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• School Establishment: For Spring 2026 testing, ISBE will provide school information to ACT from its Entity Profile System (EPS) . On November 3, district superintendents, school principals, and high school test coordinators listed in EPS are scheduled to receive an email prompting them to create an account in ACT Now, the test administration setup application. After this email is received, these individuals should begin setting up for testing. Setup activities include, but are not limited to, confirming or declining participation, selecting the Test Event Dates for the ACT with Writing, and adding other testing staff as needed. On January 5, 2026, PreACT Secure and PreACT 9 Secure assessments will become available in ACT Now to allow setup activities for each of these assessments. Each of the three required assessments (ACT with Writing, PreACT Secure, and PreACT 9 Secure) must be setup separately in ACT Now for each invited school/program no later than February 13, 2026. ​Make sure your email system allows the following domains:
• @operations.act.org
• @act.org
• Contact Information
• ACT Phone: 855-730-0400
  
• Option 1 for state ACT with Writing
• Option 2 for PreACT Secure Assessments
  
• Regular Hours: 8:30am – 5pm​
• January through May 2026 Hours: 6am- 6pm
  
• PreACT Secure and PreACT 9 Secure Email: preact@act.org
• ACT with Writing Email: statetesting@act.org​
  
• ACT with Writing Accommodations Phone: 800-553-6244 ext. 1788
• ACT with Writing Accommodations Email: actstateaccoms@act.org​
  
• For detailed information on the enhanced ACT, including subject-specific comparisons, please refer to the following link. Science and Writing are not optional for Spring 2026 Illinois state testing. 
  
• Illinois ACT Crosswalk​
  
• 2025-26 Illinois ACT State Testing Office Hours-Register Now!
  
• ACT User Role Matrix 
  For spring 2026, ISBE will be following Scenario 1 on page 3. Therefore, the following two roles are not applicable in Illinois: Organization Invitation Importer and Student Data Importer.
  
• ​Layout Requirements for ACT User Role Matrix
  
• ​CSV Template for ACT User Role Matrix
• 2025-26 Technical Guide for Online Testing
  
• ACT Writing Test Scoring Rubric 
• ACT Calculator Policy (Updated June 1, 2025)
  
• Desmos Calculator 
• Diploma Exemption Documents
  Submit a diploma exemption only for a student who will be scheduled to receive a regular high school diploma before the next administration of the state's final accountability assessment (i.e., ACT with Writing or grade 11 DLM-AA) and hasn't tested or been identified in SIS as being exempt or for a student whose exemption was not identified through ISBE SIS programming according to the flowchart document. If your district believes there is evidence in SIS of an exemption, please write to assessment@isbe.net for verification before completing any of the diploma exemption paperwork.
• Instructions for Secure Submission to ISBE
  
• Exemption Request form
  
• Certification of Request form
  

• Illinois Assessment Update Webinars (under "Presentations and Webinars")
• Illinois Assessment Update Webinar Archive
  

ACT will host several office hours and webinar trainings to assist educators on a wide array of topics. Details and registration links are provided below.​ All webinars will be recorded and available On Demand approximately one hour after the webinar has concluded using the same registration link.

• 2025-26 Illinois ACT State Testing Office Hours-Register Now!​
• The ACT with Writing Accommodations and English Learner (EL) Supports Webinar
  Friday, October 10, 2025, 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
  
  • Intended Audience: Staff responsible for submitting and managing accommodations and EL supports requests. (Test Accommodations Coordinators - TAC)
  • Description: Join ACT to learn about administering the statewide ACT with Writing with accommodations and EL supports. This session will provide training related to the Test Accessibility and Accommodations System (TAA) and requesting accommodations/EL supports for the ACT with Writing. We will also answer general questions related to accommodations and EL supports.
  • Register now! 
    
• The ACT with Writing Pre-Test Webinar
  Tuesday, November 4, 2025, 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
  
  • Intended Audience: Test Coordinators
  • Description: Join ACT to learn about how to complete pre-test administration tasks and prepare to administer the ACT with Writing. This session will provide training related to how to get started with and navigate ACT Now as well as walk through all required tasks that must be completed prior to test day. We will also answer general questions related to the ACT Now platform.
  • Register now! 
    
• The ACT with Writing Test Day Webinar
  Thursday, December 4, 2025, 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
  
  • Intended Audience: Test Coordinators, Room Supervisors, Proctors
  • Description: Join ACT to learn about how to prepare to administer the ACT with Writing. The focus of this webinar is on how to navigate and complete required tasks in Test Center Manager (TCM). This session will provide training related to accessing TCM from the ACT Now platform, how to create rooms and submit irregularities.
  • Register now! 
    
• PreACT 9 Secure & PreACT Secure Pre-Test Webinar
  Thursday, January 15, 2026, 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
  
  • Intended Audience: Test Coordinators, Technical Coordinators
  • Description: Join ACT to learn about how to prepare to administer the PreACT 9 Secure and PreACT Secure online. This session covers important tasks and deadlines and how to navigate ACT Now. We will also cover technical readiness requirements to ensure you have the latest version of TestNav and are ready for test day.
  • Register now! 
    
