FAFSA - For me?

Every year there are senior students or their families who question if they should actually fill out the FAFSA since they "know" that they will not qualify for need based aid. And the reality is if you are in that situation it is very tempting to just skip doing the FAFSA, but we would still strongly encourage you to complete it!

Why?

Because the colleges tell us there are lots of reasons that families should fill out the FAFSA no matter what. Here are a few of those reasons:

1. Some colleges award a FAFSA filing grant. (Grants are similar to scholarships in that you don't have to pay them back. So that is free money for filling out the FAFSA.)
2. There are scholarships that will only be considered after a student has completed the FAFSA in order for a student to be eligible for them.
3. Circumstances can change. Having a FAFSA on file allows for the financial aid offices to be able to help students pivot with a faster process if something bad happens such as a parent loses a job and can no longer cover the college costs as anticipated.
4. It allows for students/ families to have the option of taking out student loans if needed. (Which could be just because you don't have the money on hand to pay or because of those changed circumstances mentioned above in #2.)
5. Having a FAFSA on file signals to financial aid offices that the family is interested in aid (need or merit). That tells colleges that this is not a "cost doesn't matter at all" scenario.

The colleges have said repeatedly that they understand that there will be families who fill out the FAFSA and have a high SAI, but just because you never know what now or the future holds, they still recommend you fill it out and therefore, we also recommend you fill it out too.

**Just a reminder, this post is also being shared on the NEW WKHS Counselor blog. This blog site will no longer be active beyond 2025 so you can transition to receive all blog posts emailed directly to you by subscribing to the new blog site.**

UD Sinclair Academy

For some students, they know that they want to start at a 2 year college. But, at the same time, they also struggle because due to personal preference or home dynamics they really want to live in a college dorm. This combination is definitely not unique... but it is a challenge. Most 2-year colleges, like Columbus State, do not have dorms as an option.

When we were at the National Association of College Admissions Counselors conference earlier this fall we learned about a unique partnership between the University of Dayton and Sinclair Community College. Called the UD Sinclair Academy, the 2 colleges have partnered together to allow students who want to start at Sinclair Community College before eventually transferring to the University of Dayton to live in the dorms at the University of Dayton while attending Sinclair. Meaning that if the University of Dayton is a 4-year college you would love to attend, this partnership program may make the option of living in a dorm while attending Sinclair Community College a possibility. 

It is a cool opportunity and I loved learning about the efforts that these two colleges are taking to help meet an identified need for many students.

CSS Profile

Hopefully you are making good progress on your FAFSA, but I wanted to be sure to remind you that you need to look at your desired colleges closely to see what their financial aid requirements include.

At some of the more competitive colleges - particularly those who cover all of demonstrated need for students, in addition to requiring the FAFSA, many of those colleges will also require that students and families will submit the CSS profile.  The FAFSA helps colleges determine federal aid, but the CSS profile helps colleges determine institutional aid.  The CSS profile typically asks for a lot more detailed information from families than the FAFSA does.  And while the FAFSA is free to complete, there are fees associated with the CSS profile, but fee waivers are also offered.

Usually this is a topic students figure out as they are going through the whole financial aid application process and the CSS profile is just another step in that process, but we wanted to encourage you to double check if your intended colleges are requiring the CSS profile and to watch your deadlines closely so that you don't miss them.

Here is a link to an article about completing the CSS Profile.

As always, feel free to stop and see us if you have any questions about the CSS profile requirements.

OU Admission Promise

Saturday, November 15th is another key Early application deadline - in particular for Ohio University. I wanted to remind all seniors of the Ohio University Admission Promise. They have announced that all qualified fall 2026 first-year applicants with a cumulative 3.0 GPA in a strong college-prep curriculum will gain automatic general admission to Ohio University's Athens campus if they apply by the Early Application Deadline of November 15, 2025. Additionally, if OU receives a student's FAFSA results by January 15, 2026, then students will earn a renewable $2,000 OHIO Admission Promise Award.  

Talk about good incentives to apply by Saturday AND to submit your FAFSA before January 15th!

Want to learn more about the OU Admission Promise, check out their website.

Holiday Help

As we look ahead to the holiday season I realize that the needs in our community are great, so I wanted to make sure that you (or perhaps one of your friends) would be aware of some of the resources that could be available to help you.

School connected resources:

- One of the local churches, Worthington Presbyterian Church, is providing WKHS with all of the food for Thanksgiving meals so that we can distribute them to some of our families in need.  If you need help with a Thanksgiving meal, please contact me ASAP so that I can try to arrange for a meal for you.  We have a VERY limited supply available.

- Community Cares Backpack Program: a group of dedicated, compassionate, and incredibly thoughtful Worthington mom's do a variety of things to help our school community through the Activity Club.  One of those programs is to provide bags of food to give families a little extra in their family's food supplies. If this resource is something that would be helpful for you, please let me know so that I can add you onto the list for future backpacks.  

- WKHS Community Cares Closet: The Activity Club also stocks a closet of toiletries and other items that any WKHS family in need can access. There are a wide range of items available for you to take home with you including shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste, soap, feminine hygeine products, lotion, deodorant, shaving cream, and more. The closet is located in the Counseling Center and I am happy to show you where it is so that you can take whatever supplies you need. Please note that if there are specific items you were searching for that might be out of stock when you stop by the community mom's are constantly refilling the closet and if you let me know what item you were hoping to access, I can make sure that they know it is currently out of stock and let you know once it has been added again. Parents, keep in mind that these basic toiletries can also be great for stocking stuffers too.

