It’s one of those things “everyone knows”: Interstate testing consortia are doomed. Certainly, it’s been a rough few years for interstate testing groups. After 45 states initially signed up for either PARCC or Smarter Balanced assessments, aligned with the Common Core State Standards in math and reading, barely 20 states remain in those two high-profile consortia today.

Meanwhile, political battles over the tests have raged in state legislatures and boards of education, and testing has made headlines all over the country. Local control wins again, and anyone who wants a large-scale comparable and high-quality assessment should probably find another line of work.

But what if we told you there were other test consortia, flying under the radar of Common Core backlash, with as many or more states participating — including states that backed out of PARCC and Smarter Balanced?