The average composite score on the ACT college readiness test has edged up in Louisiana, from 19.4 in 2015 to 19.5 this year.
Louisiana's Department of Education said in a Monday news release that the average has gradually increased by 0.4 percentage points since 2013.
Public school students have been required to take the ACT since 2013. ACT scores are now used in figuring accountability ratings for schools and school districts.
The department also says a record 25,144 seniors in the class of 2016 earned a score of 18 or better, a benchmark score the department considers a "college-going" score.