Another Snow Day

Enjoy! :-)

2 Hour Delay

I am sure that you heard - we have a 2 hour delay tomorrow. It will actually make for a very interesting and very short class period schedule because it is also homeroom day to distribute all of your registration materials for picking next year's classes. Before today's snow day you were supposed to receive your report cards on Thursday, but I am not sure if they got them printed or not so perhaps in homeroom you will get those too... if not, there will be a walk through homeroom on Friday for you to receive your report cards. Anticipating that this could happen, they created a special schedule for tomorrow... and in case you are curious, here it is:

1st Period: 9:45 - 10:15

2nd Period: 10:20 - 10:50

Homeroom: 10:55 - 11:40

3rd Period: 11:45 - 12:15

4th Period: 12:20 - 12:50

5th Period: 12:55 - 1:25

6th Period: 1:30 - 2:00

7th Period: 2:05 - 2:35

8th Period: 2:40 - 3:05

Obviously, this means that you will have 30 minute class periods, except for 8th period which is only 25 minutes long. With the short periods, I would strongly recommend that seniors with open lunch give very serious thought to staying at school... not to mention the roads aren't likely going to be great either... so plan on sticking around at school - you can always come by and say hi as I would love to see you.

Snow Day!

Hooray! I just got the news that we have a snow day tomorrow! Enjoy sleeping in and having this special mid-week day off. I know that I am definitely looking forward to it! :-)

With Heartfelt Gratitude

I have mentioned on many different occassions just how impressed I am by all of "my" students. You are incredibly talented, kind-hearted, and willing to help those around you - including me. I have said it before, and I am sure I will say it again, but I never cease to be amazed by all that you do!

Right now, aside from the two million (actually feels like more than that) schedule changes that I have been busy trying to process, we are also getting ready for the registration homeroom when all of the freshman, sophomore, and junior students will receive the packets of information to register for next year's classes. Each year since I have been at WKHS we have had students assigned to help us create a video to be shown during homeroom to explain the steps of the registration process. Now, let's be honest, the video certainly isn't exciting or adventerous, but it is meant to be informative... and hopefully it accomplishes that goal.

The reason that I am mentioning all of this is to tell you about the depth of my gratitude and my absolute awe for the work that Sam Johnson did to put together the video this year! Sam agreed to help us even though he was not getting credit for a class, it didn't count as an assignment, and, quite honestly, there was no real benefit to him spending his well-deserved free time to help create a well put-together video for us. And yet, he quickly said yes and was patient and understanding as he tried to help us (counselors who know little to nothing about technology) figure out how to make the video work effectively.

Sam, thank you so much for your time, dedication, and effort! I appreciate it far more than you can possibly know.

And, while I don't have a picture of them, I would also like to acknowledge the students who came in during their off periods this morning to help me put together the registration packets that will be distributed in the homerooms. Included in the early morning wake-up and help group were Haley Blanton, Alyssa Boudinot, Will Campbell, Brooke Dahn, and Clay Hedges. Thank you also to John Barry and Thomas Kramer who Haley and I were able to convince to come in and help us finish counting during their 2nd period Options time. And, if any of the homerooms are short on materials, well, I guess we will all know that talking and counting are far more difficult than one might suspect. ;-) In all sincerity, thank you for helping this morning! I cannot even begin to imagine how late I would have needed to stay tonight if I would have needed to do that all on my own!

Changes

The second semester will bring some changes to WKHS - and more than just your schedule changes!

Starting this week, all students and parents will have access to e-Sembler which is the online gradebook that teachers have been learning and piloting during the 1st semester. You (and your parents) will be able to log into the portal using your username and password to see your e-Sembler grades. Instructions are being mailed home this week. I think this will be very helpful as it will provide a simple way for you to monitor your grades. Remember, it will be important to be reasonable and patient as you wait for teachers to enter grades as it is not an instantaneous process.

The other new feature that begins this week is that all students will be required to enter a Pin number when buying food in the cafeteria. You will still be able to pay cash, but it will also give families the option of having use a pre-paid debit system for food purchases. Your pin number will be the same number that you had in elementary or middle school (if you still remember it), but since I doubt most of you still know your pin numbers they are also going to be giving them to you during homeroom on Wednesday - which is when this new aspect will take effect.