Community Food Resources:

- Worthington Resource Pantry: www.worthingtonresourcepantry.org   The Worthington Resource Pantry provides families in our community with food and other resources of support.  

-  Dublin Food Pantry: www.dublinfoodpantry.org     If you live in the 43016 zip code you could also utilize the Dublin Food Pantry.

- Smoky Row Food Pantry: https://www.smokyrow.org/pantry

-  Mid-Ohio Food Bank: Please check their website https://mofc.org/ or call 614-277-3663 for information about hours and services.

- Lutheran Social Services Food Pantry: https://smartchoice.life/cgi-bin/landing.cgi?cid=OeGbPq

-  Regular Monthly Meals:

     You may already know this because this resource is available year-round and is featured on the WKHS Counselor website, but several local churches provide meals to anyone in the community needing assistance.  This page highlights where and when these meals are available to families in need. 

I am fully aware that all needs are not just related to food/ toiletries.  

- For Kilbourne Specific clothes and/ or Jeans, we have the Kilbourne Kindness Closet. You can stop by and peruse the options of clothes as they can make a nice gift option during the holidays. These clothes are available in the Counseling Center.

-  Salvation Army:  Food and Toys

     Perhaps you have seen the red kettles that appear each year - these donations are used to help provide food and gifts for families in need.  Information about their Christmas assistance program is available here: https://easternusa.salvationarmy.org/southwest-ohio/central-ohio/cheer/  Specific details about required documentation are available on the Salvation Army's website. If you have questions after reviewing their website, you can contact them at 614-846-1884 ext. 10. 

As always, please stop by and talk to me if you are having problems this holiday season.  If you need food, clothing or just want to talk about some struggles you are having, my door is open for you.

And, on the flip side, if you are looking for opportunities to help someone in our community, please keep the following opportunities in mind:

- Our students will be conducting a "Holiday Compassion Project" campaign where they will be providing gifts for many Worthington elementary school students so you can make donations through and with your kids.  

- A 501(c)3 organization, Worthington Connects, have committed to adopting some Worthington families for the holidays and they are seeking volunteers to help provide for those needs.  

- We are always taking donations of gently used Kilbourne Clothes for the Kilbourne Kindness Closet. Clothing donations can be dropped off to the Counseling Center during regular school hours.

- And finally, the Activity Club helps to provide many opportunities for our families and they are always accepting donations.

Searching for Scholarships Lunch & Learn

Parents of seniors, are you worrying about paying for your son/ daughter's college education? If you answered yes, you're definitely not alone! The Kilbourne Counselors will be hosting the November Lunch & Learn at noon this Friday (November 14th) to talk about searching for scholarships.

We know that the scholarship search process can feel daunting and that some students and families don't even know where to start so our hope is that this short, focused 30 minutes of time together will allow you to get a jump-start on the scholarship search process.

As always, the Lunch & Learn series will be held from 12-12:30 over zoom for interested families to be able to grab their lunch and eat while we talk about that month's topic. The zoom link will be emailed home to parents and posted on the Counselor website on Friday morning.

We look forward to seeing parents online on Friday!

Socratic Society

On Friday morning 26 students were inducted into the Socratic Society. Staff members are given the opportunity to recognize students for excellence in one or more of the core socratic values of Scholarship, Integrity, Personal Effort, Compassion, or Lifelong Learning. Students are only eligible to be selected for this honor one time during their high school career.

Congratulations to all of the following students who were honored: Micah Anderson, Milo Buerk, Sophia Bollentino, Palmer Cavicchia, Drew Deken, Michael Dolciato, Lilliane Drummond, Sydney Emberton, Morgan Hosty, Ximena R Hernandez Vazquez, Benjamin Keyes, Sarah Lundine, Ellie Maetzold, Pierce Malinowski, Lia McGlone, Molly O'Leary, Luke Page, Tate Rich, Charlotte Routh, Dylann Schultheis, Ella Schumacher, Lily Schwartz, Sidney Spampinato, Max Williams, Mia Williams, and Max Ziskin. We are proud of all of you!

**Just a reminder, this post is also being shared on the NEW WKHS Counselor blog. This blog site will no longer be active beyond 2025 so you can transition to receive all blog posts emailed directly to you by subscribing to the new blog site.**

More about PSAT Scores

I posted last night that PSAT scores were released yesterday... and they were, but only for some students. 

Today as I talked to a few other students and then had the chance to log into CollegeBoard to look at the score information I found out that the scores were delayed for a large number of juniors. This is due to the irregularity that happened with the construction noises in our testing location. Based on what I can read online it looks like the scores will most likely come out next Thursday or the following Thursday. So if you logged into your CollegeBoard account and realized that your scores were not there yet, please try again next week. 

Sorry for the confusion!

PSAT Scores

CollegeBoard has released your PSAT scores today.  Your scores are available electronically.  This means that you will log into your CollegeBoard account to view and download your scores.  (Which is what you will do in the future when you take your SAT as well.)  CollegeBoard has a BigFuture mobile app that you can use for accessing your scores or you can use their website.

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.

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 testing section of the counselor website can help give you additional information, tips and links to better understand your scores.   http://www.wkhscounselors.com/

Don't forget, this is just a practice test so it is 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.

Big Changes Coming

I have been writing this blog for a LONG time... as in longer than my current students have been alive! And in these years I have published nearly 4,000 posts. Which is a little bit crazy and definitely a labor of love. But in the last year I have had feedback from quite a few people that they wish I was writing the blog posts for the entire WKHS Counseling Department. And, so, changes are coming...

As of this week I am now posting my blog messages to a new site. The new blog address is wkhscounselors.wordpress.com. I think it will be an easier blog address for students and families to find. And it will have the same easy option to be able to get the posts sent directly to you by clicking the "Subscribe" button.

