Students will frequently roll their eyes at my instruction and think I am crazy for making that suggestion, but we consistently hear that message from colleges because it is so important. This is from a college where many of our students apply and I am copying it for you so you will realize that I'm not making this up:
"Because strength of curriculum is an important factor in our decision, we require students to notify us if they plan to change their senior year course schedule. Please ask them to include the following information in the email: their current spring schedule as it appears on their original application, the change they would like to make, and the reason(s) for the change. We will review and respond to all requests as promptly as possible. If the student has already been offered admission, the Admissions Committee may choose to reconsider that offer based on the change of schedule. If a student has been notified that his or her decision is being deferred, any course changes will be considered when the final admission decision is made."
So, as you can see, making changes at the semester – especially if you are looking to drop a class – is NOT a decision you should take lightly.
If you are struggling with your academic load and NEED to make a change, please come see me so we can talk about the options, but again, I strongly encourage you to maintain a rigorous schedule throughout your entire senior year.
Also, one last reminder, Wednesday is my last day at school too so if you are still working on your college applications (which is totally fine) you NEED to INVITE me on Common App NOW and be sure that your transcript release form was filled out for all of your intended colleges so that I can upload that information before break begins! See me if you are confused about this process.
There are two broad categories of financial aid – Merit Based aid and Need Based aid.
Merit Based aid is what you think of when you think “Scholarships.” These are usually awarded to students based on academic achievements, leadership, athletics, special talents such as art or music, volunteerism, or other personal qualities that set you apart. These scholarships do not consider financial need. A significant portion of all merit-based aid comes directly from the college/ university. Some schools may require additional scholarship applications, essays, interviews, and many colleges will have earlier deadlines to be considered for their scholarships. It can be helpful to know that a lot of times the smaller, private colleges will have more money available for scholarships in order to help make attending their school competitive with the lower costs of the public colleges. Please also remember that there are scholarship offerings listed on the Counselor Website. It is important to keep an eye out for unique scholarships that might apply to your personal situation. Perhaps one of your grandparents won a purple heart or maybe you have time to write an essay for one of the other scholarship competitions… no matter what the situation, if you find a scholarship that you meet the criteria for go ahead and apply – you might be pleasantly surprised at the result and if you don’t, the answer is definitely a “no.”
Need Based aid is what you will sometimes hear people refer to as “Financial Aid” even though both Merit Based and Need Based aid technically fall under that one category. There are a variety of different Need Based aid programs which will require you to fill out the FAFSA in order to be considered for them. Grants are considered gift assistance – they give you money and you do not have to pay it back. Loans which can come from a wide variety of sources – the federal government, the college, and private banks is money that you are required to pay back. Work Study programs are on campus job opportunities that the government helps fund that allows you to earn money for college through working on campus. The big difference between Merit Based and Need Based aid is that Need Based aid is that the type and amount of Need Based aid you will receive depends upon the amount of financial need you have.
And, yes, just to add to the confusion – there are some scholarships that will consider financial need as a criterion. They are still awarding the scholarship based upon some specific aspect of who you are it is just allowing them to narrow down the potential applicant pool.
One last important reminder - NEVER pay to be considered for a scholarship! That is a scam. Don't waste your money!
Instead, holidays are often times with added stress, too much to do, too many people's opinions and conflicting desires, messes that need to be cleaned, food that needs to be cooked, traffic, forced smiles, and more.
I can remember so many times in my own life when the holidays might have been good, but they still had their share of stress!
- Parents yelling.
- SO MANY dishes to wash by hand.
- Getting a new game that I was so excited about and no one in my family being willing to play it with me.
- Grandparents big dog finding a way onto the counter to eat the pies my mom had made.
- The stern conversations about the fact that we would all smile and cooperate for the photos so that they would be done faster.
- Driving to my grandparents house with luggage filling the space beneath our feet and my sister and I bickering in the back-seat about who was on the other's side of the car or if we were touching one another or not.
- Super late nights spent wrapping gifts before a ridiculously early time to wake up and open the gifts.
I say all of that not to say that my holidays have ever been BAD, but they were never PERFECT. And so, if I were to go into the holidays expecting or even hoping for this year to be the year it was different and that things would turn out the way I wanted it to go, I would end up disappointed. Keeping a realistic view on the holidays can help negate some of the stress and disappointment.
So my hope for all of you is that over the 2 weeks when we are off, you will find yourself filled with more moments of peace and joy. That you can find the peace within yourself to manage the difficult moments that happen around you. That you will embrace those good moments when they happen and allow that joy to be your focus more than the disappointments or frustrations. And that you will remember that even when it is all crappy and falling apart (which could happen), that you still have steps you can take to take care of YOU! So don't hesitate to come up with a plan about what you can do for you to give you something to look forward to, to help manage the difficulties when they arise, and to keep a realistic perspective that nothing is going to be perfect and that is normal and fine too.
