CSCC App Day

Are you planning on attending Columbus State Community College next year after you graduate? This is a great option for a lot of students because it allows students to transition from the high school to college expectations in typically smaller classes and for a fraction of the cost. 

Students attending CSCC have much later deadlines for admission and so it can be easy to procrastinate on completing the application.  This Friday, in Room 151 (right across from the main gym/ snack bar area), we will be hosting an admissions representative from Columbus State Community College for an Application Day.  Seniors, if you have not already applied to CSCC and want to have it as an option for you in the future, please take advange of this application day!  Students can come during lunch periods and should bring their Social Security Number so that your entire application can be completed on the spot.  

For students who are already technically CSCC students because of participating in College Credit Plus, you don't have to submit an application to attend full time next year, but there are steps that need to be completed and the admissions rep will be able to assist you with completing those requirements as well.

Even if you're not sure you're ready to go to CSCC right away or if you are still holding it as an option for financial reasons as you try to make your decision about college, you can also come and participate in the Columbus State Community College Application Day.  

Feel free to stop and see me if you have any questions.

National College Decision Day

Seniors, by now you are hopefully well aware of the fact that May 1st is national college decision day. This means that you have 2 weeks left with which to make your final college decision. 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 days 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.

Senior Survivors Panel

Juniors, just a quick reminder that tomorrow morning (Thursday, April 17th) we will have a panel of "Senior Survivors" to share as a part of the Junior Seminar. The seniors will share their insights, perspectives, and feedback on what worked well for them related to college applications and senior year as well as their struggles and challenges and what lessons they learned the hard way. I believe it is always so helpful to learn from your peers especially when it comes to college applications with how rapidly changing the college applications are from even just a few years ago. I hope that you will join us tomorrow morning in Room 201 from 8:15-8:35am for this presentation.

Every Point Matters

As we rapidly approach the end of the year (20 more school days for seniors and 23 days before exams for everyone else) it is important to remember that every point matters! In each of your classes you have opportunities on a regular basis to complete in-class work, follow through on homework, engage in projects, take quizzes and tests and with each of these activities there is the chance to earn points towards the grade in the class. 

It is always interesting to me when I am talking to students about how much of a difference a few points can make between passing and failing or between a B+ and an A-. For some students, it is a struggle to get all of your work done. I get that. Some days life gets in the way and it can be hard, but even if you're turning in a partially completed assignment, it is better to get a 50% on the assignment for work that you did complete than taking a 0% by just not turning it in at all.

If you are struggling in the class and in jeopardy of not passing, it is essential that you maximize the small assignments that might be "easier" to complete 5 or 10 point assignments so that your entire grade doesn't hang in the balance of your semester exam or a large quarter test. You have far more control over how you will complete and earn points on the daily in-class and at-home assignments than you do on the tests and quizzes because you can use your notes, textbooks, and the support from your teacher and the academic assistants to be able to complete these activities while your tests and quizzes depend solely on the information you have in your head about the material. So please, try to make sure that you are taking full advantage of EVERY point opportunity and submit all work, even if it is only partially completed to give yourself the best chance of academic success in your classes.

April Students of the Month

Earlier this month we had the ceremony to recognize the April Students of the Month. Students are nominated for this recognition by Kilbourne faculty and staff for their academic achievement, good citizenship, and/or contributions to the school or community. Students can only earn this award once in their high school career.

5 of "my" students were among those recognized this month. A huge congratulations to (L to R): Crystal Acheampong, Jack Bottari and Mehmet Can. Not pictured: Jaline Asongafac and Caroline Campbell. I am proud of each of you for the contributions and impact you have at WKHS. Congratulations on being named Students of the Month!

SAT Scores

Juniors, your SAT scores from the March 11th testing day have been released. Hopefully you have already received an email directly from CollegeBoard to share this news. But you can now log into your CollegeBoard account to see your scores. 

I do also have access to your scores, but I can just see the number whereas when you go into your CollegeBoard account it will give you a greater breakdown of how you did to help you determine where you might want to focus for future testing opportunities.

Remember, statistically speaking, students who repeat the tests perform better on them. So if you're not thrilled with your scores, you may want to go ahead and sign up now for an upcoming ACT or SAT test date. We saw issues last year where students had to drive to areas pretty far outside of central Ohio in order to be able to get a testing seat because they waited too long in order to register to test. We have been hearing some reports from other students that this is happening already again this year. So if you want to take a spring or summer ACT or SAT, I strongly encourage you to register for the test as soon as possible.

Cut Them Free

This is always such a fun and exciting time to see the news as seniors announce their decisions on where they will be attending college in the future. Seniors, remember that once you start narrowing down your college choices it is important to cut your other schools free. As you begin identifying which college or the few colleges that are still in the running, it is important for you to notify the other colleges that you do NOT intend to attend their school beginning next year. 

Please be sure to wait to notify 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 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 now. 

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.

Common App Essays

The Common Application has announced that their essay question prompts for next year will remain the same.  In case you don't know, Common Application is an application website that many colleges use allowing students to fill out one application that can then be submitted to various colleges and is one of the primary methods that students will utilize when applying to college. 