What does that mean for this blog? It means that it is going to go away. For the rest of 2025, I will post all of my posts to both blog sites. I am going to try to add a reminder to the bottom of this blog's posts to remind people that you will need to switch to the other blog to continue receiving messages in 2026 and beyond... but you can make the change now.

I genuinely appreciate all of you who follow this blog and I am thankful to know that even after all of this time people are still finding it helpful... so I hope you will make the transition with me and follow my posts over on the new blog site.

(FYI - I will not be posting the copy of this message to the new site as I don't want it to be confusing to anyone.)

Pre-ACT Reminders

If you are taking the Pre-ACT tomorrow, you will report directly to the gymnasium when you arrive to school in the morning. You will need to have your student ID with you in order to check in. You will also need a number 2 pencil (no mechanical pencils allowed), a calculator, and I would recommend a watch. 

The test will begin promptly by 8:40 and you will most likely finish testing during 5th period.  (If you have lunch during 3rd or 4th period we will be sure you have time to eat and give you pass to go to 5th period.)

I was very happy to see so many of my students signed up to be taking the practice test for the ACT and I wish you all good luck!  I hope it will be a meaningful practice opportunity for you in preparation for future college admissions tests. Get some sleep tonight and good luck on the Pre-ACT tomorrow!

STARS

First, I hope you all enjoy your day off tomorrow!

Second, for the seniors, it is a good chance to double check to make sure that there are no clean up steps you still need to take for the colleges with the applications you have submitted...

1. Do you need to make an account in their college portal?

2. Do they require a STARS report? There are about 40 colleges that use the STARS (Self-Reported Transcript and Academic Record System) which is a lot like the Common App Courses and Grades system. For the STARS report, you will create an account and report all of your courses and grades with your credits. The big key is to be sure that you are matching your transcript exactly. So pull it up off of Infinite Campus (in the Documents section) and fill it out carefully.

3. Check when their financial aid deadline is and be sure to start working on your FAFSA so that you get it completed before the first college's priority deadline to give yourself the best chance of qualifying for financial aid money.

November 1st

It's November 1st! Yay! I know many seniors are feeling exhausted as the push to this first huge college deadline was a massive sprint for some of you. And now you know why kids from previous classes always emphasize preparing ahead of time and not procrastinating until the last minute as I know a lot of seniors were feeling a LOT of stress this past week.

Here is the one major point I would like to remind you about... after you push submit, it is VERY common for colleges to quickly come back to you with a reminder email saying that they need your transcript.  Why?  Because it is one of the most common steps so many students forget to complete.  (Remember, you must complete a transcript request form for every college where you are applying and you do that from the WKHS Counselor website - www.wkhscounselors.com .)  As long as you have requested your transcript to be sent using that form, then we have sent your transcript.  But, you don't need to take my word for it... and you don't have to email me or contact Mrs. McDaniel, our Registrar... you can check on your own!  Log back into Common App, you will be able to see the exact date when you submitted your materials and when they were downloaded by each individual college.  As you are looking at that information you will also see when they downloaded your School Report - your school report is the form with your transcript.  So, if they have downloaded your school report, then they have your transcript and you don't need to worry!

Congratulations to all of you who have your first wave of applications complete.  Keep focus and keep pushing as you finish out with the rest of your application deadlines!

Future Careers

Trying to decide what you want to be when you grow up can be difficult. It isn’t exactly realistic to think that you as 14 – 18 year old students – would know the precise career that will make you happy and fulfilled in the future. The data on how many careers a person will hold in their lifetime is difficult to track, but statistics on current adults said that, on average, they would have 7 different jobs in their adult working life. The estimates for current high school students is predicting that you will hold 12 - 18 different jobs and likely in a few different career fields. Crazy! But I suspect most of those adults who have had so many different jobs never imagined changing jobs so frequently. And, if they couldn’t predict what job they would want in their careers as adults, then I don't think it is realistic to think that you will know exactly what you want to do when you are still in high school. 

You don’t know about fields that you haven’t been exposed to yet – how could you know if you’d like anthropology or accounting when those are areas you haven’t studied. That is why it is important to take opportunities to be curious, to explore, to learn, to ask questions, to observe and to find out more about anything which interests you. Seek opportunities to shadow, interview career professionals, volunteer, or work a part time job – even if it isn’t in a field even remotely interesting to you because it will still help you to learn workforce skills.

Ultimately, I hope that you see career searching as a fun and exciting opportunity rather than a stressful task to be added to your “to do” list. Remember, every day you are preparing yourself for your future. You are learning and applying skills that will help you for the rest of your life like listening, organization, problem solving, critical thinking, analysis, time management, taking personal responsibility, completing quality work, meeting deadlines, working with others (including those you might not like) and so many more. There is no doubt that you have a bright future ahead and you will be prepared no matter what (or how many) career(s) you have in the future.

Lots of Articles

Keeping up with various news and headlines that matter to students and families takes up a lot of time. And as I read different articles that I think might interest you, I have a running document where I save them. Sometimes I drop those articles into a post on a particular topic, but other times (like this) the articles just pile up until I realize that I have a lot of them. And so here is a list of articles I have come across and saved for you all, but haven't shared with you yet. Skim through the list and if any are of interest to you, check them out! Happy Reading!

What does best university mean anyway?

Glow up your high school resume

How to use AI for finding college scholarships

How AI is changing the college search

What college secretly look for in students

Questions to ask your college tour guide

What teens lose when AI write the college essay

 

Humans and AI Collaborate to Review College Admissions Essays

FYI - In the article above it talks about how Virginia Tech app numbers have grown: Twenty years ago, they had around 17,000 applications, and this past year they received over 57,000. CRAZY!!

