The year was 1926. William Keay, the superintendent of Logan Public Schools (Iowa) and his wife, Valborg, a high school math teacher, were talking about the high cost of school forms such as report cards and attendance forms. William decided to ask some fellow superintendents to partner with him on printing these forms and share in the cost savings, but no one took him up on the suggestion. So, with $10 in start-up money and a small loan from the local bank, the Keays decided to print sample forms and mail them to nearby schools. The schools were interested, and Perfection Form Company was in business.

During their first years in business, the Keays expanded from school forms into tests. Since Valborg taught high school math, she developed the company’s first test in Geometry. From math tests, the company expanded into literature tests, which turned out to be a big hit with teachers. Suggestions for new tests came in and soon the company had dozens of tests for popular and classic novels.

When the Great Depression hit in 1929, William lost his job with the school and began devoting his time to the family business. In the early 30s, school orders began to dwindle as the Great Depression took its toll on school budgets. The local bank failed, and the Keays lost their savings. Still, they held on to the struggling business with their children helping with the mail and filling orders.

As the Great Depression gave way to World War II, the Keays continued putting in extra hours to keep the business operating. After the war ended, business began to gradually pick up. In 1951, though, tragedy struck when William was killed in a car accident. For the next eleven years, Valborg ran the business from her home in Logan. True to her Norwegian heritage, she always made time for a coffee break during the day—her saying was “if you’re too busy for coffee, you’re just too busy.” Thanks to her patience and good business sense, by the late 1950s, the business began to overrun her entire home.

Through the 1950s, Clint Keay, the youngest of the Keay children, continued to help his mother out with the business whenever he could. By 1962, Clint and his wife Charlene decided to take a chance on Perfection Form Company.

Clint expanded the literature test line and added posters and other teaching aids for language arts classrooms. Fueled by new products and the Johnson administration’s Elementary and Secondary Education Act, the company began a long stretch of growth. In 1968, orders began to come in for popular novels even though the company did not advertise them. Clint quickly began working with major publishers to distribute trade books into schools. The combination of literature tests, resources, and novels quickly became a mainstay for secondary language arts departments across the country.

In the early 1970s, Clint hired a former English teacher from the Des Moines Public Schools (Iowa), to lead new product development. His small editorial team created vocabulary programs including Vocabu-Lit^®, high-interest/low-level reading series including Passages, and several grammar and writing programs. In the late 1970s, the company launched Cover Craft^® books—hardcover versions of paperbacks with a lifetime guarantee. Throughout all the changes, Valborg remained active and engaged in the company until shortly before her death in 1977.

Over the next two decades, the company expanded its line of novels, classroom libraries, literature-based resources, and supplemental reading and language arts resources. By 1991, it was clear the company needed a new name. On July 2, 1991, Perfection Form Company officially changed its name to Perfection Learning^® Corporation.

In 1989, Clint and Charlene’s oldest son, Steve, joined the board of the company. During his time on the board, Steve worked as a consultant for McKinsey & Company in their Chicago, Illinois, office. By 1997, Steve and his wife Suzanne were ready to make a move, so they packed up their three young children—daughters Katrina and Rebecca and son Michael—and moved to the Des Moines area.

Clint Keay, former Chairman of the Board, and his son Steve Keay, President and Owner in 1998.

Since the transition in leadership, Perfection Learning  has built on its unique position in the market through both extensive internal product development and acquisitions. Today, the company has three core product areas:

• Advanced Placement^®—Through its AMSCO^® line (acquired in 2013) and 2024 alliance with John Wiley & Sons, the company offers AP^® and college-level course materials in English, social studies, math, science, and technical education in both print and digital formats. Over half a million students each year use the accessible and affordable AMSCO coursebooks to help them achieve success on the AP exams.
• Secondary Literacy—Building on its roots in secondary language arts, the company offers a complete range of both core and supplemental materials in literature, reading, language arts, drama, speech, and debate.
• Standards-Based Instruction and Assessment—Through its Measuring Up^® product line (acquired in 2023) and its long-standing commitment to helping all students succeed, the company offers a comprehensive range of state-specific, standards-based materials; a robust assessment platform; and supporting materials to overcome student learning challenges and skill gaps.

The company’s Perfection Next^® platform and its award-winning online learning solutions incorporate the latest technology to help teachers improve students’ reading comprehension, create dynamic classrooms, and generate life-long impact.

For almost one hundred years, we have listened and learned from educators to help bring easy-to-use, flexible solutions with real results to their classrooms. Our dedicated team and international network of wholesaler, distributor, publisher, and online learning partners are focused on bringing the best to K–12 schools wherever they are located.