Teacher Recommendation Letters

Recommendation letters are a time consuming process requiring a great deal of thought and time. Juniors, as you finalize the list of schools where you will be applying next fall, it is important to determine if you are going to need a recommendation letter from a teacher (or two). Many of the Ohio schools - Ohio University, BGSU, Kent State, etc. do not require teacher recommendations.  Because rec letters are a time consuming process, if the colleges where you are applying do not require recommendations, then do not waste your teacher's time by requesting letters that won't be needed or used. 

If you are applying to schools that need teacher recommendation letters, it is very helpful and beneficial to the teachers if you can give them as much time as possible to write your recommendation letters. That means, if you know now that you are going to be applying to a school which needs a teacher rec letter, then I would like for you to ask the teachers this spring allowing them to have the entire summer to write your letter. (These next few weeks are a great time to ask!)  After you ask your teacher(s), you will want to provide them with information that can help them as they write your letter. We have several handouts in the counseling and career center and on the WKHS Counselor website that you can use for this purpose.

Time is Running Out

Seniors have just 17 days remaining (graduation is less than 4 weeks away) and underclassmen have 21 days (including the 3 exam days) before summer break.

Obviously that means every moment counts if you are not doing well in your classes and you are trying to pull off a passing grade for the semester.  It is essential that you spend the remaining weeks taking care of your classes so that you do not jeopardize your future.

The truth is that this last month of the school year is essential for many WKHS students.

For seniors, I realize that there is a rampant case of senioritis running through the school, but I must remind you that next year you will be heading to college. You have already received your acceptance letters and (most have) decided where you will be attending school next year so it seems like your grades this last semester don't really matter... except they do! You must submit a final transcript to your college. If you go back and read the acceptance letters that the colleges sent to you, you will notice the fine print that points out that they can turn you down if you don't maintain the level of grades that they expect from you and your past performance. Last year schools did turn away hundreds of students and I can't even imagine how hard it was for a student to believe they knew where they would be attending to suddenly find out that they couldn't go there any more because they blew off school during their final semester.  The other comment I hear from seniors often is that school doesn't matter now, but that next year, in college, when it matters they will turn it around and try. Well, while I would love to believe you (and I hope you are right), the reality is that it isn't always that easy. Bad habits are hard to break. Next year there won't be anyone bugging you about turning in homework or reminding you that a paper or project is due next week. They won't accept late papers. Most professors won't check attendance and they don't care if you want to throw your money away by not attending class. It is your introduction to the real world. At WKHS if you show up late to class and get a tardy or two you end up with a detention. In the real world, if you show up late for work you get fired. At WKHS if you can't manage to turn in a paper or project on time teachers take points off and it might hurt your grade, but in the real world the devastation of not following through and meeting the expectations of your boss are much more serious. I know, you think I am just nagging and I promise that I am not trying to lecture you, but I am worried. The last few weeks of high school need to be a time to practice developing some good habits. For many of you, you have taken a long enough break at the beginning of this quarter. Spend time studying. Work on your organization skills. Practice taking better notes. All of those things will help you in college and in the future.

For the underclassmen... it is far too early for you to be claiming senioritis (although I heard that from quite a few students recently). The classes that you are taking now will impact your grades and grade point average. Having a higher grade point average doesn't guarantee you admission to the school of your dreams, but it does provide you with more options. For most of your classes - you need it to meet graduation requirements. (Even your elective classes as you need multiple credits of electives to graduate.) It always surprises me when students give up at this point in the year. I don't understand it. If I was faced with the option of working really hard for the last 4 weeks of school and kicking butt on the exams or taking the class for an entire semester (or year) again over the summer or next year there is no question that I would apply myself now. That is what so many of you need to do. Stop and think about it for a moment. Your 3rd quarter grade was worth 40% of your semester grade. This quarter's grade is worth another 40% of your semester grade and your final exam makes up the remaining 20%. That means that with your exam and this quarter you are dealing with 60% of your total points for the semester. Hopefully you realize that this also means that you can still pass, but you must commit yourself now and not let a single point slip by without trying to earn it.  Every point matters! Talk to your teachers, get input from them on what you need to do differently in order to turn things around in your classes. Please, don't wait until it is too late. If you have already realized that there is no way to pass the class and your teacher agrees that there is no hope, please come and see me so that we can talk about what your plan is to make up the class. Are you going to take it during the summer? Are you going to take it next year? If you are taking it next year does that bump out any of your other classes because you are now missing the requirements? There is a great deal to consider. If you aren't going to be able to pass one class, please work hard to make sure that you pass all of the others. As soon as you realize that one class is a lost cause it doesn't mean that all of the others are gone too. Try to use your time wisely and put more effort into the ones that still have hope. Feel free to stop in and talk to me if you need help developing a plan on how to focus your energy and effort to passing your classes.