And finally, back to schedule changes... you only have 3 days in which to add a class so if you are thinking of picking up a class you need to do it by Wednesday. If I have a line (as seems to be the case whenever lots of people are looking to make schedule changes) then leave a pass telling me exactly what you want to do and then I can try to make it work for you... even if you are not there and then I can get the updated schedule back to you. I have a large stack of updated schedules sitting on my desk right now... which means that if you have already requested a change it would be a good idea to come in and pick up your new schedule before heading to class tomorrow. For everyone else, thanks for being patient if you were trying to get in to see me and I have a long line...

Start 2nd Semester Off Right

Monday begins the second semester of the school year. I continue to be amazed by how quickly the year is going and cannot believe we are already at the half way point. Hopefully you are enjoying the weekend. Your teachers are required to submit grades on Tuesday and then you will receive your report cards on Thursday.

As we head into the 2nd semester I would like to remind you that this is an ideal time to get organized! Last year, part way through the 2nd semester, one of the (at the time) seniors, came in and I caught a glimpse of his *very* messy bookbag. Actually, messy doesn't even come close to describing it and I see LOTS of disasterous backpacks. We spent several class periods going through his papers to figure out what was and what was not needed. I was SHOCKED to see that he had papers from 1st semester of his JUNIOR year! Clearly he really needed a major organization overhaul and the main place that most of the papers ended up was the trash.

The start of the 2nd semester allows you the perfect opportunity to reorganize your materials. When you are looking at your old school work there are several things to keep in mind - saving the information is useful if you have it organized so that you can access it to find and use it again in the future. I strongly encourage you to save all materials for year-long classes and for any classes that have potential relevance to your future - this includes anything that was particuarly interesting or helpful to you from your classes.

After you have figured out if you will be saving the items or not you need to determine if you have to continue carrying it on a daily basis to and from school each day or if saving it at home is sufficient. If you are able to leave it at home, keep it organized and leave it in a spot where you will know where to be able to find it quickly in the future.

Besides clearing out the information that you don't need to carry to and from school, it is also important to think about whether or not your organization system is working for you. Some classes require you to stay organized in a particular format like maintaining a binder, but most of the time teachers will let you find a system that works best for you. So, if you tend to have lots of random sheets of loose leaf notebook paper that you constantly have to sort through that never make it into your binder, then perhaps it is time to consider a spiral notebook. If you have used a spiral notebook and tend to have random pages of notes for different subjects mixed together, then this system is clearly not working so perhaps it is time to try a folder with the three ring clips filled with blank notebook paper for taking notes. There are countless ways to get organized and I am happy to help you with ideas, but the important point is to try something and keep up with it. The more natural your organization system is to your personal style the easier it will be for you to maintain it in the future.

There is an organization principle called, "OHIO," which stands for Only Handle It Once and it is a great philosphy. When you are dealing with papers or notes you don't want to have to constantly flip through tons of stacks of papers - it is much better to only handle it once and put it in it's proper place so that you will be able to find it again quickly if needed.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend and happy organizing!

Top Ten List for Parents NOT to do during college visits

One of the counselors on the National Association of College Admissions Counselors listserve compiled the following great list of things parents SHOULD NOT do while on college visits or interviews. I hope you enjoy it, but the reality is, I also hope that you and/ or your parents do NOT do any of these things!

1. Don’t use the royal “we.”

Off the top of my head, my personal favorite no-no is when parents say “We want to attend your university next year” or other similar comments. (I’m particularly fond of this one when the parent is accompanied by a student whose body language indicates that s/he has zero interest in attending my university the next year.) Unless the parent is also submitting an application for himself/herself, all pronouns should indicate that the individual student is the one applying and hoping to attend. Ideally, I really believe the student should be the one asking the questions and initiating the conversations as well, although I do understand that more introverted students often find this to be challenging. But that “we” pronoun is a pretty clear indicator that the student isn’t really the one running the search!

