ORANGE PARK – The English portion of the American College Test (ACT) was particularly difficult for Orange Park High’s Copeland Green.

The other parts of the standardized test – math, reading and science – were a snap, but Green’s Attention Deficit Disorder created a unique challenge for the senior.

“I had a problem because of the way the test was formatted,” he said. “I couldn’t seem to pass it. I just didn’t get it. The more I tried, the harder it got.”

The disorder makes it difficult to focus and prioritize a task. Copeland was easily distracted, and his attention often wandered away from the test.

“I have ADD, so I need more time for assignments to be able to do something,” he said.

Green said he started to believe he’d fail every time he took the test. No matter how many approaches he tried, nothing worked.

“I feel like I had a lot of anxiety,” he said. “I was having trouble with it at the time. All of these tests just got me worked up. And it just kind of built up on me. It was hard to believe in myself anymore. I figured it was too hard for me. But I kept working at it. I tried to fight through it.”

He kept taking the test. And again. And again. And again. And again.

“My teachers helped me through it all, and I was finally able to get it,” Copeland said. “I failed it five times in total. I was close to quitting, but my teachers kept working with me.

“I was really close to quitting. Every time I took the test, I expected it to go bad.”

A passing grade on the English portion is a 20. Green scored a 22.

“I’ve had to pay for a lot, and I’ve failed a lot,” he said. “I finally was able to pass it. The extra time I got is what made me pass the test.”

Copeland will graduate on May 19 with the rest of his Raiders classmates. Oddly enough, he’s not sure he wants to attend college immediately after completing high school. But if he does, he will have ACT scores to make it possible.