Apps for College Search

College application essay ideas: Tips on picking a great topic

Advice to Parents: Let them fail

This is what admissions officers really want to read in college admissions essays

Are college admissions interviews required?

Who you’re really competing against in college admissions

How to make a college list

Choices & Consequences

Choices and consequences are package deals.  Perhaps this is the most obvious post I have ever written, but I'd like to have you pause for a moment and reflect on how your choices impact you every day.  If you make a good choice, most of the time, good things will happen.  If you make a poor choice, then frequently, bad things will happen.

Let me be clear, consequences are not always negative - in fact, they are just as often positive, but I think that the word consequence has a negative connotation and it is what we most often focus on.  Perhaps it would help if I gave a few examples to consider of both negative and positive choices and consequences...

If you do your homework (choice), then you will be prepared for class and prepared for the upcoming assessments (consequence).  On the flip side of that, if you do not do your homework (choice), then you will not be prepared for class and less prepared for the assessments (consequence).  Doing homework is a simple example, but the concept also applies when you think of more complex life issues.  Lying to your parents (choice) will typically lead to restricted privileges and a loss of their trust (consequence).  Volunteering your time with an organization that matters to you (choice) often leads to feeling good about helping others (consequence), but it may also mean that you have to sacrifice time with friends or juggle other responsibilities (also consequences).  Talking to multiple guys at the same time (choice) often creates drama with arguments, betrayal and hurt feelings (consequence).  Yelling at your brother (choice) may result in a strained relationship that includes less trust (consequence).  Clearly, some of the consequences from the choices you make will have an immediate outcome, but often those consequences will be longer term in nature.

No matter what choices you make, it is important to remember that you have the opportunity to make whatever choices you want, but they are directly tied to the consequences you will have as a result of that decision.  When you feel as if you have to hide your decisions, lie about them, or make excuses for your actions or words, then that is probably a sign that your choice is going to have a negative consequence.  If you want a different outcome, then you need to make a different choice!

It is hard when people feel as if they are just a victim of circumstances and don't recognize their role in the decisions they have made and how that is related to the situation they find themselves in today.  Obviously choices are what you do, but you also have choices in what you say, how you manage your emotions, and how you process the things that happen in your life.  I know that this is a learning experience, but I hope you will try to think about your choices and if they are leading you closer to the life you want for yourself or if the consequences are taking you away from what you had envisioned.  It's important to ask yourself - is what you're doing today getting you closer to where you want to be tomorrow?  As always, if you are struggling with your choices and the connected consequences, please don't hesitate to stop and see me so that we can talk about it in more depth.

Merit & Need Based Aid

Paying for College is expensive! There is no question that higher education costs add up quickly.

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. Maye you would qualify for an Italian heritage scholarship. 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 overarching 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 and some which may ask for a CSS Profile. 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!

Senior Reminder

I know that I have blogged about this before. I also sent an email to all of my senior students and parents to make sure you were aware. But please, do not forget... I will be out of town this weekend and will not be at school on Friday. So, if you are a senior who is applying to a college with a November 1st deadline, please be sure that you have invited me on Common App and submitted your transcript request form off the counselor website so that I have time to get all of my parts completed and turned in ahead of your deadline. Also, if you need me to look over any parts of your application, remember that this will also have to happen before the end of the day on Thursday.

I know that this timing isn't ideal with your November 1st deadlines, but I am current on all of the college applications that have been submitted to me already so we can do this! See me if you have any questions/ concerns. Also, every year I get the question about November 1st deadlines - if that is your deadline it means that your application must be turned in by 11:59pm Eastern Time. But I strongly encourage you NOT to procrastinate until the last possible second. Several years ago Common App experienced so much traffic in the final hour of November 1st that it had problems with applications getting submitted successfully... you don't want that to happen to you!

AP Exam Registration

By now, all students enrolled in an AP class should have “joined” the AP course online to be able to access resources from the CollegeBoard throughout the year. You will need your CollegeBoard account information to login and join the AP classes you are taking. (If you have taken the PSAT, SAT, or AP Exams in the past then you already have a CollegeBoard Account.)

If you have a CollegeBoard account, it is important to use that account (and not to create a new one) as your scores from previous CollegeBoard assessments (PSAT, SAT, AP exams) are linked to your account. If you already have established a CollegeBoard account, please visit myap.collegeboard.org and make certain that you can log in. If you have forgotten your password, you may call 1-888-225-5427 or email apstudents@info.collegeboard.org for assistance. 

If you have not already established a CollegeBoard student account, please sign up by going to myap.collegeboard.org. Make sure you write down and save your log-in information for future reference. Remember, when you are setting up your CollegeBoard account, you do NOT want to use your school email account as your wscloud account cannot accept emails from outside of the district.

If you have questions, about establishing your account or linking it to the AP resources, please contact College Board at 1-888-225-5427 or email apstudents@info.collegeboard.org. 

In addition to joining the class through CollegeBoard, students who are planning to take the AP test will need to sign up and pay for the test through the MyPaymentsPlus system. The cost of the test is $100 if students register prior to October 30th. After October 30th there is a $40 late fee up through February 20th. There are no options for ordering tests after the February 20th late registration deadline. Please also note that for students who qualify for free/ reduced lunch, you still need to register through the MyPaymentsPlus system, but it will automatically show your fee as $0 instead of $100.

AP Exams will take place at WKHS from May 4-15, 2026.

Please don't miss the chance to register as a way to help earn free college credit!