Believe me, I do understand that it is hard to focus right now. And yes, I admit that I don't always want to get up and come to school when there are other things that sound more appealing for the day. But we only have one today and the decisions we make today have a much bigger influence than we can imagine. Make the most of today!

College Credit Plus Reminder

I realize that all of the colleges having different application deadlines related to College Credit Plus can be confusing.  So for any students who will be taking classes at OSU, CSCC, or at WKHS through CSCC (including English, Psychology, Government, Sociology, or Intro to Programming Logic), please remember that your deadline to apply to the college is this Friday, May 1st!

When you complete your application, you are going to be indicating that you are a College Credit Plus student.  It will be a relatively straight-forward process.  I know that many of my students have already completed their applications online, but if you have not, the counselors will be available in the library during lunch periods tomorrow and Thursday to help you with completing your application.

For students who will be taking classes at CSCC, if you have your ACT or SAT completed, you can send your test scores directly to CSCC (and then you don't need to take the compass test).  If you haven't taken the ACT or SAT then you will need to take the Compass placement test.  We will be offering these at WKHS on the mornings of May 5, 6, and 7th.  Please make sure you sign up in the counseling center for which date you want to test.

Once you have completed your application, you will receive an acceptance e-mail from CSCC and it will include your Cougar ID number.  As soon as you receive that number, please bring it to me (or e-mail it to me at babbott@wscloud.org) so that I have it to register you for the Compass test.

For those of you who will be participating in College Credit Plus through COTC (math classes and Intro to Business) - they have said that their application will be released sometime in early May.  As soon as I hear that it is available, I will be sure to pass that news along.

Decision Day Approaching!

Seniors, by now you are hopefully well aware of the fact that Friday, May 1st is national college decision day.  The colleges have all united in the fact that they will not require you to make decisions about where you will attend prior to May 1st, but this is one of the deadlines that is firm.  As you are aware, through the college application process each college has their own timeline and often have different application deadlines, financial aid deadlines, and announce their admission decisions at different times, but May 1st is a universal deadline among all colleges requiring students to declare their decision.  Please remember that this not only means that you have informed the college of your choice that you intend to attend their college, but it also typically includes submitting a deposit.  As you reach the final hours of your decision making window, if you need to talk out your choice with someone, please feel free to stop in and talk to me.  You can, of course, also use my books and the resources that I have in my office to help guide your decision making.

Here are two articles about making the college decision that may also help you:

College Admissions: Committing to a College by May 1

College Decision Day is May 1 - How should high school students make their picks?

Career Fair Tips

Tomorrow is the big day!  The 2015 WKHS Career Fair is finally here!!!

Choosing what you would like to do for the rest of your life can be pretty overwhelming for most students. The idea that, as a high school student, you are expected to decide what career you will enjoy doing every day can seem scary. One of my students described his view of the future as endless 40 hour work weeks and while there is certainly some truth to his statement, the goal is that you will find a career that you love. When you enjoy your job and find it fulfilling and rewarding then every day will give you something meaningful.  (Hopefully it will be a job you love and not something that you feel forced into or because you don't have any other options.)  It is fun to dream about your future and I hope you will ultimately find a job that is as meaningful to you as my job as a high school counselor is to me!

So, tomorrow, there are a few hints that I wanted to give to you to help make your morning beneficial and effective.

First and foremost, please plan ahead on when you leave your house because traffic will be BAD!  It will be significantly worse than on any regular school day because we will have more than 200 extra cars coming to WKHS who aren't normally driving there.

My next suggestion is to EXPLORE!  You don't know what you don't know.  Walk up and talk to the different career professionals.  Ask them the best and worst parts of their jobs.  Find out how they ended up in that field.  You never know what you might learn about a different job opportunity that you had never even considered previously.

Talk to the professionals!  Yes, that may seem obvious, but if you just walk past their table and look at them without actually talking to them, you will have missed out on a great opportunity.  If you have already finished talking to the people in the fields that were most interesting to you, then please be kind and thoughtful hosts to our guests - pick someone's table that doesn't have anyone visiting them and go up and talk to them so that they feel welcomed and appreciated by our students.

When thinking about areas that interest you, don't judge just based upon category!  As the career professionals were selecting their career fields it was interesting to see how much overlap there could be in different areas.  (So, for example, an engineer who functions in a management position might have selected Business as their job category and not Engineering so if you wanted to talk to all of the engineers, you would also want to talk to him in the Business area.  Or another business representative might work in healthcare so they listed their career as being Healthcare.)  The bottom line is there are LOTS of people at WKHS so make sure you walk around and try to find all of the people who have jobs which might interest you even if they are not where you would have expected to find them.

