@LucieTheLakie You are correct that a lot of community colleges do have good course offerings. Some colleges won’t accept DE credits from junior colleges. Just something to keep in mind. I thought it was really helpful for me to be able to “coach” my son through his first couple of college classes, including my being able to warn him that he needed a backup plan for his forced group project in the event one of the students flaked (indeed, one of the students flaked). So he was more or less able to “save the day” for his group by being prepared for a potential flake.
Back in 1973 my brother made a 33 on the ACT; I think it was the highest score in our state that year. In those days, no one took the test twice. Same for when I took it. Now the expectation is that a talented student will take the test multiple times. My nephew, who has a slow processing speed, took the ACT eight times, with a first score of 24 and a final score of 34. His challenge was just being able to finish. He’s a smart kid, but a slow worker. My son is a bit faster, but still a slow worker in math.
One of the things that has surprised me is how few parents are aware of the money that can be had for having a decent ACT score, whether from Ole Miss or Alabama (or elsewhere, but these are the two jackpot schools). I talk to people who are my good friends, but they just seem mystified about the notion that a child might spend a year working to dramatically improve his ACT score. I guess it is for the best, as it leaves the money there for those who want it.