Cap & Gown Orders

Seniors, don't forget, the deadline to order your cap and gown at the discounted rate is October 31st.  You will go to Buckeye Scholastic's website in order to place your order.

Buckeye Scholastic has a ton of options that students can select of various specialty items such as announcements and frames.  I have had many students ask me what is REQUIRED to be ordered - that would be the Cap, Gown, Tassel and Stole package.  (No keepsake tassel required.)  So the total cost for that package is $42.95.

If you have a cap and gown that a sibling wore in the last few years that is the right size for you to wear, that is totally fine!  All you need to do is order the package that is the graduation tassel and stole.

It's so wild that it's time to be taking care of all of these official graduation related tasks!

Sports in College

Competing in sports during high school is such a huge part of many student's lives.  The hours of time that you dedicate to practice, the effort you put forth during games, and the friendships you have made through your involvement all combine together to make this one of the more significant areas of these four years.  It can be hard to imagine life without your sport, but the statistics are not encouraging - most high school athletes do not continue on to compete in college at the varsity level. But please don't let that news frustrate you because you can always find a different level of involvement so that athletics can continue to be a part of your life.  For example, most colleges offer a variety of ways that students can meet their athletic goals such as through club and intramural options.

Club sports are often competitive and frequently include tryouts.  They frequently will compete against other colleges and travel in season.  It is less intense of a time commitment than varsity sports at the college level, but still a rigorous athletic commitment.

Intramural sports are more about having fun.  Depending on the college, there may be different levels of intensity available for you to choose from on intramurals or they may have just one level for the sport. In addition to different levels of competitiveness of the teams, they may have some options that will be guys only, girls only, or mixed participation so you will find a lot of different intramural options.  This provides a great way to meet new people and to even have fun doing sports you have never tried before.  I also love that on many campuses there may be fun and creative intramural opportunities such as intertube water polo, quidditch, and broom-ball.

The biggest reminder that I have for you is that if you can't imagine your life without sports, please remember that there are always ways to find opportunities to meet those needs in your life.  If, for some reason, your college doesn't have the sport you love, maybe you will find a new sport to enjoy.  Or you may start to explore what adult leagues may be available that you could join in the community.  For example, if you are a hockey player, you might not be able to find club or intramural hockey at your campus, but there are adult hockey leagues that you could join.  

That leads me to the point that you may be thinking ahead to adjusting to life without sports after college... and so, as I just mentioned you can pursue adult leagues in the community, but if sports are really important to you it is worth considering how you can take those skills and aspects that you love and tie them into your career choices.  For example, if you are a highly competitive person who loves working on a team toward achieving a common goal, then hopefully you will work to find a job that will allow you to work cooperatively towards common goals in a competitive environment.  If you are someone who needs the physical activity to burn off stress or to help you focus, then hopefully you will consider either a job that has physical variety or you will make working out a primary commitment in your daily life.

For now, if you are finding yourself struggling with the idea of your competitive athletic career ending during high school, always feel free to come and talk to me as I know that this is a big adjustment.

OSU Branch Option

Do you have your heart set on attending OSU? But at the same time, are you intimidated by the size or competitiveness of OSU's Columbus campus? That is the case for many of our students which is what makes the Branch Campuses of OSU such a strong appeal. There are several different branch locations, but the 2 that most Kilbourne students tend to select are the Newark and Marion campuses.

From October 1st through December 1st OSU is allowing students to apply directly to a branch campus for free. Please note, this is not for applications to main campus and not through the Common App - it is just for applications directly to the branch campuses. This fee waiver from OSU saves students the $60 application fee which is huge. The code to be able to take advantage of OSU's branch campus application fee waiver is RCW2026.

The Branch campuses are also offering a tuition scholarship option for qualified students as they progress forward with their degree similar to the Buckeye Bridge program for students who start at CSCC.

I know that many of our students will start at a branch campus so if you are interested in that as a path, don't miss out on this application fee waiver opportunity.

Grades

Today was the first day of the 2nd quarter. (Yay!) I know there are a lot of students who have been/ are stressed out about their first quarter grades, but I want to remind you how grades, credits and GPA work.

Students earn credits each semester if their SEMESTER grade is passing. And the SEMESTER grades are the only grades which appear on the transcript and count into a student's cumulative GPA.

What makes up your semester grade? Each semester grade is calculated using the 2 quarter grades and the semester exam grade. Each quarter grade is worth 45% of your semester grade and your exam is worth 10% of your semester grade.

So, if you look at your 1st quarter grades, that equals 45% of your grade for the semester, but you still have 55% of your grade left to earn. Which means hope is never lost even if your grade isn't where you want it to be. However, if your grades aren't where they should or could be, you need to start making changes right away because it becomes more difficult to dig out of the hole with every passing day that you don't do well.  

A lot of students tend to be concerned that the exams could change their grade up or down a letter grade. And while yes, that is technically true, what we found was that most students performed about the same on their exam grade as they did in the classes. So you don't want to count on getting a 100% on your semester exam if you were getting F's all quarter long.

You're essentially at the half-way point for earning the grades that will be on your transcript and calculate into your GPA. Be sure that you are setting yourself up for success. Every day is a day to bring you one step closer to your goals. Try not to focus too much on the ending point and just do what needs to be done today to get you closer to where you want to be in the end.

PSAT ReTest Option

Last week over 200 students took the PSAT. And you all did a great job with navigating the testing environment. However, we know that the construction noise was challenging for some students and that there are some students who feel that the disruptions negatively impacted their ability to show what they know. We never want that to be the case - especially for those juniors who were hoping they would have a shot at advancing forward in the National Merit Scholarship process.