If you do not have any idea what you would like to do with your future, please don't panic.  As I mentioned, explore and talk to people it might help you start generating ideas and thinking about what you might enjoy.  You can also do some career interest inventories.  These are available for free on a website called Ohio Means Jobs K-12.  If you go to the website ohiomeansjobs.com and click on "Individuals" and then click on the "K-12" icon it will allow you to get started.  There is a career interest inventory and a career profiler that both allow you to answer questions about yourself and your interests (or lack thereof) and it then gives you feedback about fields that might be good areas to consider based upon your interests.

I hope you have a great time at tomorrow's career fair.  And thank you again to all of the students who helped set up today and will be volunteering their time bright and early tomorrow morning at 6:45am!

Chase Your Dreams!

We have been working really hard for the last 6 months to prepare for Friday's career fair and with 226 professionals volunteering their time to come and meet with you, I can honestly say that it should be a great morning.  But, I have to be honest, not every possible career will be represented.  We have done our very best to get a wide range of careers so that you can talk to people in different fields.  There are also some more popular careers where you will find multiple individuals in the same job which provides you with a great opportunity to find out how various people view their jobs and the differences that exist even within the same type of career.  (For example, there are all different environments where nurses work, etc.)

My favorite career fair related story from the last 3 times we have held this event was actually connected to a career that we were not able to get represented at the career fair.  Yes, you read that right - a job that we could NOT get represented.

In case you are not aware, we invite all different people to complete the career questionnaire so that they can be compiled in the Career Resource Handbook.  This Career Resource Handbook is available for you to look at any time in the front of the counseling center and I also have a copy in my office.  All of the career fair participants as well as those who were willing to answer the questions even if they couldn't attend the career fair are compiled together into this binder as a resource for our students.  There are always kind people who complete the career questionnaire even though they know they cannot attend - for example, this year an Executive Producer from the CBS Television Show, Big Brother, did the survey.

So, back to my favorite story... and I have to say that this is in my recollection of it so some of my details may be off, but it is close.  Brooke was one of my students and she was interested in possibly pursuing a future career as a Dolphin Trainer.  Brooke loves people, she loves animals, she loves dolphins, she loves to swim and she always thought that this would be a fun career.  But, as you can imagine, there are not many dolphin trainers living in central Ohio so we were not able to find anyone with that career to attend the career fair.  Brooke and I had talked about this being an area of interest so when I saw that someone living in Florida had completed the career questionnaire for her job as a dolphin trainer, I couldn't wait to show Brooke.

Brooke ended up talking to the woman on the phone and found out that she was the aunt to another WKHS student.  Later, when this woman was in town visiting her family, Brooke and her stepdad, Mr. Green, went to meet with the dolphin trainer to talk about her career background and experiences.

I will never forget the excitement of Brooke's smile as she told me about their meeting and, possibly for the first time, really believed that she might be able to pursue this as a career.  Brooke had learned that she needed all of those qualities that she had previously identified in herself in order to be good as a dolphin trainer, but she would also need to believe in herself and have the courage to chase her dreams.

Although it has been many years since Brooke sat in my office and had that conversation with me, she followed through and chased her dreams and today is working with dolphins!  I couldn't be prouder of Brooke for all that she has accomplished.  So, even though she wasn't able to make the perfect connection to the career field of interest to her at the WKHS Career Fair, she still used the time effectively and ultimately made a positive connection that helped her.

I hope that you will follow in Brooke's footsteps.  Never lose sight of your dreams and be willing to put your whole heart, time, energy and talents toward working to make them a reality.  And remember, explore and talk to lots of people during the career fair.  If your exact job of interest isn't represented there is still a lot you can learn from the people who are there and be sure to check out the Career Resource Handbook later because you never know what you will find.

Thanks to Brooke and her family for sharing the pictures and for giving me permission to share her story - it really is awesome, isn't it?!?  :-)

Let's Talk Careers

This Friday is the Career Fair, an event that we have worked very hard to try to plan in order to provide the opportunity for students to interact with a wide variety of professionals from all different career fields. More than likely, this will not be when the lightbulb goes off over your head and you suddenly walk away knowing exactly what you will major in and what your future career will be for the rest of your life. Quite honestly, it isn't that simple. Few people are in the exact jobs they imagined for themselves when they were in high school. Don't believe me? Ask around - check with your parents, your teachers and you will even see it reflected in the handouts you will be able to pick up from each professional during the career fair on Friday.