Juniors, you can 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 best allows you to tell the story of who you are and will 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 obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback or failure.  How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?

3. Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea.  What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?

4. Reflect on something that someone has done for you that made you happy or thankful in a surprising way.  How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?

5. Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and new understanding of yourself or others.

6.  Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time.  Why does it captivate you?  What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?

7.  Share an essay on any topic of your choice.  It can be one you've already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

Also, don't forget that tomorrow morning (April 10th) we will host our Essay Brainstorming Workshop in Room 201 at 10am to help you prepare for writing your essays. I hope to see you in the morning!

Online Summer School

Every year we get questions about taking online courses or classes in other districts during the summers and as long as it is an accredited school this is completely fine.  So, for example, if your parents are divorced and you go to spend the summer with a parent who lives in another state you can take your summer school class at the school near your other parent and then transfer the credit back to us.  Or for those students who plan on traveling a great deal over the summer, taking an online course might be more in line with your needs.  Again, in Worthington we try to be very flexible in helping all students meet their academic goals so, as long as the school you are taking classes from is an accredited school, we will transfer those credits to Worthington.

Students and parents often ask me which online schools they can use and again, if it is accredited it is fine.  The school we have had the most students utilize in the past has been TRECA due to the cost effectiveness of their credits.  But again, that can change from year to year and so I encourage you to search for the schools and programs that will best meet your individual needs.  I do know that TRECA summer school registration has now opened for the year, so if you were planning to take a TRECA summer school class, please be sure to get signed up for that soon.  Their website is: https://treca.org/programs/summer-school 

Columbus State Visit Day

Columbus State Community College is the most attended college that Kilbourne seniors transition to after high school. They are hosting a campus visit day for juniors and seniors this Friday, April 11th from 8:30am-12:00pm.  During this event you will have the chance to:

• Discover what it's like to attend Columbus State.
• Learn about transfer options to our four-year university partners.
• Hear about our expansive student services and learn what it's like to be a part of our college community.
• Consider a two-year fast track to a well-paying, in-demand career.
• Identify next steps to enrolling at Columbus State.

Here is the link you will use to register for the event if you are interested.

This week's schedule

We have a busy, unique week ahead.  Sophomores are going to be testing all week.  Freshmen and juniors will likely have some days of testing and some days of sleeping in and seniors get to enjoy the mornings off for the week.

Ohio State End of Course Tests:

This week we will have late starts for the Ohio State required End of Course tests.  We will be on a modified bell schedule where you have classes from 12:25-3:20.  On Monday, Wednesday and Friday you will go to your 1st through 4th period classes.  On Tuesday and Thursday you will go to 5th through 8th period classes.

On Monday and Tuesday, students will take the English 2 End of Course test which contains 2 parts.  Part 1 will be completed on Monday and Part 2 will be taken on Tuesday.

On Wednesday, students will take the Biology End of Course test.

On Thursday, students will take the US History or the Math tests.

On Friday, students will take both sections of the Math 1 or the Math 2 End of Course tests.

Here is a link to find the bell schedule for the week.  Good luck to everyone who will be testing!  And please, remember to bring your fully charged chromebook with you to school for testing!

If you are not testing, remember that buses will run 90 minutes later than normal. You will have some down time before lunch and then lunch will be offered from 11:30-12:20 for all students.

College Essay Workshop:

On Thursday, we will be hosting the essay brainstorming workshop from 10-11:30am in Room 201 for juniors who are planning to apply to a 4-year college in the future.  Please be sure to sign up if you plan to attend.  The link has been included on the email that was sent to you and it is also on the Counselor Website and you can sign up there - www.wkhscounselors.com. I hope to see all juniors for this workshop!

Teacher Rec Letters

Juniors, remember when we talked in our junior meetings about the fact that I'd remind you when it was time to start asking teachers about possibly writing a recommendation letter on your behalf?  Now is the time.  :-) And we have a Junior Seminar Presentation tomorrow morning (Thursday, April 3rd from 8:15-8:35am in Room 201) to address Rec Letters specifically.

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 State University, OU, 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 please do not waste your teacher's time by requesting letters that won't be needed or used!

If you are applying to schools that require 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. 

And yes juniors, this is also a reminder that you need to be working now toward finalizing a list of where you plan on applying to college. (And we will have a junior seminar presentation on May 1st to talk more about finalizing those college lists too.)

Caps & Gowns

The reality of high school coming to a close for seniors often starts to set in when caps and gowns are distributed and for the Class of 2025, that started today and will continue tomorrow during lunch periods.  I always love seeing the looks in my seniors eyes when they walk away from the tables carrying their cap and gown package.  This is such an exciting time in your lives and you have worked hard over the last 13 years to get to this point.  Don't forget to keep pushing academically, but also know that it's ok to pause as you pick up your cap and gown and realize that this is part of what your efforts have been for - to reach this milestone in your life!  I'm proud of you and excited for you.  

Also, one other hint from years of seeing seniors pick up their caps and gowns - when you get home, take the gown out of the bag and hang it up!  There will be TONS of creases in your gown and you'll still have to iron/ steam it to try to get them all out, but giving gravity a chance to help is always a plus as well.