Carmel senior scores perfect on ACT

Robbie Lange, son of Richard and Sandy Lange of Lake Villa and a senior at Carmel Catholic High School in Mundelein, recently earned a perfect score of 36 on his ACT test. Lange was one of only seven college-bound students in Illinois and one of 91 in the United States and abroad to achieve a 36 on the September 2009 national test administration of the ACT.

Nationally, while the actual number of students earning a perfect score of 36 varies from test to test, less than one-tenth of 1 percent achieves the top score.

Lange is the second Carmel student from the Class of 2010 to earn a perfect ACT score. He shares this prestigious honor with fellow classmate Kevin Kadowaki, who took the exam in April 2009 and also earned a perfect score.

"Robbie's score is not only an indicator of his academic skill, it is a reflection of his hard work, his dedication and his determination to be his personal best. I applaud his success," said Carmel Principal Lynne Strutzel.

The ACT consists of tests in English, mathematics, reading and science. Each test is scored on a scale of 1-36, and a student's composite score is the average of the four test scores. The average composite score for the national high school graduating class of 2009 was 20.8. Some students also take ACT's optional Writing Test, but the score for that test is reported separately and is not included in the ACT composite score.

In a letter recognizing this exceptional achievement, ACT Chief Executive Officer Richard L. Ferguson pointed out that Lange should have a choice of the widest possible range of future educational options. Virtually all U.S. colleges and universities accept ACT scores.

Lange is aspiring to attend Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Over the past summer, he attended a 10-day Lead America Conference for Engineering and Robotics at Franklin Olin College in Boston and had the opportunity to tour the MIT, Harvard and Princeton campuses.

Lange is a member of the Carmel Catholic Varsity Scholastic Bowl team, and a member of the National Honor Society, Mu Alpha Theta Mathematics Honor Society and the Spanish Honor Society. Other accolades include AP Scholar With Honors, National Merit Semi-Finalist, and the Mary Lou Paddock Scholarship, awarded annually to two freshmen that regularly help their peers with their mathematics curricula.