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College Readiness in Rural Appalachia: Clay County Schools’ ACT Gains with MasteryPrep

  • Onalee Smith
  • May 23, 2025
For many rural school districts, student preparation for college entrance exams can be a complex undertaking shaped by distance, staffing constraints, and limited budgets. Located in western North Carolina’s Appalachian region, Clay County Schools knows that struggle firsthand.

“We’re remote and isolated, so getting kids’ experiences and quality test-prep materials and academic monitoring tools is challenging, especially when we don’t have a lot of money,” says Mary Cothren, GEAR UP Coordinator for Clay County Schools.

But for the past seven years, Clay County Schools has partnered with MasteryPrep to level the playing field, with approximately 100-120 students at Hayesville High School and Hayesville Early College now participating in programs to prepare for college entrance exams.

And in 2024, that preparation paid off: Clay County’s ACT composite average increased to 18.5 from 17.6 the prior year, and the average ACT Science score rose to 19.3 from 17.9.

17.5 → 18.5
ACT composite average
17.9 → 19.3
Average ACT Science score
For Cothren, those numbers represent more than academic growth—they reflect a more profound shift in student mindset and school culture.

“I’ve never had so many kids voluntarily ask to study for the ACT,” Cothren says. “It really speaks to the quality and the difference that we’ve seen—the shift in the students’ mindset, the shift in the culture of testing in general.”

  • GEAR UP: A New Partnership Emerges
“One of the challenges that we face in rural Appalachia is equitable access to services for our students,” says Cothren.

Many students in Clay County have a more difficult academic journey to reach college readiness, constrained by limited resources, long drives to access educational programs, and deep-rooted equity gaps.

Faced with these common challenges, Clay County Schools turned to MasteryPrep for support in 2017—thanks to a connection made possible through Appalachian State University’s GEAR UP program, a federal initiative focused on helping low-income students succeed after high school. For the district, this partnership opened doors to high-quality test prep resources that would otherwise be unattainable.

The GEAR UP program empowered the school district to initiate a strategy to level the playing field for students preparing for the ACT and other college entrance examinations.

  • Building a Districtwide Test Prep Strategy
Clay County’s first MasteryPrep experience was with the Boot Camp for the ACT, a one-day, high-impact workshop designed to teach students effective test-taking strategies. The success of this program was evident from the start.

“We saw a lightbulb moment,” says Cothren. Students were getting involved, teachers were on board, and the foundation for a solid test prep strategy started coming together.

As the partnership grew, Clay County Schools expanded its efforts and adopted a districtwide approach to test preparation, which now includes:

MasteryPrep Boot Camp for the ACT,
as well as for Math 1 NC EOC
Professional Development for the ACT
(teacher workshops)
Overheard point of view of teacher viewing overview report from practice tests
MasteryPrep Practice Testing & Analysis
(with official ACT questions)
These initiatives run from September through May each academic year, creating a consistent and reliable framework for student preparation.

“We don’t treat ACT prep as a standalone event,” Cothren says. “We’ve embedded it into the rhythm of the school day, and MasteryPrep’s tools make that easy to do.”

  • Customizing Boot Camps to Meet Student Needs
Understanding the unique needs of its students, Clay County adapted the traditional Boot Camp format. Instead of covering all four ACT subjects in one day, students now participate in two shorter sessions over two days, focused on English and Math during one session and Reading and Science in another.

“MasteryPrep was incredibly flexible,” says Cothren. “This schedule keeps our students engaged. We’ve done it this way for three years now, and it works.”

At the end of each MasteryPrep Boot Camp, students keep their ACT workbooks, giving them a valuable resource so they can continue practicing their skills before test day. Cothren notes that teachers stay actively involved, too, using what they observe during the sessions to guide their classroom instruction and strengthen the learning experience for everyone.

  • Fostering a Culture of Student Ownership
One of the most significant shifts in Clay County’s approach to test prep has been a growing sense of ownership among students when it comes to college readiness.

In the past, “there is a collective groan around the school when it’s testing season,” Cothren says. Many students were fatigued by standardized testing and saw prep as another boring chore. Lately, however, that mindset has started to shift in a big way. A group of juniors even proactively approached school administrators and requested to use their flex period to prepare for the ACT.

“They recruited other students, studied together, and even invited a science teacher to review tough questions. It was entirely student-led,” Cothren says.

This transformation in mindset is a hallmark of success for Clay County Schools. “It’s no longer something being done to them,” Cothren says. “Students are actively participating in their own success.”

“I’ve never had so many kids voluntarily ask to study for the ACT. It really speaks to the quality and the difference that we've seen—the shift in the students’ mindset, the shift in the culture of testing in general.”

Mary Cothren
GEAR UP Coordinator,
Clay County Schools
  • Teacher Buy-In and Professional Development
The district’s initial partnership included whole-school professional development to train teachers on MasteryPrep’s online platform and ACT resources. Since then, veteran staff members have taken the lead on training new teachers—a model that’s helped sustain the program long term.

Cothren says the “teacher-friendly” tools in the MasteryPrep platform do not overwhelm educators, adding, “We don’t have to reinvent the wheel every year.”

Teachers use practice test data to identify individual and classroom-level gaps, which helps them adjust lessons and better support students.

“It helps us be strategic,” Cothren says. “Instead of guessing what students need, we have the data to guide us.”

  • Community-Wide Commitment to Student Success
The district has generated momentum and continued student support around test prep. For example, the Clay County community rallied last year to fund a Boot Camp for the ACT themselves when a group of juniors became ineligible for GEAR UP support due to a federal funding gap.

“That kind of support shows the value our community places on this program,” Cothren says. “Our students know what’s out there now and believe they can get there.” In Clay County, test prep is now embedded in the culture, and every student has a shot at college readiness.

Hayesville High School Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Unpaid testimonial. Individual results may vary, and testimonials are not claimed to represent typical results. The ACT results reported are courtesy of the NC Department of Public Instruction. All testimonials are real participants, and may not reflect the typical user’s experience, and are not intended to represent or guarantee that anyone will achieve the same or similar results.

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From MasteryPrep Boot Camps to our standards-aligned curriculum and online course, our high-impact solutions for the ACT provide districts and schools with test-prep programs educators can implement throughout the school year.
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Picture of About the Author: Onalee Smith
About the Author: Onalee Smith

Onalee Smith is a content marketer and writer with over 15 years of experience helping brands tell better stories. She specializes in editorial strategy and SEO-driven content that connects with audiences and drives measurable results. Her work spans industries including education, publishing, and professional services. Onalee began her career marketing children’s and young adult literature, collaborating with bestselling authors and national literacy programs. Today, she partners with mission-driven organizations to craft content that informs and inspires. She holds degrees in Editing, Writing, and Media Studies, as well as International Affairs, from Florida State University. Based in Asheville, North Carolina, she enjoys hiking, spending time with her pets, and pursuing her hobby of floral design.

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