Also, as was addressed today in the Pack Period, if you or anyone you love is struggling this holiday break, don't forget that there is ALWAYS help available - you can call or text 988 any time to be connected with a crisis counselor.
I mention the Kilbourne Counselor website often, but I still feel like it deserves to have a post all of it's own. When we created the counselor website we wanted to provide students and parents with an easy, one-stop place, to get as many of the resources and information answers that you regularly need. 
So, how do you decide what to do and, if absolutely needed, what not to do?
First, can you actually get it all done and just aren't really feeling motivated to do it? If you CAN do it all, then you need to just harnass the discipline to grind out the work. I know that you don't always WANT to do it. I get it. Look at your parents, talk to them about how much motivation they have at work each day and if they always feel motivated to do everything they have to do. Chances are they don't. But they do it anyway and you can too.
Next, look at your grades. Are you passing all of your classes? If so, are there any close to failing? If so, you probably need to prioritize that class.
If you have multiple classes that are failing, are any close enough to passing that you can get them to passing? If so, you probably need to priorize that class.
For a lot of my students, when we sit and look at their grades, it will be a missing test that is killing their grade. If you are avoiding making up a test, please don't! You need those points. Even if you fail at a 50% rather than failing with a 0% because you didn't take the test can make a huge difference in how you do in the class overall.
As you look at your list of things that need to be done in this next week, you can prioritize by getting accomplished the easy things first to build that momentum to working towards the more difficult tasks. Or you can flip it and do the more demanding assignments first so that as you get tired you are left with the easier assignments that you can crank out at the end. That is in part knowing what approach works best for you.
If, when you look at that list of things that need to be completed, there is no way that you can get it all done, then I will acknowledge that in certain circumstances (and maybe this is one) you need to decide what you can sacrifice for the overall greater good. For example, you might sacrifice completing an assignment in a class where you have a strong A in order to spend more time in a class where you have a D-. Or you might have to sacrifice working on assignments for a class where you have a 20% if you have recognized that realistically you won't be able to get that grade up to a 60% by the end of the week so that you can focus on getting the other classes where you are in the 50-60% range up above passing.
Again, I say all of that not because I want you to just ignore work that you can do. If you have the time and ability to get it all done, then that is what I want for sure! But if you're at that breaking point where you have found yourself in a hole and you can't figure out how to dig out of it, then priorizing what will give you the biggest bang for your work is going to be important. Ultimately that can be by looking at those overall grades as well as how many points are possible on the assignments you are completing.
Remember, any tests or quizzes that you have left to complete need to be the first priority during your off periods at school. And then for your other assignments, use your available time wisely so that you are ending the quarter and semester where you want to be academically.
Also, don't forget, you're just a week away from semester exams and those are worth 10% of your grade which means you can still increase your overall semester grade by a full letter grade so truly, hope is not lost for any of you! Keep working hard and finish out the last 8 days of school before break strong. You can do this!
If you submitted your email account when completing your answer sheet then you should have received an e-mail from CollegeBoard notifying you that your scores are accessible. Even if you didn't receive an e-mail from CollegeBoard you can still access your scores.
Go to the CollegeBoard website and select the PSAT test you took - you should select "PSAT/ NMSQT" from the choices across the top. https://collegereadiness.collegeboard.org/
Once you are on the website in the middle of the page it will have an area for getting your scores. If you already have an account, you can sign in using your username and password. For many of you, you may not have an account yet so you will need to create one. Next to the "Sign In" button there is a "Sign Up" spot - select that and then create your account.
After doing that you will be able to access your scores.
One of the best parts about the PSAT is that CollegeBoard has partnered with Khan Academy to use your scores to make a personalized practice plan. This is a fantastic option and I strongly encourage you to use it. If you have questions about this FREE option you can visit the Khan Academy website at: https://www.khanacademy.org/sat
Once you have your scores, you may be wondering what they mean. The score sheets from PSAT provides a wealth of information so it can take some time to digest it all, but if interested, please know that the counselor website can help give you additional information, tips and links to better understand your scores. http://www.wkhscounselors.com/.
Don't forget, these are just practice tests so they are giving you an indication of where you might expect to score on your college admissions tests and you can use your results to help guide you in preparing to achieve college readiness.
I hope your scores were what you were expecting (or perhaps even better). If you have any questions don't hesitate to reach out and ask me.
Yesterday 17 students were honored as December's Students of the Month! Students can only earn this recognition once during their high school career.