Dead giveaways:
“We are very excited about your school”
“We don’t know what kind of major we are interested in yet”
“We would like to know…”

The one item I recommend for parents to avoid is using the phrase “WE got admitted,” WE took the SAT’s,” WE have a 3.5 GPA, etc. There are appropriate times when the student is solely responsible and appropriate times when the family is included.

2. Don’t take calls or use your Blackberries, IPODs, etc.

Don’t take a phone call during an information session and/or campus tour.

Turn off the cell phones! For one hour, disconnect.

Don’t sit in an information session and do business on your Blackberry.

DO NOT answer your cell and proceed to have a discussion while ON the tour, during an Open House presentation by the college president, or IN AN ADMISSIONS OFFICERS OFFICE during the interview!!!

3. Don’t speak for your student.

Do not sign in for your student in the Admissions Office. The student should do it.

Parents should let their kids be themselves – I remember one parent that I met with in my office who spent most of the time telling her child to sit-up, speak up, “Tell Mr. XXXXX about your science project.” “Give Mr. XXXXX your transcript.” Parents should remember that, while they do need to gather some information, ownership of the process should belong to their children…therefore the impetus for asking questions and the responsibility for being themselves should fall on the students.

Do not speak entirely for the student (at registration tables, reception desks, Q/Amoments, etc.) while the child stands mutely aside.

Decide for the student what things to see/do/inquire about—the student should be determining all activities

I’ve heard a parent in an information session ask if his son could double major in electrical engineering and neurobiology. (Give me a break, the kid was 17!)

4. Don’t embarrass your child publicly

It’s also annoying to have a parent preface her question with the advanced curriculum choices her child has already completed at a prestigious prep school. Parents playing up the privileges they have bought for their children sound the most obnoxious and lacking in self-awareness in my opinion.

“Don’t ask about mental health facilities for kids with emotional difficulties during the college tour.” I have a parent who did this in front of their clinically depressed kid on the tour.

Consistently the parental question that brings the greatest cringe from the child and the most mush-mouthing from the tour guide has to do with coed bathrooms. What no one has the courage to say directly to Mom (never Dad, also consistently) is, Get over it! Somehow it all works out and life goes on.

Do not dominate an information session with a slew of questions; most admissions officers would be happy to answer very specific questions from a family outside of the session time. Plus, it tends to embarrass the kid.

Do NOT tell the admission counselor how much brighter/higher achieving/moretalented/etc. the student’s older siblings were! I continue to be amazed at how many parents do this. It is awful to sit and watch a student shrink in his/her chair right before my eyes!

Don’t go on and on about the student’s (real or imagined) strengths and accomplishments.

Don't launch into a diatribe that includes listing every achievement the student has made in his/her life history (not only does this take up time unnecessarily, but it usually mortifies the student)

DO NOT come to the visit or even schedule a visit with a list of demands. It’s okay to request to see a coach, faculty member, etc…most schools will do their best to accommodate, but please understand that faculty and coaches are typically busy- teaching and coaching and may not be available (or even allowed-NCAA regulations) when you are on campus.

Do NOT burst into tears and moan `Oh where did my baby go?’ during the tour.

5. Don’t monopolize the conversation/tour/discussion session

I would encourage parents to not monopolize the tour guide with specific questions only pertinent to their child’s situation. Being interested in and asking a few questions is great, but if they take over a group tour with questions that are specific to only their child, the whole tour will take forever. Those kinds of questions should be asked of a counselor at a later date.

Don't dominate discussions by waxing reminiscent about their good-old college days…and go on-and-on despite dirty looks from other parents/prospective students/their own children.

Do not do all the talking. Although we know that parents are invested in the child’s future…it’s their child’s future.

Do NOT tell stories of how you went streaking if you have gained lots of weight; it brings forth lots of unfortunate word pictures.

6. Don’t ruin the interview.

Do not go into the interview with your student to the Admissions Counselor/ Officer.

Do not go into an interview with the coach, unless you are invited in, or unless you just plan to listen. This is your student’s time to find out about the program, by asking appropriate questions, not yours. Some coaches now think that if they have an overbearing parent during the process, they are thinking “Maybe I don’t want this parent around for the next four years,” even if they were initially interested in recruiting the student.

