Students in the Conroe Independent School District continue to outperform state and national averages on standard college entrance exams.

The average combined score for the SAT, which included critical reading, math and writing, was 1605 for CISD students in 2009, compared to 1509 for the nation and 1467 for all Texas schools.

For the ACT test, CISD students achieved an average score of 23.2, compared to 21.1 nationwide and 20.8 for the state of Texas, said Chris Hines, Associate Superintendent of CISD.

Since 1993-1994, CISD student performances have steadily increased, while state and national levels have remained relatively flat, Hines said. Scores for the SAT climbed about 60 points in the last 25 years, while ACT has increased two basis points during the same period.

High school students in CISD also continue to take advantage of dual credit courses and advanced placement classes and tests to get a head start on their college education.

In 2009, 1,328 from the district’s five high schools enrolled in dual credit courses offered by Lone Star College – Montgomery and 31 participated in workforce programs in welding, phlebotomy and computer programming at the college. Most of the dual credit courses were for English, but students also studied history, psychology, biology and math.

A total of 2,432 students participated in advanced placement classes in 2009, taking a total of 5,324 advanced placement exams. The mean scores on the tests were 2.99, compared to 2.88 for the nation and 2.57 for the state. The exams included social studies, English, science, math and computer science, foreign languages and art and music.

Hines reported that the largest percentage of CISD student – from 20 to 25 percent – attend Lone Star College after graduation. Of the remaining graduates, the top four schools of choice are Texas A & M, Sam Houston State University, The University of Texas at Austin and the University of Texas at San Antonio.