# High School Blames 'human Error' After Act Test Papers Were Never Sent To Be Graded & Are Now Lost



## 1QTPie (Jun 20, 2019)

A North Carolina high school has admitted it has LOST hundreds of ACT standardized test papers - and that students will have to re-take the exam.

Parents and students from Pinecrest High School in Southern Pines, North Carolina were told this week that 'human error' meant that the tests had never been sent to be graded - and now the papers cannot be found.

Now 440 students who took the college admissions test on February 20 and March 13 have been told they will have to re-take the test.

'I deeply regret the situation and apologize to the entire rising senior class,' Pinecrest Principal Stefanie Phillips wrote in a message to students and parents, reported the Pilot.







Moore County School district administrators haven't said what led to the papers being lost.

But they confirmed officials have conducted a thorough investigation and that action has been taken.

'Personnel action has been taken as appropriate,' said Tim Locklear, MCS chief officer for academic and support services. 'Our investigation continues into this situation. This is something we are taking very seriously.'

School administrators became aware of the problem around the end of May after parents started asking about their children's test scores.

'We reached out to ACT about May 20,' spokeswoman Catherine Murphy told CNN. 'Over the weekend of June 8, it was confirmed that ACT had never received the answer sheets.'

ACT declined to comment. 

Murphy said Moore County Schools is now re-assessing its security measures and operating procedure for external standardized testing. She said that Pinecrest High School already has created a plan to make sure the process is more reliable in the future. 

Administrators said the students will still need to re-take the exam, but they will not be charged for it again.

The school district estimates it will have to pay about $30,000 to re-do the tests, and scheduling for the makeup exam is already in the works.

'The date will be selected to ensure these students have the opportunity to take the test prior to Early Decision deadlines for college entrance,' Murphy said.

All high school students who want to go to college are required to take either the ACT, the SAT or both depending on the school. 

It takes an estimated 3.5-hours to complete the ACT which consists of multiple-choice tests on English, math, reading and science, in addition to an optional writing test.

Some Pinecrest students were furious that they have to take the test again after putting so much effort into studying and taking it the first time.

'I was very angry and I still am, just because we worked so hard and studied hard and to be told it was all for nothing,' 17-year-old Lindsay Douglass told CNN. 'It's really disappointing. The students are having to pay for the adults' mistakes.' 

Incoming Senior Class President John Cox took the bad news surprisingly well.

'You can’t be too upset about it. Human error is bound to happen sometimes,” he told the Pilot. 'As long as the retest is handled in the way it is supposed to and people get their results in time for college applications, then I don’t think it is too big of a deal.'


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## chocolat79 (Jun 21, 2019)

This is ridiculous! Two mistakes were made; doesn't sound like just human error. Poor students.  I'd be furious.


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## Foxglove (Jun 21, 2019)

Haven’t college deadlines already passed? I would be heated


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## intellectualuva (Jun 21, 2019)

I would be hot as fish grease. I hated standardized tests and so I would be back obsessed and practicing like a maniac until the test was here.


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## 1QTPie (Jun 21, 2019)

How could they fail to turn the test in?  Someone did this on purpose.  Too much is going on.


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## Foxglove (Jun 21, 2019)

1QTPie said:


> How could they fail to turn the test in?  Someone did this on purpose.  Too much is going on.



Especially with this college admissions scandal I bet it was something along those lines


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## prettyinpurple (Jun 21, 2019)

Foxglove said:


> Haven’t college deadlines already passed? I would be heated


These are rising seniors so they haven't applied it.  They're juniors or were juniors when they took the test, if I understand correctly.  But some of them will need to re-take the test and get the results before applying for early decision in the fall.


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## SoopremeBeing (Jun 23, 2019)

I’d be ****ing livid.


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