ACTT

                  (for Ability To Benefit testing)

The CELSA is published by ACTT


 "Ability to Benefit" refers to the U.S. Dept. of Education provision that requires that
students seeking financial aid who have not graduated from high-school must pass an
"Ability to Benefit" (ATB) approved test.
The CELSA is an approved ATB test for ESL students.

4 easy steps:

1. Determine if your institution qualifies as an Assessment Center (see U.S. Dept. of Education definition below).
2. If your institution qualifies as an Assessment Center, decide if you want to score the
    tests locally or use the mail-in scoring service.
3. Print out the Verification of Assessment Center Eligibility and Certification of
    Testing Administrator at Assessment Center and FAX it to us at (805) 965-5807 (or submit online).
    (Required   for institutions that qualify as Assessment Centers)
4. Fill out and submit the CELSA online order page below,
    or print, fill out and FAX it to us at (805) 965-5807.

OR

1. If your institution does not qualify as an Assessment Center,
    print out the Certification of Independent Testing Administrator
    and FAX it to us at (805) 965-5807 (or submit online).
    (Required   for institutions that do not qualify as Assessment Centers)
2. Fill out and submit the CELSA online order page below,
    or print, fill out and FAX it to us at (805) 965-5807.


Note:   Certification agreements with ACTT
Institutions with qualified assessment centers must submit a "Verification of Assessment Center
Eligibility/Certification of Testing Administrator at Assessment Center" form at least 20 days
prior to administering the CELSA for ATB testing. This is submitted from the form/link above or
you can print, fill out and FAX it to us at (805) 965-5807.

For institutions that do not have qualified assessment centers, ACTT must certify the
Independent Test Administrator(s) who will administer the test. This form must be
sent in and approved by ACTT at least 20 days prior to administering the CELSA.
Institutions that do not have qualified assessment centers must register
the institution with ACTT by submitting the form/link above online or print, fill out and
FAX it to us at (805) 965-5807.

HAND SCORING THE TESTS IS NOT ALLOWED BY THE U.S.
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION FOR ABILITY TO BENEFIT PURPOSES.
   (Note: The U.S. Dept. of Education does allow a single
   score used for placement and ability to benefit purposes.)

     A qualified assessment center:
 (1) is located at an eligible institution that provides two-year and four-year degrees,
      or qualifies as an eligible public vocational institution, i.e. a "postsecondary vocational institution."
(2) is responsible for gathering and evaluating information about individual students for multiple purposes,
      including appropriate course placement;
(3) is independent of the admissions and financial aid processes at the institution at which it is located;
(4) is staffed by professional trained personnel; and
(5) does not have as its primary purpose the administration of ability-to-benefit tests.
    (Definition of "assessment centers" appears in Subsection 688.142 Special definitions;
    Federal register Vol. 60 No. 231, page 61839 , Friday, December 1, 1995.
    Student Assistance General provisions, 34 CFR part 668).
    Contact the Department of Education with any questions:
    Lorraine Kennedy, General Provisions Branch, (202) 708-8242.

    contact us at ACTT:
    Phone (805) 965-5704
    FAX   (805) 965-5807
    1187 Coast Village Rd. Suite 1 #378
    Montecito, CA 93108
All schools that wish to purchase the CELSA must purchase a site license.

Annual Site License agreements for local scoring are based on the number of E.S.L. students tested
in the previous year, or projected for the current or next year if no previous E.S.L. testing took place.
In addition, schools must also order reusable test materials.
(Please see the order form below for more details on pricing.)

The two options available for qualified assessment centers are:

 Option 1:   Mail-in service
Institutions that choose the mail-in service administer the test using a CELSA
test booklet and special CELSA scannable Answer Form. These are mailed with a
cover sheet in an envelope provided and sent to ACTT. This test must be sent
within two working days from the day and time the student took the test. ACTT will score
the test and return the results via email (if email address is provided on the cover sheet)
or by US mail within 5 working days. If this option is used, no annual reporting to the test
publisher (ACTT) is required by the institution.

Option 2:   Local electronic scoring
Many institutions with qualified assessment centers have optical scanners (e.g. Scantron, NCS)
and scoring software that can scan full page answer sheets, store test results and produce a
score report. If local scanning is preferred, the assessment center must use software that
will automatically (electronically) score the test and produce a report which states if the
student passed the test for ability to benefit purposes. The institution must report the test
results on an annual basis to ACTT, the CELSA test publisher. This reporting must also include:
student name, I.D. number, institution to which the score was sent, CELSA form number and score.
This option is only available for institutions with qualified assessment centers.

Additional:   Computer Options
There are two options available under computing solutions.

1. Computer Delivered CELSA - CTA software
2. Scanning and Scoring software - Celscan

Celscan can be used with Scantron or NCS Opscan scanners.

Institutions that do not have qualified assessment centers
must follow option 1 (mail in service) listed above for "ability to benefit" testing.

ATB Price List for CELSA Description



Option A: Mail In Service (site license)
#students tested/yr.
license fee/yr.
Quantity
1-5 students
$ 195   
* Additional Answer Scanforms
$  5.75 ea 
-
Subtotal A:
   * if testing more than 5 students per year
Initial order includes (5) CELSA Form 1 and (5) CELSA Form 2 test
booklets, (5) scannable answer forms, plus all scoring and reporting.

Additional forms ordered may be used in subsequent years. All forms are non-
transferrable. Testing material may not be given to another institution.
(additional materials has minimum order of 5)

Option B: Local Scoring (Certified Centers Only)
Site License
# of students tested per year
license fee per year
1-60
$ 195
61-200
$ 325
201-400
$ 495
401-750
$ 750
751-1,200
$1095
Subtotal B:
   More than 1,200 by quote    
 Option B testing is for course placement and/or ATB
 

Option C: Scanning and Scoring
(paper/pencil tests)
CELSCAN Software
$600/yr
250 answer sheets
x $84
-
 Subtotal C:
 

*Additional Testing Materials
Qty
Description
Price
Total
40 Test Booklets Form 1 ($2.75/ea)
$110
40 Test Booklets Form 2 ($2.75/ea)
$110
CELSA User's Guide
$12
CELSA ATB Tech. Manual
$12
-
Subtotal:
-
-
Shipping
-
-
Total (A-C)
-
-
CA Sales Tax (CA only) 8.75%
-
-
Total:
-
*Additional materials not required for option A -


 Mail-in service (unless more than 5 students a year are tested).
 But, they are required for local scoring (option B).


Did you fill out the Verification of Assessment Center Eligibility Form?
(for institutions that have qualified assessment centers) 

OR

Did you fill out the Independent Testing Administrator at Testing Center Form?
(for institutions that do not have qualified assessment centers)  
Shipping Type:      US Mail UPS FED EX

All foreign orders must be prepaid in the US.
All shipping fees are included on the return invoice.
All materials for site license are shipped for free.


School:

Street:

City:

State:

Country:

Zip:

Department:

Name:

Position:

Phone:

FAX:

Email:

Purchase Order Number:


Back to the ACTT Homepage