Do not assume that they’ll be part of an on-campus interview. Every school is different.

Don’t break out the scrapbook of everything junior has done since birth (yes, we see these when working in admissions).

Parents should not sit in on the interview and discuss another sibling who is at an “overlap” college.

7. Don’t whine, complain or be negative in public.

“Whine” is the operative word…concern about cost is perfectly appropriate and (understandably) common.

Do not ask if new campus construction will significantly improve the aesthetic value of the campus landscape because you cannot stand to drive onto the campus for the next four years as it currently stands.

Don’t say anything negative during the Tour or the Info Session. Wait until you’re in the car. Personally, I don’t think parents should say much of anything about a college visit. I think they should keep their opinions to themselves and let the student form an opinion. If they speak negatively about a school, a student might dig their heels and in say they are interested in the college, even if they initially were not interested.

Don’t complain publicly. A parent at a recent event complained about many things in public forums—most of them either unfounded rumor or things our institution has absolutely no control over—and it not only made the entire event more negative, but it made us start to develop a very negative impression of her daughter!

Do not complain about the lack of 5 star hotels in the region.

Do not challenge the admissions representative about the number of students going to medical school and law school by calling him a liar and clearly misinformed.

8. Don’t broker your student.

If the student is a legacy or has a family member (however distant) that has donated lots of money to the college, please do not harp on this to any university official. Parents who mention such things make it sound like, “you’d better admit my kid” kind of thing. The student can mention his/her legacy status only in the course of a conversation, or if asked outright, but not as an opener. Just know that the college will certainly know their legacy status once he/she applies.

9. Don’t allow your child to embarrass him/herself

Remind your child about appropriate behavior and dress when on campus. Remember that the tour and discussion session are important pieces of the process and ones where behaviors can distinguish oneself, positively and negatively.

Don’t allow your progeny to curl up in mom or dad’s lap and fall asleep smack-dab in the middle of an information session. No matter how boring the speaker may be, this is a definite no-no. (Yes, this happened to me).

Remind him/her to take off your sunglasses when inside talking with AdmissionOfficers, students, faculty, etc.

I’ve had one young lady answer her cell (keep in mind she was interviewing as a last ditch effort to be admitted) and proceed to talk to her boyfriend- her mom- who was also in the office with us just continued the conversation with me as though nothing was wrong!

10. Don’t plan to do the application process for your child. Don’t tell the Admissions Office that you are doing the application process for your child.

I had one mother talk about how great the essay she wrote was!

Fill out the application for their son or daughter on the spot.

Don’t turn in your own letter of recommendation

A Gentle Reminder

It's easy to forget... sometimes we all get so caught up in our own lives that we forget that not everyone is in the same situation or feel the same way we do. In the past few weeks as more and more college admissions decisions have been arriving, I have noticed that students will sometimes forget that others are around and start announcing where they were accepted and their feelings on different schools. It is wonderful news and completely understandable that you want to shout it from the roof-tops when you have been accepted to a school, but it is also important to be sensitive to those around you and to remember that some of your friends and classmates are NOT being accepted into the very same colleges. While receiving a college rejection letter is hard, it is even more hurtful to hear someone else say something such as, "Oh, I was accepted to ___ (insert name of college) but I would never actually go there." Particularly if the school mentioned was the one where a student was recently rejected and had been their top choice college. So, go ahead and share in your excitement, but please be sensitive to what you say about other schools and how you "rate" your own schools. No one school is perfect for every student and every student is not perfect for every school - it is important to find the right balance and I sincerely believe that every student will be able to find the college that is right for them.

Oh, The Places You'll Go...

As anyone who has had to stand in line outside of my office knows, there is an "Oh, The Places You'll Go..." display that features pictures of "my students" on college campuses during their visits. With another long weekend coming up and no exams to study for during the weekend, it is a great time for a lot of students and families to head out to visit and explore colleges. If this is a part of your plan, please be sure to take a picture somewhere on campus for me to have on the wall! I'd really like to have more pictures! And, for those of you who have told me you have pictures, but still have not brought in a copy, I'd love to have it to add to the wall.

