The vast majority of students graduating from HS take the SAT or ACT, even if they have no intention of going to college. It skews the average downward.
As you said, they should rethink the strategy. If high schools offered more vocational training, a lot of the problem would be solved. Not everybody's talent is to be found in four years of post-HS academic work.
The actual number of excellent scores is very high, more than the excellent colleges can accommodate.
"Free college education for all" is the dumbest idea for education, and that's saying a lot. The last thing colleges need is to babysit with lazy and out-of-control kids who go to college because it's free. It will drive decent students away. JMHO
Especially with the studies they offer now, LGBTQ, ethnic, diversity, etc. Those studies don’t enable people to get a job, they just enable more community organizers and lefty political activists.
The community colleges now take up a lot of the load of the old technical schools, and high skrewels would want students to take the test, even though I don’t think it’s required to go to the CCs.