texas_success_initiative

Texas Success Initiative

The Texas Success Initiative (TSI) is a state statute requiring all undergraduate students entering a Texas public institution of higher education to demonstrate readiness for college-level reading, writing and mathematics before enrolling in college-level course work. Students may demonstrate college readiness by achieving the statutory threshold(s) on the state-approved readiness assessments, unless they are exempt. Students are exempt from readiness testing if any of the following exemption categories applies:

EXEMPTION ELIGIBILITY ALLOWED

EXEMPTION CATEGORY	TEST	EXEMPTION REQUIREMENT
1. Reading	ACT	Composite Score of 23 and English 19
	SAT	Composite 1070* and Critical Reading/Verbal 500
	TAKS	ELA 2200 with a writing score of at least 3

2. Math	ACT	Composite 23 and Math 19
	SAT	Composite 1070* and Math 500
	TAKS	Math 2200

3. Writing	ACT	Composite 23 and English 19
	SAT	Composite 1070* and Critical Reading/Verbal 500
	TAKS	ELA 2200 with a writing score of at least 3
ADDITIONAL EXEMPTION CONDITIONS
4. A student who has graduated with an associate or baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution of higher education.
5. A student who transfers from a private or out-of-state institution of higher education and who has satisfactorily completed college-level coursework as determined by AC.
6. A student who has previously attended another Texas public institution of higher education and has been determined to have met readiness standards by that institution.
7. A student who is serving on active duty as a member of the armed forces of the United States, the Texas National Guard, or as a member of a reserve component of the armed forces of the United States and has been serving for at least three years preceding enrollment.
8. A student who on or after August 1, 1990, was honorably discharged, retired or released from active duty as a member of the armed forces of the United States, the Texas National Guard, or as a member of a reserve component of the armed forces of the United States.
9. A student is not seeking a degree.
10. A student has earned college-level credit from and accredited higher education institution in designated reading, writing and mathematics courses with a grade of “B” or better in each course.

A student who does not meet any of the exemptions above must have TSI test scores on file prior to registration. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board approved TSI tests can be found in the section entitled, “Readiness Assessment and Course Placement.”

Readiness Assessment and Course Placement
Angelina College accepts scores on the THEA, ACCUPLACER, ASSET, or COMPASS tests for assessment purposes. These state-approved tests measure college-level readiness in reading, mathematics and writing. Current minimum score thresholds required to demonstrate college readiness in each subject are as follows:

Sub-Test	THEA	COMPASS	ACCUPLACER	ASSET
READING	230	81	78	41
MATH	230	ALG. 39	ELEM. ALG. 63	ELEM. ALG. 38
WRITING OBJECTIVE ESSAY	220	59 6	SENTENCE SKILLS 80/Essay 5 or Essay 6 & up	40 6

Students shall participate in a developmental program for each semester of enrollment for those subjects where readiness has not been demonstrated. Students may demonstrate readiness by either passing the highest level of indicated developmental course work as prescribed by the developmental education faculty or by scoring at or above statutory thresholds on one of the approved tests. Students are individually advised into the appropriate developmental program according to their assessment score. The following charts exhibits the developmental course offered at AC, the scores required to exit developmental courses and the methods TSI may be satisfied:

WRITING

If a student did not pass the Writing portion of THEA or ACCUPLACER he/she will be required to enroll in a developmental writing class until TSI is complete.

If your THEA score was	You’ll take	If your ACCUPLACER score was	You’ll take:
100-180	Engl. 0310	Sent. Skills 0-49 and Essay 0-5	Engl. 0310
181-219	Engl. 0320	Sent. Skills 50-79 and Essay 0-5	Engl. 0320

In order to demonstrate college readiness in English classes, you will need to take one of the following steps:

Make a C or better in English 0310 or 0320 AND take the AC Success Essay and score a 6,7, or 8
Take and pass the writing portion of THEA
Take and pass the writing portion of ACCUPLACER

READING

If a student did not pass the Reading portion of THEA or ACCUPLACER he/she will be required to enroll in a developmental reading class until TSI is complete.

If your THEA score was	You’ll take	If your ACCUPLACER score was	You’ll take:
100-199	Redg. 0300	0-50	Redg. 0300
200-229	Redg. 0310	51-77	Redg. 0310

In order to demonstrate college readiness in reading intensive classes, you will need to take one of the following steps:

Make a B or better in Reading 0310 or 0320 AND master Level L on the Weaver software program administered in the Reading Lab
Take and pass the reading portion of THEA
Take and pass the reading portion of ACCUPLACER

MATH

If a student did not pass the Math portion of THEA or ACCUPLACER he/she will be required to enroll in a developmental Math class until TSI is complete.

If your THEA score was	You’ll take	If your ACCUPLACER score was	You’ll take:
100-199	Math. 0310	Arithmetic: 0-60	Math. 0310
200-219	Math. 0320	Arithmetic: 61 or above U & Elem. Alg. 0-51	Math. 0320*
220-259	Math 0320* or Math 0330**	Elem. Algebra: 52 - 62	Math 0320 or Math 0330**

In order to demonstrate college readiness in Math classes, you will need to take one of the following steps:

Make a C or better in *Math 0320 for a program area with no math requirement

Make a C or better in **Math 0330 for a program area with a math requirement other than College Algebra. You must make a B or better in Math 0330 to be able to take College Algebra.
Take and pass the math portion of THEA (NOTE: College Algebra readiness score is 270)
Take and pass the math portion of ACCUPLACER (NOTE: College Algebra readiness score is 86)

Testing Center
ac_tcangelina.edu
936-633-5495

Sellestine Hunt
Director of Testing & Student Development
shuntangelina.edu
936-633-5290

Peggy Denby
Testing Coordinator

pdenbyangelina.edu

936-633-4502

Maria Lopez
mlopezangelina.edu
Testing Technician

936-633-5495