And yes, it even applies to me! When I was graduating from high school I was 100% sure that I would be pursuing a future as a PT/ATC which means a Physical Therapist who is also a Certified Athletic Trainer. By the time I started college that was still my goal, but I was already starting to change my mind on the physical therapy part of my future as I found out that it would not be possible to complete the physical therapy program at the same time as the athletic training program. I loved athletic training and would never have dreamed (at the time) of giving it up so I changed my major to education and continued with the athletic training. My major was health education, my minor was psychology and my internship was athletic training. Up until the spring of my senior year of college and the start of my student teaching I was still certain that my future would be athletic training. I completed my graduate school applications, went on my interviews and was weighing my options when (during spring break) I realized I didn't really want this to be my entire future. (I know... parents everywhere are thinking "Do not do what she did!" and believe me my own mom had the same thought... actually, I believe her response was something more along the lines of, "If you would have listened to me a long time ago..." - You can ask her about it Friday - she will be at WKHS as one of our guest professionals.) I did still go ahead and earn my athletic training certification, something that I was intensely proud of accomplishing even though I never used it in my working career. I loved teaching and working with students so I bailed on all of my previous plans and decided to search for a job in education. As most schools want health teachers who can also teach phys ed (totally NOT me since I lack all eye-hand coordination), finding a job was not easy. I ended up finding a job that I absolutely loved working for a non-profit health organization called Lifeline of Ohio which is an organization that deals with organ and tissue donation. I was there for 7 years and while there my job morphed and changed and my time with students decreased and my time with other special projects increased. I missed working with students and decided to return for my master's degree in school counseling. I left Lifeline of Ohio and worked for a year at Grove City High School as a counselor before being hired at WKHS. And, as some of you know, I also obtained my community counseling license to go along with my school license and now work part-time as a hospice grief counselor.  The point of that whole drawn out story is to show you that there is no way in a million years I could have ever imagined or predicted the way my life would have turned out or the career that I would pursue, but I cannot imagine being happier or more fulfilled in my jobs.

So, although I am hopeful that each of you will make the most of the time at the career fair and seek information from the wonderful professionals who are so graciously donating their time to talk with all of you, I do not want you to feel the pressure that this is when you should expect to determine what you will be for the rest of your life.  Hopefully though, it will serve as an opportunity to open your eyes to some fields you might not have previously considered, will help introduce you to professionals working in the areas that interest you, and will provide the opportunity to truly focus on thinking about what areas you might be most interested in pursuing in the future.

I also want to give a huge thank you to all of the students who have already agreed to volunteer to help set up for the career fair on Thursday or to help in some way on Friday morning! I would also like to thank all of the parents who have volunteered to help either at the career fair on Friday, by completing the Career Questionnaire for the Career Resource Handbook or by asking others to help share information and insights into their careers. I appreciate your help very much!

Gap Year

Have you heard of Gap Years? Without question, the majority of WKHS students move straight from high school to college, but this is not always the best option for every student. In the past few years I have had several students who elected to take a gap year which is a year off between high school and college. The one point that I would like to make though is that a gap year is not just hanging out at home, living in your parents basement, playing video games for a year. Students pursue lots of different options during gap years and colleges recognize that gap years can be a valuable opportunity for students to gain perspective, personal insight, and re-energize their love of learning before beginning their college careers.

Sometimes students elect to take a gap year if they haven't been accepted to a college where they feel like they will be happy to attend. In these instances students may decide to take a gap year and hope that their experiences during their gap year will enhance their applications for the following year when they apply the following year.

Other times, and perhaps even more frequently for Kilbourne students, is that students will still complete their applications during their senior year and then defer their acceptances for a year. If you are interested in pursuing a gap year opportunity, talk to your college admissions office to confirm if they will defer your enrollment date by a year (or a semester if you are taking a shorter time off between high school and college).

Making the Final Decision

Seniors have just a few week remaining to decide what college they will be attending next year. Remember, there is no right or wrong choice – it is all about what school is the best fit for you and your individual wants and needs in a college. Try to take a deep breath and relax as we head into these last few weeks. Trust yourself and know that you will be successful in the future – no matter where you end up!

As you are thinking about your different schools and comparing and contrasting them, it is essential that you determine what you really want in a school and what is most important to you in a college. If you are still struggling with your choice, then chances are pretty good that the schools that you have narrowed your decision down to are probably relatively similar.

Take the time to go back and look at the same factors you considered when picking which schools you wanted to apply to and try to get really picky about the different factors that played into your choice. Perhaps creating a chart can help you clarify how important each factor is to you and how each school compares in that category. For example, think about the location of the school. How important is that issue to you in picking a college? The schools are likely within your comfort zone of a location from home, but when looking at two colleges consider how far or close they are from your family. What does it mean to you if the school is 10 minutes away, 4 hours away, or a flight away? How important is it to you to be able to come home for an evening, a weekend, or a holiday? You can also look at the size of the school. Consider the advantages and disadvantages of the different sizes of schools. For example, the larger school might provide additional choices and the smaller school may provide better teacher/ student ratios. What is more important to you? And if both are important to you then you will need to consider what you will do to adapt to make sure that the school will meet your needs. Consider the social life and activities on and around the campus. Is it what you picture for your college years? Most importantly, you need to figure out what categories and issues are critical to you and compare the school on those aspects.