As a result, last week the district sent out an email to all students/ parents of those who had taken the PSAT to offer the option to cancel your previous test and take a retest on Tuesday, October 28th. You have until tomorrow, October 20th at 4:00pm to submit your request to retest using the form sent in the email.

So who/ why should a student consider retesting or not?

- If you felt like the noise was just the normal of what you expect and are used to since you have been navigating construction noise for the last year and a half, you might not have felt like the noise negatively impacted your testing ability and therefore you wouldn't feel the need to retest.

- If you felt like your test went really well and that you performed well, you may not want to retest because there is no guarantee you will feel the same way after the next version of the test. (Yes, they will be different tests.)

- If you were testing to get a feel for what it would be like to focus for that amount of time, to get an idea of the types of questions asked, and to use it as a study tool rather than intently focusing on trying to be in the top 1% of students nationwide (which is who would qualify for the scholarships) then you likely wouldn't want to retest as your first attempt will give you the information you were aiming for from the test experience.

- If you feel like this experience was not your best attempt and you want to have another shot at it, you can definitely do that - aiming for a scholarship or not. Remember, only your retest will be scored and so you can take the opportunity to retest and see how you perform.

Please be sure to submit your request to retest by Monday at 4pm if you want to have the opportunity to take it again. If you have any questions and want to discuss it with me, please just stop and see me.

Long Weekend Ahead

I love long weekends... and I suspect I'm not alone in that. I want to use this time to encourage you to follow the directions.

From the time you were little you probably learned that there are always rules and consequences of not following those rules. Sometimes we don’t have any problem following the rules and sometimes… well, it isn’t always quite so easy to do *exactly* what we are supposed to do.

I can think of countless examples of this in my everyday life and many of them cross over into your life too – be at work/ school on time, don’t use cell phones in the school day, drive the speed limit, etc. Sometimes these are easy and sometimes we may struggle even though the reality is – they really aren’t that difficult to obey.

OK, I am rambling – the basic point is that I’d like to remind you to follow the directions! In everything and in every way – there are consequences of not following directions. This applies to your school work and – for those of you who are seniors – to your college and scholarship applications.

When they ask you to write an essay of 250 words or less – keep your essay to that length. If they ask for a list – give them a list. If they ask a question – answer the question completely. The difference is often in the details! Please pay attention and do what they are asking you– you never want someone to have a reason to eliminate your hard work on a technicality. Remember, in class not following your teacher’s directions might result in a bad grade, but as you get out into the real world the consequences can be much more severe and have a lasting impact.

I recognize that this all seems very obvious, but at some point we all get tired and think, “oh well, this is good enough…” So, remember I’m here if you need me to encourage you to push through and take it that one extra step. And, for the next few days, remember that this is a great time to relax, reset, and refocus on taking care of the details being asked of you.

Request Forms Now!

Seniors, as you are working on your college applications there are forms that you will need to have submitted by the counselors. I need to remind you that you need to submit the forms to me as soon as possible, but at least 1 week ahead of the deadline. 

There are 2 pieces that you will need to submit if you are applying via Common App.

1. The Common Application Counselor Form. This is in the Recommenders and FERPA section of the application. You will fill out the form and invite me. Be sure to spell my name and email address accurately: babbott@wscloud.org

2. The Transcript Request Form. This is found on the Counselor Website. When you go to www.wkhscounselors.com click on the Transcript Request graphic on the Right Side of the page. If you are using a mobile device sometimes it is easier to find the link to the Transcript Request Form in the drop down under College/ Career. You will need to fill out the transcript request form for each of the colleges where you are going to apply so that I have the authorization to send your transcript to each of the colleges where you are applying.

I'd like to point out that I am completely current on processing all of the transcripts for students who have completed those two steps already. So if you think that you have invited me and/ or done the transcript request form and you see that it is not complete when you look at Common App then it means something isn't accurate in it. Please double check that you have used the right address when you invited me on Common App and be sure that you have submitted the transcript request form for each of the colleges.

If you have questions or need help finding the forms, please come see me and I will help you with it. 

I need to emphasize the importance of making sure that you request those forms a week in advance. This is always important to make sure that we get all of the forms processed in a timely manner, but it is even more important this year because November 1st falls on a weekend AND I will be out of town that weekend. So I will make sure that I have processed everything before I leave town, but I will be gone October 31st through November 2nd and so we need to be sure that all the forms are requested so I can complete my part for you on time.

Come See Me!

We have now been in the new Counseling Center space for over a week... and it still doesn't feel like my office yet. Perhaps that is because I was in my old office for so long, but I think part of the reason it doesn't feel like my office yet is because I haven't had as many students coming to visit in the new space yet.

I want you to come visit and see my new office!

I believe it is important that you figure out where I am located now, when you don't actually NEED something, so that later when you really do need something you will know exactly where to go. So during lunch, options, prep, before or after school, if you have 2-3 extra minutes, please come see me! 

Also, Lexi would love to have the extra attention too... and she is also trying to adjust to and learn the new space as well.

PSAT Reminders

Don't forget - tomorrow is the day when many Kilbourne sophomores and juniors will take the PSAT.  

If you are one of the students who will be taking the PSAT, you will report directly to your testing location at your designated testing time.  (For most juniors, that will be the gym in the morning- 8:30 check in for an 8:40 start.  For most sophomores, that will be the gym in the afternoon - 11:45 check in for a 12:00 start.)  You will need to bring your student id with you in order to check in.  One of my most important reminders is do NOT forget your FULLY CHARGED district issued chromebook!  If you haven't already opened and launched BlueBook to make sure that it is updated and working properly, I strongly encourage you to do that tonight before you get to testing tomorrow. 

