Indiana House Passes Bill Promoting Conservative-Linked ACT Alternative

The Classical Learning Test is gaining traction in Republican states as a new college admissions exam option.

Published on Feb. 25, 2026

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The Indiana House of Representatives has passed a bill that would require high schools to prepare students to take the Classical Learning Test (CLT) in addition to the ACT and SAT. The bill would also require state educational institutions to accept the CLT as they would any other college admissions exam. The CLT, which emphasizes early Christian thought, has been embraced by religious colleges and is quickly gaining traction in Republican states.

Why it matters

The introduction of the CLT as an alternative to the ACT and SAT has raised concerns from teachers' unions and some academics, who argue that the exam's emphasis on western classics could disadvantage students from more diverse backgrounds. The bill's passage in Indiana highlights the growing political divide over standardized testing and the role of religion in education.

The details

Senate Bill 88 would instruct high schools to prepare students to take the CLT, a classics-based examination first embraced by religious colleges. The bill would also require state educational institutions to accept the CLT as they would any other college admissions exam. Additionally, the bill would require schools to teach waiting until marriage to have kids as part of its good citizenship instruction, one of three steps in a 2000s anti-poverty theory called the "Success Sequence".

  • The Indiana House passed the bill on February 24, 2026 in a 65-29 vote.
  • The Senate still needs to vote to give the bill final approval.

The players

Senate Bill 88

The bill that would require high schools to prepare students to take the CLT and require state educational institutions to accept the exam.

Classical Learning Test (CLT)

A classics-based college admissions exam that emphasizes early Christian thought and is quickly gaining traction in Republican states.

Jim Banks

A Republican U.S. Senator from Indiana who authored a bill in the U.S. Senate to promote the CLT late last year.

Jeremy Tate

The founder of the CLT, who believes the exam can help reverse a trend of moral decline in public education.

Gary Byrne

The Republican state senator who authored the bill in the Indiana legislature.

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What they’re saying

“A one-size-fits-all testing mandate, it really risks narrowing curriculum and unintentionally undermining the very excellence that it seeks to ensure.”

— Rachel Oren, Head of the Classical Academy in Indianapolis (Indianapolis Star)

“It has baked-in prejudices that would make students who come from less diverse backgrounds appear to have done better than students from more diverse backgrounds.”

— Joel Hand, Lobbyist for the American Federation of Teachers for Indiana (Indianapolis Star)

What’s next

The Senate still needs to vote to give the bill final approval.

The takeaway

The introduction of the CLT as an alternative to the ACT and SAT in Indiana highlights the growing political divide over standardized testing and the role of religion in education. While proponents argue the exam provides a meaningful alternative, critics warn it could disadvantage students from diverse backgrounds.