NATCHEZ — Miss-Lou students may be tired of testing, but there’s one more test they might want to take this year.

Dr. Ruth Nichols, assistant vice president for community and economic development at Alcorn State University, discussed the ACT WorkKeys assessment with the Natchez-Adams School Board Thursday night.

“It was important for us to let them know firsthand what the program was all about and how it could help our overall community,” Nichols said.

The four-hour assessment has four components: math, reading for information, locating information and soft skills.

It’s part of the initiative to get the Miss-Lou certified as a Work Ready Region.

ASU, along with Natchez Inc., Concordia Economic Development Association and the Central Louisiana Economic Development Alliance, is one of the organizations that started the initiative.

One of the certification requirements is to assess different aspects of the area’s workforce using WorkKeys, such as the current workforce and anyone who is unemployed, underemployed or incarcerated.

They’re also required to assess the emerging workforce, which is where the schools come into play.

Nichols hopes to get the testing done around November and February.

“We do have a grant that’s going to cover a significant number of the tests we want to get out there and give,” Nichols said.

The grant, given by the Delta Regional Authority, was approximately $87,000. Nichols said it should be enough to provide several hundred free tests.

At the end of the test, students and current members of the workforce will achieve a bronze, silver, gold or platinum level, indicating their work-readiness. This will help determine the area’s current work-ready level.

But for students, there’s a different benefit. The level they receive is a national credential, something they can show to future employers in the long run.

But it also works as a short-term benefit. Steven Richardson, public relations coordinator for NASD, said the assessment is not new to the district.

“We had existing workings with that particular assessment by way of the graduation requirements,” Richardson said.

In Mississippi, students who pass a subject Area Test Program course, such as Algebra I or Biology I, but not the test, can use a silver level on the assessment with a Career Planning and Assessment System score which meets the attainment level assigned by Federal Perkins requirements or an approved industry certification to graduate.

The initiative includes the Natchez-Adams School District, Adams County Christian School, Cathedral School, Trinity Episcopal Day School, Delta Charter School and the Concordia Parish School District.

“We have two or three people from all the schools on the committee,” Nichols said, referring to the committee that’s planning to offer the assessment to the emerging workforce.

The program officially kicks off on Sept. 9 at the Vidalia Convention Center. At the kick-off, the exact numbers the area has to achieve to be named a certified work ready community will be released.

After that, the area has a period of two years to reach those goals.