As with every standardized test, you will not be allowed to have your cell phone or smart watch on you at any time during testing.  With the test being digital, I would still encourage you to bring a calculator if you like using a traditional calculator better than the digital one online, a writing utensil to use with the scratch paper you will be given, and I would recommend a normal watch if you prefer to track timing on your own. 

You will be able to have water and a snack under your table for easy access during breaks, but you cannot eat or drink at all during the test.  As you know, the temperature in the building varies greatly.  So because we don't know what to expect in the gym, I strongly encourage that you dress in layers so that you can add a sweatshirt or take it off depending on how hot or cold you might be during testing.  As with normal school days, you are not allowed to put up a hood during testing - this is a school rule, but more importantly, it is also a testing rule you must follow. Additionally, you are not allowed to wear hats during the test either.

If you haven't already watched this short (less than 3 minute) video about the digital PSAT, I would strongly recommend that you review it.  Knowing ways that you can flag a question, eliminate options, etc will only help you tomorrow when you are testing.

To those of you who will be testing, get a good night's sleep, be sure to eat breakfast and good luck testing tomorrow!

Why THIS College?

Answering college supplemental questions - those questions that are uniquely for each specific college can be an important step for many of the applications, especially for the more competitive schools. One of the common questions you may see will be asking why you are interested in their college in particular.

These types of questions are taking you back to the basics.  Why do you like a particular college?  What is it about the school that made it stand out to you and left you with the impression that this would be a good place for you to spend your collegiate years?

Hopefully, you have an idea about what you'd answer for both of those questions for each school that you are including on your list of schools where you are going to apply.  And, let me clear - you should like something about every college that you are considering and you should feel good about each of the schools if you are applying there!

In addition to those answers mattering for deciding where you are going to apply, your answers to these questions are essential when you are trying to answer college-specific essay questions - especially if they ask you a question related to what you like about their school.  They may phrase it in different ways, but the bottom line is that they are trying to determine why you believe their school is a good fit for you.

Remember, the admissions officers who work for the school already think their school is great and they know about the wonderful opportunities available so you need to take it beyond saying that they have a great location, outstanding professors, a strong academic reputation and wonderful weather.  You need to take it to the next level by identifying specific aspects at the school where you can see yourself contributing to the school and the particular offerings that you plan to take advantage of while you are in college.

Good luck in searching for the right college fit for you and for conveying why it's a good fit in your essays. Also, remember, tomorrow night, Monday, October 13th from 5-6:30 the counselors will be hosting a College Application Completion Workshop in the Commons. If you're not already done with your application, please bring your chromebook/ laptop and let's work on making some solid progress together! And for those of you not planning to attend college following high school, don't forget that you can come to the Counseling Center tomorrow night at 6pm for a Pre-Apprenticeship presentation. Lots of great opportunities tomorrow evening and I hope to see you there!

Early Decision

Seniors are in very different places with regards to their college applications. Some of you have barely given a thought to where all you want to apply (for the record, this worries me, so if you are in that situation, please come talk to me). Others have already received their acceptances and are ready to kick back and enjoy senior year. The vast majority are somewhere in between the two extremes.

While I am always happy to help you in any way possible, there are some decisions that are for you and your family to make. For example, what schools you apply to and when you apply (assuming it is before the deadline) is entirely up to you. The other issue that has been weighing heavily on the minds of some students and their parents is the choice about if they should apply under Early Decision.

Remember, as I explained previously, Early Decision is binding. If you are not 100% sure if you want to go to that school, then the choice about should you apply early decision or not is actually quite easy - no. Because it is a binding decision, you cannot wait and see and take more time to decide, so if you are not completely sure about your desire to attend that school, then applying early decision would not be a wise decision. The other aspect that you and your family must seriously consider is the financial impact that attending the school could involve as you are making a commitment to attend the school and that you will withdraw your applications at all of your other schools. This means you will not be able to compare financial aid packages to see which school will provide the best offer. 

Some of you may be wondering what the advantage is to applying Early Decision. Aside from getting your admissions decision earlier, there is a definite advantage at some schools where applying as an early decision student increases your potential to be accepted at the school. This is, in part, due to the fact that it eliminates the concern from the college's side of if you will choose to actually come to their college in the future or not.  The data on how many of their accepted students actually end up coming and attending their college in the future is one of the factors that impacts college rankings and therefore it is an important predictor for colleges. 

Remember, if you plan on applying early decision, I need to know ahead of time because there is a form I must sign off on indicating that I have talked to you and your parents to confirm that I have reviewed with you the binding nature of applying early decision.

Planning for College Night

Save the date!  Next week, on Wednesday, October 15th, the WKHS Counseling department will be hosting a virtual Student and Parent College Planning Information Night. This is one of the most valuable nights we provide and students and parents who attended this meeting in the past have expressed how much this helped them get started with the college search process and understand more about what to expect in the coming year and a half. Topics that will be covered during the presentation include searching for colleges, exploring careers, ACT/ SAT and testing plans, making college visits, how colleges evaluate applicants, what you can be doing now to prepare for college applications and so much more. The meeting is primarily targeted at juniors, but sophomores and freshmen are welcome to attend if interested. The meeting is at 7:00pm and the zoom link will be posted on the counselor website the morning of the event. 

I hope you will plan to attend! And yes, I want your parents to watch this meeting with you and no, I don't want you to just make your parents watch instead... this is YOUR future and you are responsible for deciding what direction you will take.

DACC

Today during PACK period the sophomores had a chance to learn more about the Delaware Area Career Center (DACC) and tomorrow during your lunch periods representatives from DACC will be available in the Commons to help answer questions about their opportunities.

