The average ACT score among 2014 high school graduates in Illinois was 20.7, the testing firm announced Wednesday. The average ACT score among 2014 graduates in the state is a bit higher than it was in 2013.

Nationwide, the average 2014 ACT score stayed steady at 21. 

But at both the state and national level, just 26 percent of 2014 graduates met ACT standards for college readiness, according to the new figures. That 26 percent does, however, represent a 12-year high for Illinois students. Just 19 percent of 2002 high school graduates in the state, for example, had ACT scores high enough to be deemed college-ready.

"Illinois has been and continues to be a leader in promoting college and career readiness, and we're glad to see this increase in the percentage of students meeting those important benchmarks," Christopher Koch, Illinois' school superintendent, told the Chicago Tribune.

ACT test scores among black and Latino students in the state, however, continue to fall behind those of their white counterparts, the numbers showed.

Click through for the newspaper's full analysis of the new ACT data.