alabama state representative; member, Education Division Advisory Board; and director, secondary guidance and testing services, Tuscaloosa County Board of Education

These six were recently in Iowa City for meetings and visited with ACT staff about their involvement in state organizations.

Tuchtenhagen, who has been involved with ACT his entire career, appreciates all that the organization does for educators. “For me, it’s an incredible professional development opportunity to be associated with ACT and to interact with the people who work here and with others from around the country who are involved.”


Mims got involved in her state organization more than 20 years ago at the suggestion of a former colleague. “At the time I started serving, the council was not very active. I envisioned the effect this group could have on policymakers throughout the state, and I wanted to be actively involved. Our executive council planned meetings that included pullout sessions and roundtable discussions. We invited speakers who were users in other states, and business and industry executives who were influential in our state to participate in our programs.”


Alberson can’t say enough good things about the value ACT has brought to her career. “When you’ve had the opportunity for professional growth as I have through the ACT organization, you couldn’t be given more of a chance to share ideas and have valuable conversation.”


Kuiper enjoys being able to step outside the “normal paradigm” of higher education that he’s been working in for 25 years and to be involved in something that reaches both secondary and postsecondary education. “Being part of this broader organization allows me to bring back ideas and opportunities that benefit our campus and our students.”


For Howard, opportunity lies in having his voice heard. “The thing that really distinguishes ACT from many other organizations is they listen. They may not always take the advice of the people in the field, but they are open to others’ ideas and encourage broad participation.”


Lambert enjoys working with others to address issues that affect the states, the country, and ACT. “I really feel we are all so dependent on one another that it is difficult to isolate which group is fully responsible for what. Thus, we need to come together on one accord to work at the same table.”

These six are among hundreds of secondary and postsecondary educators and administrators, business professionals, agency personnel, and leaders of statewide associations who volunteer to serve on the 39 state organizations. Each school district and postsecondary institution in the state is eligible for membership.

Members of state organizations provide advice to ACT and support for exemplary uses of ACT programs and services. They:

  • Serve as communication links between educational institutions and agencies and ACT
  • Coordinate and facilitate statewide professional development activities pertinent to ACT’s mission
  • Provide feedback on the utility and effectiveness of ACT programs and services
  • Assist ACT regional office staff in identifying state educational characteristics and service needs
  • Provide input and advice on future ACT programs and services
  • Identify exemplary applications of ACT’s programs and services

“The main purpose of the state organizations is to address critical state and national issues in education and the workforce,” said Wes Habley, coordinator for the national office of state organizations.

The overall mission is “building a community of educators helping people achieve education and workforce success.” Operating under each state organization is a council and executive committee:

  • State organization. Membership typically varies between 300–400 per state, though some organizations are much smaller. This group provides statewide institutional representation and is charged with getting others involved by identifying and recruiting members from qualifying institutions and organizations.
  • Council. Membership is generally nine to 20 members. This group provides direction through institutional and organization representation and elects the executive committee.
  • Executive committee. Membership consists of a chair-elect, chair, past chair, secretary, and state representative. This group is charged with providing leadership and ensuring council plans are implemented.

In the beginning, state organizations focused on the ACT test and those who were interested in it, such as college admission officials. As the number of constituencies ACT serves increased, the time came to broaden the scope of the state organizations. Howard and Tuchtenhagen were instrumental in this restructuring, starting in July 2003. Along with 10 other state representatives and ACT staff, they served on a task force that met regularly to define the role of state organizations, develop a consistent structure among them, and determine how they could be strengthened.

The task force filed a preliminary report and, in April 2004, the ACT board of directors adopted their recommendations.

One of those recommendations was to establish an office of state organizations to:

  • Reaffirm/strengthen existing state organizations
  • Assist in the transition to a set of common organizational principles
  • Promote new state organizations
  • Work on the “50 by 50” campaign, aimed at bringing all states into the state organization family by 2009—the 50th anniversary of ACT’s founding
  • Develop communication networks and planning tools, including a website dedicated to the state organizations
  • Support professional development activities such as state-level conferences and the State Organization Leader Orientation (SOLO) program for chairs-elect held each year in Iowa City
  • Encourage input through state organization members’ service on ACT’s workforce development and education advisory boards, state representative participation in ACT fall and spring meetings, and meetings with regional ACT staff, who are the primary contacts for the state organizations

We asked what these six hoped to accomplish through their membership.

Lambert: “I’d like to increase the awareness and visibility of the organizations and people who are seeking solutions to make lifelong learning and comprehensive education and training available, affordable, and applicable to all people.”

Howard: “It’s my experience that people are surprised by ACT’s scope. I would like to see our state adopt EXPLORE, PLAN, and the ACT and have a uniform exit test instead of a homegrown version. The council will help make the public and state legislature more aware of these possibilities.”

Tuchtenhagen: “We are looking at pockets in Wisconsin that are economically disadvantaged so we can deal with issues of college and workforce preparation. ACT provides a lot of data that should be shared as we begin addressing these issues.”

Mims: “I would like for our state organization to provide our government officials, educators, business/industry leaders, and parents with the information needed to make our state the best that it can be.”

Kuiper: “A key priority in Michigan is working to implement EXPLORE, PLAN, and the ACT throughout the state so schools see that the ACT is not the only tool. We want them to recognize that starting at eighth grade or earlier is vital for success at eleventh-grade testing. We will be looking for model implementations of all three tests that people can learn from.”

Alberson: “Montana is interested in the ACT as a state testing opportunity. This has gone before the legislature before, but we need to do a better job of educating legislators. There is still strong support, and I’d like to make that happen for Montana.”

Having impact on the future is what it’s all about for state organizations. “It will be interesting to see what happens with state organizations as ACT continues to grow nationally,” said Howard.

If interested, contact the Office of State Organizations, 319-341-2275 or send e-mail to state.org@act.org.

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