Wright City R-II and Warren County R-III school district officials both reported positive findings for their respective 2011 ACT scores. For the first time in four years, Wright City High School reported an increase in its composite ACT score. Scores had been on a steady decline since 2007, but the school’s composite average of 20.1 was up from last year’s score of 19.5. The national and state averages are 21.1 and 21.6, respectively. The state's average has remained at 21.6 the previous six years. Wright City R-II Superintendent Dr. Chris Gaines said he’s pleased with the progress his students are making. “We’re pretty excited about the overall picture from the data we had for this year,” he said. “The percentage of kids meeting the benchmarks on ACT college readiness is higher than the prior year. We had been in a decline for a number of years.” The percent of students above the national average also was the district’s highest since 2007. This year’s average of 28.2 was a huge increase from 2010’s average of 20.8. “We met that standard,” said Wright City R-II Assistant Superintendent David Buck. “I think there’s been a systemic and direct focus on increasing student rigor and engagement and we’re using the data we have to make better decisions in class. “Now we have the kids’ needs and we can react to them,” he added. “Before, we had gut feelings, but now we can really focus on specific students’ needs. We still want to do more. We’re still not where we want to be.” The number of high school students taking the test has greatly increased since 2007, which is a goal the district has tried to achieve. This year’s number of students taking the test was 110, up from 2007’s total of 89 students. “We’re encouraging kids to take tests, so the district will pay for every senior to take the test once,” said Buck. “We were very direct about the kids needing to take the test. “We’re maintaining conversation with our staff to help our kids be ready for postsecondary education,” he added. Despite Warrenton High School’s composite score dropping this year to 21.8 from 22.2, district officials said there were still positives to be found with an increase in the number of students taking the test. This year, 60.9 percent of the seniors took the ACT. This number is up from last year, which saw 54.4 percent attempt the test. “You want more students to be taking the ACT,” said R-III Superintendent Dr. Tom Muzzey. “The big thing some districts are talking about is what percentage of students are taking the ACT. “Hopefully this means more students are choosing college as an option,” he added. “It’s becoming a personal plan of study for students. They know what colleges they want to attend and what scores they need to get into those schools. We want to see (the score) go up, but we also want to see more kids ready for college.” Assistant Superintendent Dr. Gregg Klinginsmith said a drop in the average score was partially expected. “It’s that whole regression to the mean,” he said. “When we have more students, a larger number (taking the test) will likely see the score drop. Based on the data we have, that’s what we think.” Muzzey said the district also will implement a program in the near future to assist students in preparing for the ACT. According to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education’s Web site, Missouri’s average score did not change even though the number of students taking the ACT exam increased for the fourth year in a row. A record number of Missouri graduates — 47,240 — took the ACT last year, an increase of 1,886, or about 4 percent.