by Emma Stone
Jodi Dunbar, a junior at Ruston High School, missed only three questions on the day-long ACT last year.
Dunbar stated she had taken the ACT last June and received a 34. This time around, she expressed her shock when finding her score was perfect.
“I was expecting a good score, but I definitely wasn’t expecting a 36,” said Dunbar. “I opened it up and I was in shock for a moment. I thought, ‘Am I reading this right?’”
Dunbar spoke of multiple RHS teachers who offered three-week curriculums dedicated to teaching students how to solve ACT problems before they take the exam.
In terms of preparing for the exam, counselors gave ACT prep books to Dunbar to take home with her for practice. One school counselor in particular, Diana Humphries, motivated Dunbar to take the ACT one more time.
“Going into this year, she was adamant that I was going to get a 36,” said Dunbar. “So, she gave me a book, and asked me to go home and study.”
Along with books, she tutors other students from as young as fifth grade to high school juniors in math.
“Since I help others with prepping for the ACT, it is almost as if I am studying with them,” said Dunbar. “It gives me a reason to go look up all the old math stuff I may have forgotten.”
Dunbar takes any class that can keep her learning more from dual enrollment to AP classes to honors.
This year’s ACT was offered on a computer for students.
“That was the first time I had taken it on a computer, but there were a few sections that made it so much easier,” said Dunbar.
One key motivator was her brother, Trey Evans, who had scored a 32 back in high school.
“After I beat my brother with a 34, I sat back and said, ‘This is probably the best I will ever do,’” said Dunbar. “I already had a score range in my head going in.”
As she actively babysits and takes care of her nieces and nephews, she continues to be close to her parents who helped educate her growing up.
“Family is my top priority, so I don’t want to leave the South or be too far from home,” said Dunbar.
After high school, Dunbar hopes to major in biology and enter the medical field as a doctor.
“Getting a 36 on the ACT is major in helping me financially with scholarships and opportunities,” said Dunbar. “It also lets me look at schools that I might not have been able to look at before.”
