Educators, counselors urge committee to remove SAT writing requirement and optionalize MME score reporting

Representatives and education advocates told the Michigan House Committee on Education and Workforce on Jan. 28 that two bipartisan bills, House Bills 45‑56 and 45‑57, would reduce testing time, relieve student stress and eliminate a reporting requirement that can disadvantage Michigan students in college admissions.

Patrick O'Connor, government relations chair for the Michigan Association for College Admission Counseling, said Michigan law currently requires all Michigan Merit Exam scores to be placed on student transcripts and argued that many colleges no longer require SAT scores for admission. "Since many colleges no longer require SAT scores for admission, this current law means many Michigan public school students are providing information that can hurt their chances of college admission," O'Connor said.

The bills would remove the statutory requirement to place MME scores on transcripts and remove the separate SAT writing test from the MME; speakers said the writing sample has not been offered nationwide since June 2021. "The writing test has not been offered nationally since June 2021," O'Connor said. "This writing test has not been offered nationally since June 2021." He and other witnesses said the SAT without the essay still produces reading and writing scores that satisfy federal requirements.

Why it matters: Witnesses said the changes would free instructional time and reduce student anxiety while preventing a Michigan-specific reporting rule from disadvantaging in‑state applicants to colleges that have moved to test‑optional admissions. Ryan Fuens Bliss, executive director of the Michigan College Access Network, said the bills "protect Michigan students who are competing for valuable slots at Michigan and other universities and colleges from competing with students who are not providing their scores." He added that when a transcript includes a test score, "once I see something on a college transcript, I cannot unsee it."

Classroom and counselor perspectives: Sarah Gammons, director of school counseling at Northview High School in Grand Rapids, described counselors' regular experience of seniors feeling pressured to pay for and take additional SAT administrations because an MME score remains on the transcript. "They feel pressured to take another exam and pay that money for that weekend SAT," Gammons said. She said removing the essay and allowing optional reporting would give students greater autonomy in their application process.

Testing schedule and time savings: Bob Kefchin, associate director of government relations for the Michigan Association of Secondary School Principals, described the current structure as roughly three days of testing: one day for the SAT (including the essay), one day for WorkKeys and one for M‑STEP content tests. He estimated the bills would reduce state testing time for 11th graders by approximately 10 percent, or about one hour. "The bills would reduce state testing time for eleventh graders by about 10% or about 1 hour," Kefchin said.

Questions and caveats: Committee members asked about how writing proficiency would be assessed without the SAT essay. Witnesses pointed to ongoing classroom and course‑embedded assessments, AP writing tasks and other measures teachers use to evaluate student writing. O'Connor and others also noted that colleges increasingly view the separate essay as unreliable and have largely stopped using it for admissions decisions.

Next steps: Committee testimony concluded with supporters urging swift passage. The transcript records no formal committee vote on House Bills 45‑56 or 45‑57 during the hearing; speakers limited their remarks to testimony and questions.