If your school comparison charts are similar and you still can’t decide – go visit the schools again. Sit in on the classes and, if possible, arrange for an overnight visit (yes, you are running out of time for overnight visits). People watch and consider your interactions with the students on campus. Are the students friendlier at one school over the other? What about the professors that you talk to? Are they engaging and whose classes are you most interested in attending? How was school safety? What strategies are in place to help keep students safe? Which campus support staff (admissions, financial aid, etc.) is friendlier and more helpful? (While this is not necessarily a key factor it can give you an image of the school and a glimpse at their values as an academic institution.)

Ask yourself if the school will meet your academic needs, if you will have the social life you desire, and if your family can make the investment. As you are progressing through your decision making process, remember not to be shy about asking questions and getting them answered because you are entitled to feel confident in your decision. This is your choice. You are not a victim in this process – you are the key active participant. Remember that if you want to stop in and talk about your college decision I am always here for you, but know that I can’t make this decision for you – just like your family and friends can’t make this choice for you. The good news – the stress is almost over and you will be relieved to be able to finally answer the question that everyone asks endlessly of “Where are you going to college?”

Common App Essays

The Common Application is an application website that many colleges will use allowing students to fill out one application that can then be submitted to various colleges.  The Common Application recently announced the essay prompts that will be used for next year's applicants.  Please note that it's important not to actually start filling out the Common Application on their actual website as the system will reset over the summer.

So, juniors, take a look at these prompts and start brainstorming what your answers might be for each question.  After you list your thoughts for each question, look at which response tells the best story of who you are and will be help to be the best introduction of you to the admissions committee.  Then it is time to start drafting and editing and drafting some more.  :-)  Students who utilize the common app will be asked to select and answer one question in 250-650 words.  (Please don't worry about word count on your first draft - it is always MUCH easier to cut words than it is to try to add more in later.)

Below are the common app essay questions to help you get started: 

1. Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.

2. The lessons we take from failure can be fundamental to later success. Recount an incident or time when you experienced failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?

3. Reflect on a time when you challenged a belief or idea.  What prompted you to act? Would you make the same decision again?

4. Describe a problem you've solved or a problem you'd like to solve. It can be an intellectual challenge, a research query, an ethical dilemma-anything that is of personal importance, no matter the scale. Explain its significance to you and what steps you took or could be taken to identify a solution.

5. Discuss an accomplishment or event, formal or informal, that marked your transition from childhood to adulthood within your culture, community, or family.

Procrastination

Procrastination is one of the more common problem areas that students battle. Every year I meet some students who are "master procrastinators." The reality is that some people don't mind putting everything off until the last possible second and then working like crazy to get everything accomplished before the deadline, but this can result in a lot of unnecessary stress. Procrastination certainly doesn't mean that you are lazy or incapable, but it is often a sign that something is getting in your way of completing your tasks and responsibilities. If you are interested in learning strategies for gaining control over your tendencies to procrastinate, it is important to remember that there are no quick fixes. As with most things in life, what works for one person will not necessarily work for someone else so it is important to find a strategy that will work effectively for you. I doubt that any of these suggestions will be ideas that you have never heard of before, but it comes down to deciding that you want to try to make a change. So, reward yourself for progress made because it does take time to improve.

Some ideas to help combat procrastination:

Plan ahead.

Break your big projects, assignments, or responsibilities down into smaller, more manageable tasks.

Commit to spending at least 15 minutes working on something that you have been avoiding.

Remind yourself that there is not going to be a better time – not tomorrow, not next weekend, or next month – something else will always come up that continues to contribute to the procrastination.

Ask for help.

Focus on the desired outcome – rather than your fear or inaction.

Be realistic – most tasks take far longer than you expect.

Minimize Distractions… and take care of whatever is distracting you.

Let go of perfectionism. (And, for those of you who are perfectionists, I know that this is a hard one, but the reality is that many things aren't worth doing perfectly, so just start and do your best – it will still be better than not doing it at all.)

Recruit a friend to help keep you accountable. (If you tell someone else about your goal or plan to battle your typical procrastination blocks, you may be more likely to follow through, but please make sure it is a friend who will help you stay accountable not convince you that it is OK to put off starting your paper for a few more days.)

Do the hard part first… or… do the easy part first. (Whichever is more motivating to you is the one you should choose.)

Keep track of your progress so you don't lose sight of how much you've accomplished.

