ACT Center for Impact and Learning: Advancing Opportunity, Access, and Outcomes for Every Learner

By Tina Gridiron, chief impact and learning officer, ACT

At ACT, our mission is clear: Help all people achieve education and workplace success. But mission alone is not enough; it must be implemented with purpose, partnership, and backed by research. ACT’s Center for Impact and Learning is dedicated to infusing fairness and a learner-centered design into that mission so that every learner can reach their full potential.

A mission rooted in access and action

Our work centers on breaking down barriers for learners who have historically been underserved — students of color, first-generation learners, individuals from economically challenged backgrounds, and diverse learners navigating complex pathways.

We do this by bringing together research, partnerships, and practical solutions to bridge the opportunity gaps between education and workforce systems and by sharing ACT tools and supports designed to better serve all learners. Our role is both collaborative and connective, identifying what works, investing in it, and scaling it through industry alliances.

Creating impact through programs with purpose

The Center for Impact and Learning intentionally creates programs to help students from under-resourced areas access postsecondary opportunities.

1. The American College Application Campaign
The American College Application Campaign is a nationwide initiative that aims to increase college enrollment, with a particular focus on supporting first-generation and low-income students. Participating schools host interactive application events that aim to reduce stress and improve access by providing tangible opportunities to apply to college.

Each year, we invite state leaders to nominate high schools in their state for the ACAC School of Excellence Award and as part of the 2025 campaign year 26 schools received the ACAC School of Excellence Award. Participation in the 2025 campaign year set a new record with nearly two million participating students and over 2.6 million applications submitted.

Additionally, our pilot program, College Match Day, supported by grant funds from Kresge Foundation, continues into its second year, enhancing current ACAC senior-year strategies with innovative ways to support high school juniors.

During the 2024-25 school year, 17 schools participated in College Match Day, serving 3,300 students and connecting them to 6,900 colleges.

2. The ACT Fee Waiver Program
Bridging the gap between students’ unlimited potential and the challenges of limited access to opportunity, the Center strives to create pathways for all learners, regardless of economic standing, to benefit from the ACT assessment through the ACT Fee Waiver Program. Qualified students receive:

• Waived test registration fees
• Free test prep resources
• Free ACT My Answer Key reports to review test questions and answers after students receive their scores
• Free additional score reports
• The opportunity to apply for college application fee waivers

In 2025, we allocated more than $20.5 million to support this program, enabling over 200,000 students to register for the ACT test at no charge and access ACT’s learning resources to better prepare themselves for test day.

3. ACT Scholars Program
The ACT Scholars Program is an impactful way to support the academic pursuits of college students through ACT-funded endowments at the University of Iowa and Kirkwood Community College, institutions that share ACT’s commitment to advancing student success in college and careers. The program offers scholarships to learners for whom the cost of higher education may present a significant barrier to college access and achievement.

4. The National ACT Learner Advisory Council

The ACT Learner Advisory Council is our latest initiative. Through this initiative, we gather a diverse group of exceptional young leaders who are either currently enrolled in high school, attending college, or already in the workforce to meet with ACT leaders and team members. Through several months of meetings and discussions these young leaders are encouraged to share their perspectives, insights, recommendations, and diverse experiences with ACT tools, programs, and resources. This valuable feedback is already helping to inform and strengthen ACT’s programs, research, and outreach.

5. The ACT Giving Program

This year, the Center received a record number of proposals and proudly funded 54 nonprofit organizations whose work aligns with ACT’s primary giving priorities, such as:

• Education and workforce: The Iowa City Public Library Summer Reading Program, which provides access to literacy programs for children of all ages and abilities.
• Human and social needs: Lasagna Love, an organization that provides free homemade meals to families in need.
• Community betterment: Indian Creek Nature Center, which provides ADA compliant access to nature.

Educators and workforce leaders are invited to submit grant proposals beginning Sept. 1, 2026, to be considered for the next round of funding support.

Why these matter

For K-12 leaders, higher education institutions, and workforce organizations, the Center for Impact and Learning is a division of ACT designed to connect with and learn from leaders and serve as a strategic partner with innovative organizations serving the needs of learners as they navigate complex issues in the education and workforce ecosystem.

Across all sectors, we put our purpose into practice by helping leaders make informed, learner-centered decisions that drive measurable impact for all.

A personal moment that still guides my work

Early in my career, I connected with a student who worked hard and was clearly motivated, but faced financial barriers, housing challenges, and a lack of direction. That experience highlighted for me that access to resources and support— not just effort — are critical for student success. Systems that are confusing, challenging to navigate, or costly to engage with often benefit those with abundant supports. This is why I’m committed to creating programs that reduce obstacles and connect learners to opportunities. The Center for Impact and Learning aims to close access gaps, financial gaps, information gaps, and success gaps for students in need by combining research, partnerships, and practical solutions that work.

A call to lead with intention

We are at a pivotal moment. Demographic shifts, technological change, and persistent gaps in access, opportunity, resources demand that we rethink how we support learners across the education and workforce journeys.

The Center for Impact and Learning exists to meet this moment — with clarity, collaboration, and purpose.

But we believe impact is a shared responsibility; it requires educators, policymakers, employers, and community leaders to work together, guided by evidence, grounded in a learner-centered design, and committed to impact and outcomes.

We are proud to stand alongside our partners in this work, designing initiatives with purpose and fulfilling our promise to build a future where every learner can succeed.