Jackson High School senior Clarissa Lorenz said that seniors think more about their hair, their clothes and boys than they do about commas, periods or other points of grammar found on the ACT.

But her ACT score improved by four points this semester, she reads faster and is more competitive for college scholarships largely due to the work she did in a new ACT preparation class. As part of a presentation to the board of education on Tuesday she testified that, through the program, she has focused on the sections of the test that are most difficult to her and improved.

"One of my major downfalls is my speed of reading," she said. "I noticed that as the course went on, I got more questions right because I was able to read faster."

She is one of over 100 students who will take the class this year, a program that is now in its second semester since its inception last spring. Jackson High School teachers Kerrie Middleton and Susan Ahrens adapted the class to their school curriculum, offering it to college-bound juniors and seniors.

"We are revising the course as we go, looking for ways to improve," Ahrens said.

The ACT is an admission requirement to many colleges and is one of the factors in determining the amount of merit-based scholarships a student may receive. A perfect score is 36, and score improvements of two to four points could earn a student thousands of dollars in scholarships.

Jackson High School senior Justin Gibbs said that the class requires a lot of discipline and work from the students, but that it pays off.

"It's a good, free thing that the school has," Gibbs said. "I'm glad that my mom made me sit through it and improve my scores."

In other business:

Though Missourians can now obtain permits to carry concealed weapons, the district might adopt a policy that restricts weapons from school property, including buses, or any school-sponsored activity.

"We will wait to see what happens with this law," Superintendent Ron Anderson said. "We need to be in a position to deal with this issue and make people aware of what our position is."

Judging by this year's budget and expected revenue, the district might not be able to pay all of its bills next year.

Assistant superintendent for finance Jim Welker presented this year's Annual Performance Report to the Education Board and expressed concern about the state of next year's finances.

"It's getting difficult to imagine how we will make a budget for next year," he said.

The district spends $2,000 per pupil per year less than the national average, he said, and there does not seem to be an area from which they can cut funds.

rgoodier@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 127