PRINCETON, N.J., June 26, 2015 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ –To assist students in achieving college and career ready skills, the HiSET® program by Educational Testing Service (ETS) has teamed up with the Literacy Assistance Center (LAC) to provide professional services to adult educators in hopes of better preparing students for the future.

The HiSET exam, an alternative high school equivalency test, allows for those who have not completed high school the opportunity to demonstrate their high-school level proficiency and readiness for the future. An accessible and affordable alternative to the GED® test, the HiSET exam allows those to earn a state-issued credential needed to advance in the job market or continue their education.

ETS is excited to collaborate with the LAC to provide professional development and technical assistance to programs in states that have adopted the HiSET program. The programming consists of webinars, workshops, on-site services, coaching for increasing instructor efficiency as well as technological integration into course instruction. The main goal is to assist in facilitating a community of effective education professionals helping prepare students to earn their high school equivalency certificates.

The new competitive high school equivalency testing market has created confusion among test takers and educators. Many are unaware that alternative tests lead to the same end result – a state-issued credential. The partnership between ETS and the LAC is to ensure educators have the right tools and information needed to help students succeed.

“At the LAC, we envision a future where everyone has the opportunity to actively participate in civic affairs, achieve economic security, support their children’s schooling and more,” said Ira Yankwitt, Executive Director of the LAC. “By teaming up with ETS, we can help more adults achieve this.”

The services will be available in HiSET-approved states, including California, Hawaii, Iowa, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Carolina, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Wyoming, along with U.S. territories Guam, Northern Marianas, American Samoa and The Republic of Palau.

“This is a great opportunity for us to help those who are at the forefront of education – teachers,” explains Jonn Oswald, Vice President & General Manager, K-12 Student Assessment Programs at ETS. “We’re looking forward to assisting the community in preparing their students for future success.”

For more information about ETS’s HiSET program, please visit http://hiset.ets.org/. For information about the LAC, visit http://www.lacnyc.org/.

About ETS
At ETS, we advance quality and equity in education for people worldwide by creating assessments based on rigorous research. ETS serves individuals, educational institutions and government agencies by providing customized solutions for teacher certification, English language learning, and elementary, secondary and postsecondary education, and by conducting education research, analysis and policy studies. Founded as a nonprofit in 1947, ETS develops, administers and scores more than 50 million tests annually — including the TOEFL^® and TOEIC^® tests, the GRE^® tests and The Praxis Series^® assessments — in more than 180 countries, at over 9,000 locations worldwide. www.ets.org

About the LAC
The LAC is a non-profit professional development and technical assistance organization dedicated to improving the quality of adult literacy and opportunity youth programs. Located in New York City, the LAC has been working to strengthen the efficacy and expand the capacity of adult basic education, high school equivalency and English for speakers of other languages practitioners and programs since 1983. The LAC is a national leader in integrating college and career readiness standards into high school equivalency curriculum and instruction. www.lacnyc.org

GED is a registered trademark of the American Council on Education. The HiSET Program is not endorsed by, affiliated with or sponsored by ACE or GED Testing Service.