As the nation debates standardized admission tests, Eastern is considering changing some of their policies, but will remain dependent on the ACT/SAT scores for admission.

“(ACT/SAT’s) have been a debated issue for quite some time and there are arguments on both sides of the issue,” said Lou Hencken, vice president for student affairs.

On Feb. 18 University of California President Richard Atkinson announced that he would like his university to start debating if they should make the SAT an optional part of application to their university.

Atkinson’s action has sparked (or reignited) a national debate on standardized tests for admission, with related articles and editorials appearing in TIME magazine and The Chronicle of Higher Education as well as other reputable news sources.

Closer to home, Northern Illinois University President John Peters is setting up a committee of university members to look into how much emphasis is being placed on the ACT and SAT and what the affects of that are.

“It is (Eastern Illinois University’s) decision at this time to use the SAT/ACT as a requirement for admission,” said Susan Ambrose, assistant director of admissions.

Hencken commented that there are pros and cons to the issue.

“One pro is the (ACT/SAT) are supposed to test the ability of students and the ability of students to succeed in college,” Hencken said. “While a con would be that the tests put an awful lot of emphasis on four hours on a Saturday morning for a student who is a junior in high school.”

Hencken added that some people are smart enough but have trouble testing.

Frank Hohengarten, dean of enrollment management, and Hencken wish to change the requirements to factor a student’s cumulative grade point average into the admission requirements.

As of now, freshman admission requirements are based on class rank and a correlating ACT/SAT score, according to Ambrose.

For example, a student in the top 3/4 of their high school class must score a 22 on the ACT (1020 SAT) for admittance and a student in the top 1/2 of their high school class must score a 19 on the ACT (910 SAT).

Eastern’s lowest normal test score admission standard is a class rank in the top 1/4 and an 18 ACT score (860 SAT).

The proposal would allow students to substitute their GPA for their class rank factor.

“We have been considering this for a long time,” Hencken said.

All high schools in Illinois are not the same, Hencken said, so if you go with only class rank and ACT/SAT scores you receive criticism from schools who feel they offer a better education than others.

“This is absolutely not lowering the standards, it will just allow us to use the GPA in addition,” Hencken said.

Other Illinois state schools have policy’s similar to what Hencken and Hohengarten are proposing.

Western Illinois University’s criteria for admission is an ACT score of 22 (SAT 1010) and a 2.2 cumulative GPA (4.0 scale) or an ACT score of at least 18 (SAT 850), a class rank in the upper 40 percent and a 2.2 cumulative GPA (4.0 scale).

Illinois State University will, on a case-by-case basis, consider an applicants GPA if they do not meet the preferred ACT/SAT and class rank requirements.

However, Northern Illinois University and Southern Illinois University in Carbondale do not formally factor in a student’s GPA to admission standards.

Eastern’s admission requirements are determined and regulated by the Council on Academic Affairs, so the proposal must be passed by the council to be enacted.

CAA Chair Ron Wohlstein, sociology/anthropology professor, said the proposal will be added to the agenda at the March 22 meeting and will then be discussed at the March 29 meeting.