For the record, the picture can be anywhere on campus, but I would like you in the picture! So, pick out a pretty place on campus, find a cool sign announcing the colleges name, or snap a picture in front of the building that houses your major where you anticipate spending most of your time in the future.

For younger students, if you don't have any idea what colleges you would like to consider in the future, you can use this weekend as a time to go and visit some nearby colleges to start figuring out the things that you do or do not like in a school. (And, don't forget to take a picture.) :-)

Good Luck on Exams!

Just wanted to wish all of you good luck on your exams tomorrow (and the rest of the week.)

Stop studying for tomorrow's exams, get a good night's sleep and then tomorrow, relax, eat a good breakfast, take a deep breath and do the best you can on your exams!

As always, I will be anxious to hear how things go for you on your tests - so stop in and say hi to share an update (and, of course, you can pick up a piece of candy too.) :-)

Studying for Exams

I hope that you are having a great weekend! I also hope that you have been spending some time studying for your exams! With the exams counting (in most cases) for 20% of your grade, these are an important part of your grade so it is essential that you prepare wisely for them.

Studying for exams can be daunting - especially because sometimes you don't know *how* to study. And, while, the day before exams start isn't always the ideal time to figure out what study strategies tend to work best for you, it is better late than never. The one lessson that I have learned (from both experience and from other students) is that reading your notes is NOT studying. You have to be doing something in order to really study for exams. (And yes, I am aware that for some of you and for some classes reading through your notes is sufficient, but in general as you sit there reading your notes it is common for your mind to wander and you get through reading your notes and then at the test you realize that all of the information you thought you knew was actually just familiar.)

So, perhaps in addition to just reading through your notes you could try some other ideas such as re-writing or typing your notes, go through and review your old tests - paying particular attention to questions that you answered incorrectly, review old homework assignments and worksheets, work through the study guides your teachers provided (if they gave you one), and enhance your notes by adding supplemental information such as what you have learned in the textbook or on other assignment sheets.

Once you have studied, spend some time questioning yourself to figure out the areas where you are still weak and then focus your studying on those areas. Question yourself again and hopefully you will find that you have mastered all of the information.

You do not need to panic about exams if you are prepared so spend some now - it will pay off!

Oh What A Day

I know (most of) you weren't happy about having school today... and to be perfectly honest, neither was I. Of course, after driving to school this morning and seeing how drastically improved the roads were from last night I guess I wasn't surprised.

Hopefully after you adjusted to the concept of being at school today you were able to enjoy the day and get some good review hints for next week's exams!

I am jealous that you have tomorrow off while I will be sitting in meetings all day long. I hope you enjoy sleeping in - a great way to start your long weekend.

Stay warm, study for exams, and have a great 4-day weekend!

Brrrr...

Baby it's COLD outside - and snowy too! :-) Did you enjoy the two-hour early release today? I am sure that you did. It was funny. Sitting in my office with the doors closed I could hear the entire commons erupt into cheers when Mr. Nally came on to announce the early release. Students told me that every time he came on before that the commons grew silent hoping he would be announcing a release. That's pretty impressive because it is hard to get a group that big to be quiet all at once.

The question I have been getting all evening is, "Will we have school tomorrow?" and I honestly have no idea. I just got home a short time ago and I can honestly say that the road conditions will have to improve significantly if we are going to be at school bright and early tomorrow. I will hop on here and post it on my blog as soon as I get the call from one of the administrators that we don't have school, but be aware that I have usually been able to find it on TV before I get my official phone call.

Hopefully you all were listening to the announcements this week about the importance of taking home all of your materials to study and prepare for exams... :-)

25 Common Mistakes in Choosing a College

As much as I would love to say that all of my current seniors were finished with their college applications, that simply isn’t true. Not to mention the fact that you will still have to decide where you ultimately want to attend. For those of you who are younger, you are probably starting to think about the future and what colleges might be a good fit for you. I came across this article highlighting 25 common mistakes in choosing a college and I whole-heartedly agree with it! Below you can see their list of the 25 mistakes, but if you actually follow the link to the article it will provide good explanations for WHY these actions are mistakes.

