ABOUT ACT-SO
Vernon Jarrett (1913-2004), a renowned author and journalist, initiated the idea of a program that would promote and reward academic achievers the same way sports heroes are honored. The first national ACT-SO competition was held in 1978 in Portland Oregon.
ACT-SO Historical Timeline
- 1976: Vernon Jarrett presented his concept for ACT-SO an “Olympics of the Mind” to the DuSable Museum of African American History.
- 1977: The NAACP Board of Directors adopted a resolution to accept ACT-SO as an official sponsored NAACP youth achievement program that would be sponsored by local NAACP units, conduct an annual local competition and bring a contingency of gold medalists to the annual National ACT-SO Competition.
- 1978: The first National ACT-SO competition was held in Portland, Oregon with seven cities participating: Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Kansas City, Los Angeles, New Orleans and St. Louis.
- 2004: Mr. Vernon Jarrett, ACT-SO founder, lost his battle with cancer at the age of 82.
- Present: ACT-SO sustains approximately 200 programs nationally. Over the past forty-four years, over 300,000 have participated in the program
- 2016 and Beyond: NAACP ACT-SO continues to promote growth, excellence and innovation to position ACT-SO competitors as “Leaders Today, Tomorrow, and Beyond.”