The bottom line is that if you get it done when you need to instead of procrastinating, you’ll feel better about yourself and have less stress… so get to work. :-)

Diploma Presenters

A reminder to all seniors - if you plan on asking someone to present you with your diploma at graduation - the deadline for submitting your presenter request form to the co-curricular office is Friday, April 17th. I love the fact that you all have this opportunity as a way to make graduation an even more memorable experience. If you do not select someone to give you your diploma, an administrator from central office or a school board member will present your diploma to you.

Also, if you didn't pick up your cap and gown during lunch over the last few days, they are now in the Co-Curricular office so please stop in and see Mrs. Jacobs or Ms. Casto to pick yours up.

Waiting Lists

For high school seniors, the question that is asked over and over is "Where are you going to college?" It can be exciting to share the answer when it is the school you had your heart set on for your future. It can be overwhelming when you still haven't decided and are still trying to figure out which school is the best fit for you. For some students though, this question still brings anxiety and uncertainty because the top school on their list didn't fully accept or reject them - the college put them on their Waiting List. I have had several students stop in to talk about their feelings about life in limbo and I understand how difficult it can be as I'm not always the most patient person either.

I need to be brutally honest (even though I know you don't really want to hear this...) and say that you don't have much control about if you'll get off the wait list. You need to make plans and start getting your mind set on attending one of the other schools who accepted you. If, in time, you find out that you have the opportunity to attend the school that had previously put you on their wait list, then you can re-evaluate and decide if you still want to attend. The reality is that very few students actually end up being selected off the wait list for acceptance. (Once again, this is why it is so important to tell colleges as soon as possible when you know that you will not be attending in the future so that they can make plans to potentially accept other students off their wait list.)

In the mean time, if you decide that you want to remain on a college's waiting list, be sure to follow their directions (usually mailing back a post-card indicating your desire) and then you can also consider sending them a letter updating them about any new achievements, awards, or other information that you have accomplished since your application to their college so that might be able to take that into consideration when making their waiting list decisions.

There have been a lot of articles written recently about the college waiting lists. If this is a situation you are currently facing, perhaps these articles will help you:

Waitlisted or learning to live with uncertainty

3 College wait list mistakes to avoid

Skip the college wait list

As always, if you have questions about the waiting list process, please feel free to stop in and see me!

Volunteer Opportunities

Perhaps you have heard us talking about the 2015 Career Fair - it is coming up next week and we are very excited about all of the professionals who have volunteered their time to come to school and talk to you about their careers.  We are expecting 200 career professionals from a wide range of fields.  This is a huge event at school and, as you can imagine, we need a lot of volunteers to help!  If you are interested in helping set up on Thursday during an off period or after school or if you would like to help on Friday morning at 6:45am we would LOVE to have your assistance!  Sign up sheets are available in the Counseling Center.

Perhaps you are looking for a volunteer opportunity for this summer.  Many organizations have sent us information indicating that they are looking for volunteers and these are available for you to look through in the counseling center.

One example of these summer opportunities is being a Buddy for the Miracle League.

Miracle League is a baseball league for children with developmental disabilities.  Every Saturday from May to July, over 200 children from all over central Ohio play baseball on a specially-designed field at Darree Fields in Dublin with the support of their volunteer "buddies."  The volunteer buddies help the players while they are batting, running bases and playing in the field.  Buddies are usually paired with the same player for the entire season.  The 2015 season begins Saturday, April 25th and runs through July 18th.  There is a t-shirt pick up and fun day on April 19th.  The two inning games are every Saturday except Memorial Day weekend and July 4th weekend.  The time commitment is about 1-2 hours each Saturday.  If you are interested in becoming a buddy, you can register online at www.ohiomiracleleague.org by clicking on the buddy registration link.  For what it is worth, the people I know who have been involved with Miracle League have LOVED the experience.  If you like working with kids and enjoy sports this might be a perfect volunteer opportunity for you!

Reminders

Just a couple of quick reminders for you...

-  Don't forget that tomorrow is a late start day.  That means that your classes will begin for the day at 9:10am.

-  Tomorrow also resumes PARCC testing.  I know that this creates stress for many of you, but try to relax and remember that you have made it through more than half of the tests and you can do this too!  Classes tomorrow (outside of the 70 minute testing period) will be just 35 minutes long so the day will go fast.

-  Seniors, while there have been some local scholarships which have had earlier deadlines, most of the scholarships are due by 3:05 this Wednesday!  Don't miss out on the opportunity to apply for these scholarships.  Check the WKHS Counselor website for the local scholarship applications available.

-  Seniors who are going on Senior Project have just 5 days left of school... don't forget that you have lots of signatures needed and that you have to submit the Mandatory Graduation Information Form before you're done!