1. Only look at colleges your best friend is looking at
2. Go to college where your girlfriend (or boyfriend) is going
3. Consider only colleges that mom or dad attended
4. Choose a college because it is the last place mom or dad want you to go
5. Choose a college based on the quality of their athletic teams
6. Go to the college with the best party scene
7. Look only at colleges within 50 miles of where you live
8. Don’t examine who you are and what you want from a college
9. Consider the cost of the college in deciding where to apply
10. Don’t visit a college or a similar type of college before applying
11. Choose a college without investigating campus safety
12. Let the choice just happen instead of taking charge of your future
13. Apply to colleges that you don’t really like because you think it will make your parents proud or impress your friends
14. Choose a college based on whether the student body is attractive
15. Believe that the harder a college is to get into, the better it must be
16. Assume that all colleges are the same
17. Rely on the rankings in news magazines
18. Apply only to prestigious colleges
19. Rely on someone else’s opinion
20. Be too shy to ask questions
21. Rely on a college’s advertising
22. Misjudge your ability to get admitted to a particular college
23. Ignore the resources you have available to help
24. Don’t adequately investigate your college choices
25. Decide that there is only one “right” college

Why Colleges Are Just Not That Into You

I came across an interesting article about college mail and thought I would share it with you. It is hard to find any high school student that hasn't started receiving mail from colleges - especially if you have ever taken the PLAN Test, PSAT, ACT, or SAT. At first it is often a rush of excitement to learn about different colleges and I know that lots of students will pour over the different brochures, booklets, or information packets. In time though most students get frustrated and overwhelmed by just how much mail comes from all of the different colleges. This is a perfect reminder that colleges are a business and they are marketing themselves as a result. When you get the mail from the colleges take a few minutes and look it over - remember, they are not saying you will be accepted, but it can help give you an idea about the characteristics and features that are most important to you in selecting the college that is best for you. Go ahead and keep any that look particularly appealing to you, but don't worry about throwing the rest away.

Students of the Month

Congratulations to the 14 students who were honored Friday morning as Students of the Month! Kilbourne students can only be selected to receive this recognition once in their high school career. A special congratulations to "my students" who were among those recognized as January Students of the Month. Left to Right: Thomas Barrett, Matthew Cooperman, Brooke Boone, and Alyssa Boudinot. I am proud of you!

Schedule Changes

As I pretty much expected, today was a crazy day with tons of students dropping by to try to request changes to their schedules for next semester. I'm not sure how long the line was at different times, but I was moving through the requests as quickly as I could manage. If you want to change a course for next semester, stop in and see me - I can't guarantee anything, but I am willing to see what I can do to help you. I know that it tends to create a few moments of panic as you realize that your lunch periods are changing or that you don't think you know anyone in any of your 2nd semester classes, but please try to relax and keep an open mind. As I said, I will do what I can, but many classes are at capacity so it may take patience to see if other people end up dropping courses. For any seniors, if you have realized that you will not pass a 1st semester class required for graduation, it is essential that you come and talk to me right away so that we can figure out a plan. For the rest of you, just to give you a quick heads up - at the end of this month we will start with course registrations for NEXT year. My how time flies!

On a totally different, unrelated line - I'm curious, are any of you hoping for a snow day or at least a delay tomorrow? Maybe it's just me, but I doubt it. :-)

Exams...

I feel like there should be some "doomsday type" music playing with a title of exams, but the reality is that you don't need to panic about exams, but you do need to prepare for them!

Just 2 weeks away, exams play a significant role in your final grade for the semester of each course (and remember, because we grant credits based on the semester this is really important to you!) Most of your classes will follow the structure that your 1st quarter grades are worth 40% of your final semester grade, the 2nd quarter grade that you are currently wrapping up will make up another 40% and then your exam grade is worth 20% of your final semester grade. 20% is a really big deal...

Think about it, if you had a 57% the first quarter and end up with a 60% this quarter then you can still pass the class as long as you earn a 66% or higher on the exam. On the other side, if you are trying to make sure that you earn an A in a course and you had a 95% first quarter and an 88% this quarter than you need to earn an 85% or higher on the exam to reach your goal.