A special congratulations to "my" students who were honored as Students of the Month! They included in alphabetical order: Malak Bentamri, Maela Best, Molly Brandt, Maxtan Capehart, Celia DeMary, Audrey Emami, and Lincoln Glaros.
I am proud of you! Thank you for representing the best of Worthington Kilbourne High School.
I love the sentiment that your head is a good place to have ideas, but not the place to hold ideas and I believe that makes sense. I have been talking with a lot of students lately about the fact that I need to write everything down. It would be impossible to remember everything that I need to keep track of if I didn't write it all down.
I also have lots of other breathing strategies (3/3/3, square breathing, double out, hot chocolate breathing, etc.) that we can practice together if you know that this is something you would like help focusing on to help with your emotional well-being. I also like the breathing tool in the Virtual Hope Box app which you can download for free.
One nice feature of the PreACT is that you will get your test booklet and the score summary written report. You can use this information to help you determine what you did well on and what you want to improve on in the future.
Don't forget, these are just practice tests so they are giving you an indication of where you might expect to score on the actual ACT and you can use your results to help guide you in preparing to achieve college readiness.
I hope your scores were what you were expecting (or perhaps even better). If you have any questions don't hesitate to stop by and see me.
Next week is the winter testing window for the End of Course tests. You will be taking these tests if you are currently in Government, if you took a tested class during the summer, if you took a tested class last school year but due to illness or other reasons you weren't able to complete the tests when the state testing window was open, if you need to try to improve your scores, or if you moved in from out of state and need to take the assessments.
All students are strongly encouraged to check your school email to look for information about End of Course tests. If you need to complete a test then you will have received an email giving you information about what date you will complete your test and which room to go to for testing.
I know that it is really hard to miss class time for the testing (especially when you only have 17 days of classes left in the semester), but remember that because these tests play a role in you earing the graduation requirements you want to try to do your best on the tests when taking them.
Worthington Presbyterian Church facilitates an outreach effort to raise the money to purchase food boxes for area families to be able to have all of the items they need to prepare their own Thanksgiving meals. Members of the church purchase and box the Turkeys, potatoes, stuffing, etc and then give them to schools so that they can be passed along to families in need.
Each year we have received 40-50 Thanksgiving meals to distribute and I have to tell you, it is so awesome! First, it is powerful to see all of these meals that have been donated. Second, it is a privilege to be able to hand the food over to families who might not have been able to afford the holiday food items easily. And finally, it is a humbling reminder that we live in such a compassionate, caring, and giving community.
A huge thank you to Worthington Presbyterian Church for making this outreach possible each year!
Now that you all are officially on Thanksgiving break, I hope you have a great 5 days! I hope you have safe travels, time to relax and unwind, and the chance to make positive memories with those around you.
This was the 3rd Naturalization Ceremony that I have had the privilege of witnessing and each time I am overwhelmed with emotion at the power of the event. Kilbourne began hosting Naturalization Ceremonies as a part of a project by seniors to host an event to celebrate diversity, to honor inclusion and to recognize the importance of community. This began under the direction of Mr. Johnson, a past Assistant Principal at Kilbourne and is now being facilitated by Mrs. Backhurst.
Last Thursday, Kilbourne's auditorium was transformed into a courtroom with two judges and many court officials present so that over 300 individuals could become United States citizens. The courts still have COVID restrictions in place and so the people petitioning to become citizens could not have their family members in the auditorium with them, but hundreds of their loved ones packed the gymnasium to watch the event as it was livestreamed. I know that many classrooms streamed the ceremony, but I elected to go down to the gym where I could watch alongside the families and it was so powerful and so emotional to witness.
Families were recording the proceedings on their phones of what they were watching on the televisions. People were dressed up showing what a monumental day it was in their lives. Some of the families were carrying huge "Congratulations" balloons and others held flowers to pass along to their loved ones. The excitement and pride was palpable and it was contagious.
I cried as the 311 individuals took their oath becoming US citizens. This is something that is so easy for me to take for granted and yet I am grateful for all of the privileges that I have simply because of the country where I was born. Now, in the week of Thanksgiving, it is important that I pause and reflect on this more.
If you're interested in watching the ceremony and hearing the seniors present, I encourage you to check out the video on Worthington's YouTube channel. I don't know if it will hold the same power as it did when I watched it in the gym, but I believe you will realize just how incredible it is that our students and staff had this opportunity. A huge thank you to the seniors who did such a great job planning the event with Mrs. Backhurst. It was a memorable, positive and exciting day!
Attending the Delaware Area Career Center is a competitive process and students must apply for consideration. If you are interested, please make sure to start working on your application because it is now open and you'll want to get it submitted so that they can consider you for a spot in their program. The priority application deadline for optimal consideration is January 13th.
Information about the open house and the application to attend DACC are all located on their website.
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