Remember, attending DACC is a great opportunity to earn your elective credits in an area that interests you rather than taking electives you are selecting simply because they will fill up your schedule.  

With over 25 different programs offered, there are many unique experiences and opportunities available that can give you a jump start on a career and can also stand out to colleges. If you are interested in participating in the field trip to the DACC, please be sure to return your permission slip to the counseling center and complete the DACC interest form no later than next Thursday, October 16th.  The field trip is scheduled for Friday, November 21st.

One thing to realize about the Career Center is that they partner with 15 different districts from across Central Ohio.  So by attending the Career Center you have the chance to meet new people who have similar interests.  Each student is still involved in the activities in their home school such as sports and clubs, but this just extends that network of friends and contacts.  I will also point out that while it is a huge advantage to have that many different schools all working with the career center, it also means that the 25 spots available in each program (except Digital Design which has 50 spots available) are going to be competitive to apply and get a seat.  As a result, if this program interests you, I encourage you to make your visit in November so that you can apply right away after the field trip.

Pre-Apprenticeship Opportunities

Are you someone who isn't actually sold on the idea of college being your next direct step after high school graduation?  There are a lot of students who don't love school and can't imagine going directly on to college, but don't always know the options that are available in our community that isn't a direct to college pathway.  We want to help make sure students and parents know of the range of opportunities available through Worthington Schools.

To help start sharing that information with students and families, next Monday, October 13th at 6pm in the new Counseling & Administrative Center we will host a Pre-Apprenticeship Night.  

The Pre-Apprenticeship Night will allow families to learn about, hear directly from, and meet the staff at the Pre-Apprenticeship locations which Worthington Schools have a partnership with for students to be able to work and earn credit at the same time.  These locations include: Worthington Enterprises, Worthington Steel, Independent Electrical Contractors, and Performance Columbus Drive Direct.

Current seniors can explore the options from Worthington Enterprises, Worthington Steel, and Independent Electrical Contractors for the 2nd semester of THIS year! (They are semester only programs.)

Performance Columbus' Drive Direct Pre-Apprenticeship program is a full-year long program and so current Juniors who are interested should attend to learn about this program for next fall.  (Applications and interviews will be held in the 2nd semester of this year.)

We are excited and grateful for these partnership experiences that are available to our students.  If you have ever thought about something like a pre-apprenticeship or, maybe you haven't but are curious to try to see if it might be a fit, I strongly encourage you (and your parents) to come and check out the presentation next Monday night.  I look forward to seeing you there!

Parent/ Teacher Conferences

Parents, if you are interested in arranging to meet with one of your son or daughter’s teachers during conferences, the online system opened today for you to register for a meeting slot.  Conferences will be scheduled as people sign up for them, so if you want to make sure you have times that work well for you, I strongly encourage you to register right away.  

Conferences will be held on Monday, October 13th from 4:00 - 7:30pm and on Wednesday, October 15th from 5:00 - 8:40pm.  Each conference will be scheduled in 15 minute time blocks.  Conferences allow parents the chance to learn about your student’s classroom performance from the teachers, it allows the opportunity for you to ask questions and they provide an opportunity to build a dialogue with the teachers regarding any thoughts and concerns you might have.  

Please follow the steps below to register for a parent/ teacher conference:

- Follow this link to take you to the conference scheduler:  http://ptcfast.com/schools/Worthington_Kilbourne_High_School 

-  Click on the teacher you would like to meet with for a conference.

-  Sign up by entering your child's last name, first name, your name and your e-mail address and then click Submit.

-  The next screen will direct you to check your e-mail inbox for a message with the subject "Select Date/ Team for Teacher Conference Now."

-  Open the e-mail and click on the link to select a conference time.  If you do not receive an e-mail, please check your junk/ spam folder.  Please note, you MUST follow the link in the e-mail in order to complete the sign-up process.

-  The link will take you to a Time Picker.  Available time slots will appear on this page.  If there are no available appointments that suit your schedule, please e-mail the teacher directly to set up an alternate meeting time.

-  After submitting your time slot, you will be prompted to finish, schedule another appointment for the same student or register another student.  Once you have completed your reservations, you will receive an e-mail confirming the date and time of your conferences and a link by which you can make changes to your date or time if you need to do so.

If you have any problems using the online conference registration system, please contact Sharon DeSantis at WKHS.  She can be reached by e-mail at sdesantis@wscloud.org or by phone at 614-450-6400.

Common App Completion Workshop

It may seem scary how fast time flies and that college application deadlines are rapidly approaching.  I don't want you to be haunted by your applications!  Even though it may be getting dark outside, on Monday, October 13th, from 5:00 - 6:30pm, the counselors will be at school to assist you.  The most important trick is to bring your information with you.  Sometimes the essays may seem spooky and common app can be ghastly, but do not be afraid - the counselors are here to help!  No costumes are required, but we will have some treats.  You don't want to boo hoo because you miss it.  :-)

Students are in very different places in their application process.  A few of you still haven't started and so this will be a great opportunity for you to get started with your applications with our support and assistance.  Most of you have started, but are struggling to get finished and so if you need help finalizing your essays or just finding the time to be able to work through your application and have components checked, this is the perfect opportunity to complete your applications.

While I understand that coming back to school or not leaving after practice isn't very appealing, the reality is that it will make a difference.  By spending an hour and a half on focused application work, I am confident you will find the progress you make on your applications worth the sacrifice.  So, unless you have finished 100% of your applications, I hope you will join me and the rest of the counselors on Monday the 13th to work on finishing them!