Clearly, exams are an important part of your grade, but more importantly, they provide you the opportunity to practice a more realistic glimpse of what testing will be like in college and helps you to showcase your semester's worth of knowledge.

Below is the schedule for the semester exams:

Day One - Tuesday, January 20th:

7:45 - 9:45: 3rd period exam

10:00 - 12:00: 4th period exam

12:00 - 1:00: Lunch

1:00 - 3:00: 7th period exam

Day Two - Wednesday, January 21st:

7:45 - 9:45: 2nd period exam
10:00 - 12:00: 5th period exam
12:00 - 1:00: Lunch
1:00 - 3:00: 8th period exam

Day Three - Thursday, January 22nd:

7:45 - 9:45: 1st period exam
10:00 - 12:00: 6th period exam
12:00 - 1:00: NO Lunch Provided!
1:00 - 3:00: Make-Up Exams

A couple of questions that tend to come up at exam time...

Yes, you are REQUIRED and EXPECTED to be in all of your classes during an exam. (Even if you don't have an actual exam, the teachers are going to be working with you on projects, papers, or other learning related to their course.)

No, you do NOT need to be in school during your scheduled lunch period or during your Options or Prep periods. (Which means, for example, that if you have 1st period options and 6th period lunch that you do not have to come to school at all on the 22nd.)

Hope that helps clarify and happy studying! :-)

Financial Aid

One of the big components of the college process is the financial side - applying for financial aid and scholarships.

On Thursday, January 8th at 7:00pm there will be a presentation about financial aid and filling out the FAFSA form at WKHS. (FAFSA stands for Free Application for Federal Student Aid.) Most students will need to fill out the FAFSA form and it is essential to meet the deadlines established by your colleges of choice to determine what amount of aid they can offer. (Many deadlines will be February 15th.) So this is definitely not something you can put off. There are some people who will automatically assume that they do not qualify for financial aid and it is important not to make assumptions and to read the fine print from the colleges carefully as there are some colleges that won't offer any financial aid packages (including merit scholarships) without having a FAFSA on file. Specific questions about each college's requirements and deadlines should be addressed to the financial aid offices at each respective college.

To complete the FAFSA, you and your parents will need a pin number - it is a number that you will NEED and you must keep this for the future as it is the same number for all of your future FAFSA applications (which happens every year of college). To apply for a pin visit this website.

Also, be sure that you are researching and applying for any outside scholarships that you qualify for as this can be a helpful financial resource. And yes, I know that the scholarship applications are often a lot of work and include essays, but if you end up earning one of the scholarships it would be worth it. You can visit the scholarship section on PrepHQ for a list of all of the scholarships that we are aware of at WKHS and you can also do general internet searches using lots of scholarship search engines. (But please, remember that paying for scholarships is a scam… so don’t do that.) Good luck!

Back To School

Well, tomorrow is the big day - we are back to school. No more sleeping in and hanging out relaxing all day. I am looking forward to seeing you, but, to be honest, I am not really ready to be back at work yet. So, help me out and stop down to say hi. Let me know how your time off was and what you did to occupy your time. Get some sleep tonight - it will seem really early tomorrow when the alarms start going off. :-)

What a Year...

As 2008 was winding down I spent a lot of time thinking about the moments which were the most memorable in my life from the year. The more I thought about it the more it struck me at the intensity of the emotions – good and bad – that surrounded these unforgettable moments. And, since I ask all of you to share your lives with me, I thought there would be no better way for me to share a bit of “me” back with you than to include my thoughts as a blog update. This is, in no way, all of the experiences that were significant to me – after all, you don’t want to read a novel, but hopefully it gives a good representation. :-)

It will come as no great surprise to know that many of my favorite moments were happy moments. Not always significant or monumental, I find the simple quiet moments as being the happiest – making eye contact and sharing a smile with a student before, during, or after a musical concert or an athletic competition, taking Carly (my niece) and Isabelle (my friend’s daughter who I love like a niece) to Build-A-Bear, and spending lazy summer days playing with my niece, Carly, or my nephew, Cole, as we swam, took walks, rode bikes, or as I watched them at Vacation Bible School.

