The National Center for Educational Achievement believes that education is, perhaps, the most important factor in enriching lives and ensuring a sound economic future for America's youth. Our mission is to make college and career readiness a reality for all students. This is an ambitious but necessary goal if current students are to be prepared for success in life.

The pressure to achieve this goal has resulted in an increasing number of students enrolling in Advanced Placement (AP) courses. Although more students are taking these academically challenging courses, a recent article from USA Today "AP Failure Rates Climbing" points out that exposure to advanced courses is only one part of the solution. Advanced courses in high school are meant to prepare students for college. However, based upon the number of students enrolled in remedial college courses, we must ask, "Are we adequately preparing our students for these courses?"

NCEA's paper Preparation Matters reminds us that there is a strong need for students to be prepared for rigorous high school courses starting early in their K-12 education. College and career readiness cannot be achieved overnight, but it can be achieved over time with the right strategies in place.

"College and career readiness should not be viewed as one singular, hallmark moment that happens for a student at the end of high school, but rather a progressive series of academic preparation that leads to college and career readiness. At NCEA, we refer to this concept as the College and Career Readiness (CCR) Ramp," says Efrain Mercado, Director of Outreach at NCEA. This ramp starts in early education and continues well into high school. There are two actions that can help guide students onto the ramp. First, students must be prepared for challenging coursework each year, and second, the subject matter of these courses must be academically rigorous so that students are empowered and successful when pursuing postsecondary work or studies.

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