-  And, in case you wanted another reminder of just how close we are to the end of the year, caps and gowns will be distributed tomorrow and Tuesday!

I hope you had a good weekend!

Students of the Month

Yesterday morning was a ceremony to honor April's Students of the Month. Students are nominated as students of the month by Kilbourne faculty and staff for their academic achievement, good citizenship, and/or contributions to the school or community. Students can only earn this recognition once in their high school career.

A special congratulations to "my" 6 students who were among those recognized. Pictured (L to R): Megan Clippinger, Anna Contreras, Noah Bontrager, Josh Aylor, Miriam Bassani, and Grace Cameron. I am proud of you!

Cut Them Free!

Seniors, as you start narrowing down your college choices, it is important to cut the other schools free. What does that mean?  It means that as you begin identifying which college or the few colleges that are still in the running that it is important for you to notify the other colleges that you do NOT intend to attend their school beginning next year. Please, wait to tell the schools that you will not be attending until you are completely sure that you are no longer considering them. However, I realize that many of you have already decided or have at least narrowed your choice to a smaller group of colleges and you have completely eliminated others from consideration. Those which have been completely eliminated are the colleges I am recommending you notify as soon as possible. 

This is important because it allows the college to plan for their upcoming student body and to know if they have room to accept other students off of their wait-lists. Think about your classmates who might be on the waiting list for a school and they want to hear back from the schools as quickly as possible and there are other students across the country in the same situation. Colleges can't begin opening up additional slots until they know which students will or will not be attending. Additionally, if you received scholarship offers from one of the colleges that you have eliminated from the running, this can also potentially allow the college to offer that money out to other students which, again, can help people such as your fellow classmates. Believe me, the colleges will not be angry with you for deciding that you will not be attending their school - they understand that this is part of the process, so just go ahead and take a few minutes to let them know of your intent to attend a different college.

Also, don't forget, tomorrow is the Greater Columbus National College Fair!

Anxious About Future

Heading into spring break and in these few days since being back at school after break, it became very evident that many of the seniors are struggling with mixed emotions about the future. Sure, many of you are feeling very excited to graduate and be done with high school, but that also means facing the future, starting college, getting jobs, and being "adults" is just around the corner. I know that this is a time of high anxiety and remember, I am here to help support you. Please, do NOT sabotage yourself and your grades in your classes as a *solution* to not feeling ready to leave high school. Stop in and see me - let me know how you are feeling about high school coming to an end. I look forward to chatting with you soon!

Greater Columbus National College Fair

The National College Fair is coming to Columbus this Saturday, April 11, 2015.  This will provide students and parents with a wonderful opportunity to meet with admissions representatives from hundreds of colleges to learn about the opportunities available on their campus.  This college fair will take place at the Greater Columbus Convention Center from 1 - 4pm and is free.

The National College Fair is organized by the National Association for College Admissions Counselors. One major difference from the Columbus Suburban College Fair is that they do ask all students to register for the fair in advance.  Registering will allow you to provide your information one time so that you save time from having to fill out information cards as you walk through the college fair.  You will print and bring the barcoded pass so that as you walk around and talk to college admissions representatives they can scan the barcode to receive your information.  This allows you to spend your time talking about academics and other opportunities on campus instead of filling out the same information multiple times.  You can register at www.gotomyncf.com.  Students who register using their smart phone can also save the image of the barcode for later use.  Be sure to bring your barcode print out with you to the college fair!

When you are at the fair you will be able to pick up the on-site locator for the latest school list and a booth location map.  In addition to talking individually with college admissions representatives, you can also attend a workshop on topics such as financial aid, standardized testing, college athletics and getting the most out of the college search process.

To see a list of the schools scheduled to attend, please visit: http://bit.ly/NCFExhibitorSearch

I hope you will take advantage of this great opportunity to further your college search.

College Athletics

Perhaps you are watching the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship game tonight.  (I am not... I am still sad about Saturday night's game, but that's a different story.)  But, since my mind has been on sports I thought it would be good to talk about college athletics.

Many students who participate in high school sports have an interest in continuing their athletic participation at the collegiate level.  The reality is that only a small number of student athletes are able to compete at the varsity level in college.  However, most colleges offer a variety of ways that students can meet their athletic goals, which can include club and intramural participation.

Students planning to participate at the varsity level in college, will be looking at NCAA or NAIA colleges.  Athletic scholarships can be offered to students attending NCAA Division I or Division II colleges and NAIA colleges.  NCAA Division III colleges do not offer athletic scholarships for participation.

If you are hoping to be a recruited athlete, it is important to be aware of the restrictions on when athletes can be contacted by coaches as well as when it is acceptable for you to reach out to college coaches.  Additionally, the emphasis on academics is critical and so the NCAA and the NAIA both require student athletes to register to determine their academic/ athletic eligibility.