Carly and Cole mean the world to me and I feel so very loved whenever I am around them. It is hard to believe that Carly turned 6 years old on New Year’s Eve and that in a few weeks Cole will be 3. They are growing up so fast, but it is fun. It is hard to quantify love, but I will never forget after Thanksgiving when my sister and her husband were driving away with the kids and Carly’s window was rolled down so that she could scream out, “I Love You Aunt Bri” as they drove away or the way Cole has started to close his eyes as he gives out “big” hugs – precious!

Graduation is an event that brings with it a range of emotions, thoughts, and feelings. It is a celebration of the past and a recognition of the many accomplishments of the students and so it is certainly exciting. More than just the excitement, it is also an event that fills me with hope – the future is so full of promise and possibility for the students who are leaving WKHS. Having the pleasure to know so many incredible students at WKHS is a joy and it is fun to celebrate these special moments. I must also share that one of the greatest experiences was connected to graduation in that 9 students selected me to present them with their diplomas – I was honored and humbled and I will always treasure the moments in my office, the hallway, or commons as students shared that they had picked me to give them their diploma and then at graduation the few seconds when I was on stage with their diploma in hand and was able to make eye contact with the students just before their name was called. While it may sound like the commercials – those moments truly are priceless.

I find joy in my actual job as a school counselor. I cannot begin to tell you how exciting it is for me to get to know “my” students better and often the recommendation letter process is a big part of that - there is also immense relief when those same recommendation letters are DONE! The career fair from November had it’s own range of emotions – exhaustion working on it, pride at pulling it off, and relief that it was over. And, this year, students also managed to surprise me when I walked into my office to find it covered with signs, streamers, and filled with balloons. There was also bewilderment at the new “Bill Cosby sweater-like carpet” (as described by one of my students) and the thrill of getting a new computer and all the added desk space it instantly provided.

The past year had countless moments in which I was proud. These included big moments – like when my step-dad, Dave Hoover, was inducted into the Ohio High School Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame or when the Career Fair Planning Committee was recognized with the Impact Award by the Worthington Board of Education – and small (insignificant, but no less proud) moments such as solving the Rubik’s Cube for the first time and being able to teach students how to solve it. (Remember, nothing in life is impossible!) And while I had nothing to do with it, I must also admit that I am proud as I sit in the stands or in the auditorium and watch all of the students at WKHS putting forth their best in athletics, arts, and other community outreach. I never cease to be amazed by what you accomplish and how high you set your goals.

Unfortunately, the past year has also had some very difficult moments for me. It has been sad to watch my grandfather continue to dwindle as he fights the good fight and has outlived anyone’s expectations. It has also been very painful to have to say good-bye to several friends that I love as they pass away too young. I never realized that two seemingly opposite emotions could come together with the same experience until this past August when Isabelle passed away. Speaking at her funeral was perhaps my greatest honor and yet it was also one of the most heart-wrenching and saddest experiences of my life.

Even with sorrow, there is still joy because I know that I was lucky to have Izzie in my life. There is joy at being able to celebrate the holidays spending time with family and friends. There is joy in working with such incredible students and being able to reconnect with former students and simply sitting back and listening as they visit and share updates about their lives and college experiences.

But most of all, today I am filled with gratitude – for all of you – my family, friends, students (past and present), and the families of my students – thank you for blessing my life!

I'm not the only one...

Did you read this story in the Columbus Dispatch about the importance of volunteering? Actually, it makes the point that volunteering is nice, but finding meaningful service activities that truly show your passion for an area is much more important and impactful for college admissions. So, I guess that shows that I am not the only one who says that. :-)

Sorry that it has been over a week since I have posted an update... and I really wanted to share an end of the year/ holiday break wrap up update, but I figured after such a long time without an update you deserved something educational and informative instead. :-) I will be back before break ends to share a quick update about my break (hope you have had a great one so far) and some of my thoughts about 2008 ending and looking ahead at 2009. Happy New Year!