ACT and Nexus Capital Management

ACT and Encoura will be joining Nexus Capital Management’s portfolio and will operate as a single, unified public benefit corporation, a type of for-profit company, under the ACT name and brand. The assessment, learning, and workforce solutions ACT provides, as well as Encoura’s higher education solutions, will remain the same. Encoura’s brand and offerings will become a suite of products under the ACT brand. The new company will continue to innovate and develop new products and services to better serve our stakeholders. 

Nexus Capital Management brings education industry expertise, the ability to invest in and accelerate ACT’s long-term strategy, access to technology and advisors, and the capabilities necessary to advance ACT’s strategy. This investment will enable ACT to expand its capabilities and accelerate its strategy to advance equitable access to education and workforce opportunities. ACT will advance its work across assessments, workforce development and credentialing, and admissions and enrollment insights to help more students, educators, and employers navigate their paths to success. 

ACT is meeting a watershed moment in our nation and world, where the demand for talent is growing and the population is increasingly diverse. ACT’s partnership with Nexus will enable ACT to bring new products to market to fulfill unmet needs and provide more value to learners, families, educators, states, districts, and our many stakeholders.

There will be no changes to the student experience, the price of the ACT test, or our other offerings as a result of this investment. Over the long term, this investment will expand ACT’s offerings for all the students and learners ACT serves. Further, through the unification of ACT and Encoura, ACT will be better equipped to deliver college and career readiness to students. 

No, pricing will not change as a result of this investment.

ACT and Encoura will continue offering the full suite of products on which students, educators, employers, and test center coordinators rely, while continuing to evaluate the needs of the marketplace and make enhancements to best serve our customers and our mission. 

The investment will help ACT expand its work across assessments; workforce development and credentialing; admissions and enrollment insights; and research services. The partnership will help ACT accelerate the development and launch of new products as well as support enhancements to existing products and mission-aligned ACT programs, such as fee waivers and the Encourage tool. Proceeds from the investment will also fund the continuation of a nonprofit organization that will have a role in guiding the new ACT public benefit corporation and ensuring alignment with our historical mission.

CEO Janet Godwin will continue to lead ACT.

ACT always has been and always will be driven by our mission. ACT will be able to help more students and adults succeed by accelerating delivery on key aspects of our mission, including expanding access and opportunity for all. A unified ACT and Encoura will help more students find a path to college and career, help more adults advance in their careers, and empower students and institutions to create meaningful connections. 

As part of its continued commitment to equity, ACT will continue the deliberate, consistent, and transparent integration of information, perspectives, and resources from, for, and about diverse communities to achieve positive outcomes for those served. ACT remains committed to Equity by Design, ACT’s Center for Equity in Learning will remain an integral part of the organization, and the organization will continue to find ways to address the systemic barriers that affect students, such as through continuing the fee waiver program.

The nonprofit organization will conduct programs, services, and research focused on education and workplace success. The nonprofit will also retain an investment in the new public benefit corporation and have direct representation on ACT’s board of directors. 

ACT remains dedicated to serving students around the world. There will be no changes to the pricing of the ACT test or to the ACT International Subject Tests, Global Assessment Certificate, or English Proficiency Program as a result of this investment. ACT will continue to enhance its products and services, as it always has, for all the students and learners ACT serves. The experience for international test takers will remain the same.

Public benefit corporations are created to generate social and public good. Public benefit corporations produce a public benefit and operate in a responsible and sustainable manner. As a public benefit corporation, ACT will deliver on a double bottom line of financial and social impact.