The website for NCAA Eligibility is: www.eligibilitycenter.org

The website for NAIA Eligibility is: http://www.playnaia.org/

NAIA Requirements:

•           Must meet 2 out of 3 requirements in addition to graduating from high school

o   Minimum GPA of 2.0 on a 4.0 scale

o   Minimum test score of 18 composite score on the ACT or 860 on the SAT (excluding writing section) – They do not superscore

o   Graduation in the top 50% of your high school class

•           You must submit test scores directly from the testing agencies.  Their number is 9876.
•           Students must submit a transcript after graduation.  Only 1 transcript is needed and should be sent after graduation unless you qualify for an “Early Decision.”  To be eligible for an early decision students must have the minimum test scores and have earned at least a 3.0 GPA after junior year or at least a 2.5 GPA after first semester of senior year.  If you will qualify for an early decision, you may send your transcript early and you will receive an eligibility determination before you graduate from high school.
•           Registration fee: $70

NCAA Requirements:

•           The NCAA requirements are a bit more complex because there are different requirements depending upon which division a student hopes to play in during college.
•           Additionally, the requirements for students in the Class of 2014 and 2015 will be different than for those in the Class of 2016 and beyond.  Please look carefully at what your requirements will be depending on your year of graduation and your anticipated division of play.  (Division 3 does not require eligibility approval for participation.)
•           ACT scores used to determine eligibility are the sum of the individual scores (English, math, reading and science – not composite) and the SAT is the sum of the critical reading and math sections.  Writing scores are not used.  They do superscore (taking highest scores from each area added together rather than just using the highest from 1 testing date.)
•           You must submit test scores directly from the testing agencies.  Their number is 9999.
•           One of the key components to understand with NCAA requirements is that they compute your Core GPA instead of looking at your Kilbourne GPA.  Core GPA is made up of just your core classes – English, Math, Science, Social Studies and Foreign Language classes.  Please double check the list of NCAA approved courses on the NCAA website as not all Kilbourne classes in the core areas are NCAA approved.
•           Registration fee: $70
•           They will require that you submit your transcript after your junior year and again after you graduate from high school.
•           Online classes (such as credit recovery) cannot count for core classes.

Attached is the NCAA Eligibility Center Quick Reference Guide.  

Attached is the worksheet you can use to calculate your core GPA.  

For students graduating in 2015:

                Division 1:

o   16 core classes

§  4 English

§  3 Math

§  2 Science

§  1 additional credit in either English, Math or Science

§  2 Social Studies

§  4 Additional years of Core Classes (English, Math, Science, Social Studies, or Foreign Language)

o   Minimum GPA and minimum test scores based upon sliding scale

§  Lowest GPA is 2.0

Division 2:

o   16 core classes

§  3 English

§  2 Math

§  2 Science

§  3 additional credit in either English, Math or Science

§  2 Social Studies

§  4 Additional years of Core Classes (English, Math, Science, Social Studies, or Foreign Language)

o   Minimum GPA is 2.0

o   Minimum test scores is ACT sum score of 68 or SAT sum score of 820.

For students graduating in 2016 and beyond:

                Division 1:

o   16 core classes

§  4 English

§  3 Math

§  2 Science

§  1 additional credit in either English, Math or Science

§  2 Social Studies

§  4 Additional years of Core Classes (English, Math, Science, Social Studies, or Foreign Language)

o   10 of the 16 core classes must be completed prior to the start of the senior year and 7 of these 10 must be in English, Math and Science.

o   The 10 classes completed before the start of senior year are locked in for GPA calculation of core GPA.

o   Minimum GPA and minimum test scores based upon sliding scale

§  Lowest GPA is 2.3 to fully qualify

§  Students with a 2.0 GPA may qualify for an academic redshirt

Division 2:

o   16 core classes

§  3 English

§  2 Math

§  2 Science

§  3 additional credit in either English, Math or Science

§  2 Social Studies

§  4 Additional years of Core Classes (English, Math, Science, Social Studies, or Foreign Language)

o   Minimum GPA is 2.0

o   Minimum test scores is ACT sum score of 68 or SAT sum score of 820.

Although some of these articles are a bit older, I think the information on them will be valuable to students and parents hoping for college athletic scholarships.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/10/sports/10scholarships.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

(Be sure to read the articles highlighted on the left side of the above article too!)

http://www.scholarshipstats.com/

http://www.usnews.com/education/blogs/the-college-solution/2010/06/22/7-things-you-need-to-know-about-sports-scholarships

http://www.usnews.com/education/blogs/professors-guide/2010/03/24/8-tips-for-the-student-athlete

If you have questions about college athletic participation, please feel free to see me, your coaches, or Mr. Todd in the athletic office.