• PreACT 9 Secure & PreACT Secure Test Day Webinar
  Tuesday, February 3, 2026, 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
  
  • Intended Audience: Test Coordinators
  • Description: Join ACT to learn about how to administer the PreACT 9 Secure and PreACT Secure online. This session covers how to navigate to Test Center Manager (TCM) from ACT Now and how to complete required activities for test day. Additionally, we will walk through what test day will look like using TCM.
  • Register now!​ 
    
• Technical Readiness Webinar
  Friday, February 13, 2026, 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
  
  • Intended Audience: Test Coordinators, Technical Coordinators
  • Description: Join ACT to learn about how to prepare to administer the ACT with Writing, PreACT 9 Secure, and PreACT Secure online. This session will cover technological requirements for testing online, how to download the latest version of TestNav and how to complete the tech readiness event prior to testing.
    
  • Register now!
    

IMPORTANT: Accommodations for students with disabilities and supports for English Learners (ELs) are allowed for the ISBE-Provided PreACT 9 Secure, PreACT Secure, and ACT with Writing only for students with accommodations needs documented in an Individualized Education Program (IEP) or Section 504 Plan and for English Learners identified as such in ISBE's Student Information System.

• Visit the ACT-hosted website for Illinois​ “Step 1: Pre-Administration” for more details about requesting accommodations and EL supports requests for students taking the ACT with Writing.
• Accommodations and EL Supports Request Window for Test Event 1: September 8, 2025 - February 11, 2026​
• Accommodations and EL Supports Request Window for Test Event 2: September 8, 2025 - February 25, 2026
  
• Accommodations and EL Supports Request Window for Test Event 3: September 8, 2025 - March 11, 2026
  
• ACT Accessibility Supports Guide
  This resource helps educational teams select appropriate accessibility supports and accommodations for their students for use during the test. Accessibility supports refer to systems, tools, and accommodations that remove barriers for the entire testing population, including examinees identified as having disabilities and English learners (ELs), as well as examinees who do not have a disability. All examinees need to be able to communicate fairly and effectively what they know and can do when they take a test. ACT provides accessibility supports that include the following:
• Universal supports
• Designated supports
• English learner supports
• Accommodations
• Consent to Release Information to ACT form
• Test Accessibility and Accommodations (TAA) User Guide
  Staff will use TAA to request examinees' accommodations or English Learner (EL) supports and receive Decision Notifications.
• Preparing for the ACT® Test: Testing with Alternate Formats
  This resource includes information about preparing for the ACT test with ACT-authorized alternate format accommodations, information about the multiple-choice and writing sections, test-taking strategies, and what to expect on test day.
  
• ACT-Authorized Bilingual Word-to-Word Dictionaries
• Accessibility Supports Guide for PreACT Secure Assessments
  This resource helps educational teams select appropriate accessibility supports and accommodations for their students for use during the test. Accessibility supports refer to systems, tools, and accommodations that remove barriers for the entire testing population, including examinees identified as having disabilities and English learners (ELs), as well as examinees who do not have a disability. All examinees need to be able to communicate fairly and effectively what they know and can do when they take a test. ACT provides accessibility supports that include the following:
  • Universal supports
  • Designated supports
  • English learner supports
  • Accommodations​​
    
• PreACT Secure Accommodations and EL Supports details are posted on the ACT-hosted website for Illinois for PreACT Secure under the heading “Manage Accommodations and English Learner (EL) Supports" under Step 1: Pre-Administration​
  
• PreACT 9 Secure Accommodations and EL Supports details are posted on the ACT-hosted website for Illinois for PreACT 9 Secure under the heading “Manage Accommodations and English Learner (EL) Supports"​​​ under Step 1: Pre-Administration​
  
  

ACT with Writing Resources

• The ACT with Writing Online Practice Test
  IMPORTANT: Click on “Practice Tests" once you have navigated to the TestNav sign on page. No log in credentials are needed. Please note that these practice tests are in the legacy format​ and are scheduled to be updated to the enhanced format by the end of December.
  
• Preparing for the ACT Test
  This resource contains a full-length practice ACT with Writing test, test details, test-taking strategies, what to expect on test day, and a link to a Spanish version of this resource. In Illinois, the science and writing sections are required.  
  
• Preparing for the ACT Test: Testing with Alternate Formats
  This resource includes information about preparing for the ACT test with ACT-authorized alternate format accommodations, information about the multiple-choice and writing sections, test-taking strategies, and what to expect on test day. In Illinois, the science and writing sections are required.​
• Alternate Format Practice Tests
  Schools may order free alternate format practice tests by completing and mailing this form.​​
  

• ACT/SAT Concordance
  ACT and the College Board have completed a concordance study that is designed to examine the relationship between scores on the ACT test and the SAT. These concordance tables do not equate scores, but rather provide a tool for finding comparable scores.
  
• ACT Technical Manual​ (dated February 2025)
  
• PreACT Secure Technical Manual (dated August 2023)​
  

• Spring 2025 ACT with Writing, PreACT Secure, and PreACT 9 Secure​
  
• Spring 2017 to Spring 2024 SAT with Essay, PSAT 10, and PSAT 8/9​​​​​