TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA — High school students applying to colleges in Florida will soon have another entrance exam to use for their application.
On Friday, the Florida Board of Governors – a 17-member governing board that serves as the governing body for the State University System of Florida – approved the use of the Classic Learning Test (CLT) for use in state colleges and universities. Schools can begin accepting CLT scores this fall.
Only one board member opposed the motion, Amanda Phalin from the University of Florida.
“I oppose the use of [CLT] at this time because we don’t have the empirical evidence that this assessment is of the quality as the ACT and the SAT,” Phalin told her colleagues before the vote.
CLT: A NON-WOKE SAT ALTERNATIVE
The CLT exam is marked by an emphasis on classic texts from the Western canon, including many philosophical and religious texts that are no longer prized by Left-leaning educational thought leaders.
CLT founder and CEO Jeremy Tate told The Florida Standard that he hopes to take down the College Board as America’s top provider of college entrance exams.
READ MORE: The Non-Woke SAT Alternative is Gaining Momentum in Florida
“The College Board is a pretty radical organization. They don’t try to hide it,” Tate said. “They’re very much one-sided [politically]. Most of the source material leans heavily into 20th century progressives and they really ignore the Western intellectual tradition that was foundational for America.”
Breaking: It’s official. The Board of Governors in Florida just approved CLT. This means adoption at the University of Florida and Florida State and the entire public university system.
— Jeremy Wayne Tate (@JeremyTate41) September 8, 2023
I am grateful beyond words to everyone who worked to make this happen over the past 8 years.
In May, the Florida Legislature added the Classic Learning Test as an acceptable high school assessment test, but did not require schools accept it. The Board’s decision now requires state colleges and universities consider it for admission as they would the SAT or ACT.
Tate believes that the test he helped design can serve as an important breakthrough in the classical education movement to continue growing in America.
“CLT, or something like CLT, is necessary for the classical movement as a whole to scale,” he said. “So long as folks are beholden to the College Board, it’s going to be limited how much this movement can develop.”
READ MORE: Can the College Board Survive the AP Course Fallout Amid Cries of “Racist” SAT Tests?
