Be Like a Goldfish

Happy Halloween!

Did you like the staff's attempt to celebrate by being a part of the "Ted Lasso" Team?

I know that some of you have watched the show and others have not.  There are a lot of meaningful themes and messages throughout the show.  One of my favorites is "Be like a goldfish."  The message behind this recommendation is that the goldfish has a short memory and so it doesn't dwell on past mistakes or things that have already happened.  Instead, the goldfish remains in the present moment.  Ultimately, the reminder is that the ability to let the past go and remain in this moment is a key towards happiness.  If you want to check out the clip from the show about being a goldfish you can see it here.

There are lots of other messages that are particularly poignant.  If you saw Lexi today, she was wearing a Ted Lasso shirt with the message "Believe" and I love that message too... because if you do believe in yourself and you believe in each other than nothing can stop you.  If you want to check out that clip from the show you can see it here.

I hope you will always focus on the moment and believe in yourself!

Ohio Means Jobs K-12

The Ohio Means Jobs website features a student section to engage students in grades Kindergarten through 12^th grade to start thinking about their careers.  It is an addition to the OCIS website that some of you may have already used in middle school or previously in high school to complete career interest inventories and other explanation.

If you go to the Ohio Means Jobs website you can take a guided tour on the site.  I encourage you to create an account so that you can save your information and refer back to it in one place in the future.  For example, if you complete career interest inventories or other assessments, the information is all saved in your “backpack” on the site.  All of your information on the site is saved for you so if you started using the site when you were in elementary or middle school it will still be there for you to access and reference when you are in high school.

There are cool features on the site including the opportunity to create a budget including rent or house payment, grocery costs and utilities.  The site also helps you know if the job areas you have indicated that you are considering will be adequate enough to meet your budget.

It is a fun site to get on and explore and can help spark areas that might interest you in your career exploration.

Plan Ahead

Wednesday is November 1st - a big deadline for many of our seniors who are applying early action or early decision to colleges.  In the past, it has often been a date of stress as seniors are suddenly realizing they didn't do a step in their application or are concerned about finishing up some particular aspect (like the essays) for their application before they hit submit.

Hopefully all of my current seniors have already touched base with me if you are applying with a November 1st deadline, but if not, I need to make sure you all know that I will NOT be in the building on Wednesday!  There is a financial aid update meeting that I need to attend in preparation for the upcoming FAFSA changes and that will have me out of school all day on November 1st.  (Bad timing, I know...)

I will still be trying to stay responsive to emails throughout the day as much as I can while also being present and also focusing on the important information updates so that I will later be able to help you understand the FAFSA.

If you are working on your applications and have any questions, I strongly encourage you to stop and see me on Monday or Tuesday so that we can make sure you feel confident before Wednesday's application submission deadline.

Grades

We are into the first week of the 2nd quarter and, as of today, your 1st quarter grades are now finalized and posted in Infinite Campus for you and your parents to see.

I know there are many students who are stressed out about their 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 not 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.  

When we had exams previously a lot of students would be concerned that the exam 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 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.

Don't forget to log into Infinite Campus to see where your grades are currently so that you have a road map to success for yourself and the remainder of the semester.

AP Exam Registration

CollegeBoard is in charge of AP Tests and they have fall deadlines related to the tests so you need to be sure you understand all of this so that you don't miss out on a key step related to the class and testing.

By now, all students should have “joined” the AP course online at the beginning of the year 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.

Once again this year students will register for the AP Tests in the fall rather than in the spring.  Below is information about the costs for registering for the AP exams and the deadlines for registering.

Exam Fees:

    Regular exam fee - $100 if ordered by November 3

        Students who are on the Free/ Reduced lunch program with the district are able to test for free, but you still must go through the full registration process.  Your My Payments Plus account should automatically show you are registering for a fee of $0.

·         Late exam fee $140 ($100 exam fee + $40 late fee)

o   Exams ordered between November 4 and February 23

November 3 – Regular Deadline

·         Last day to order exams at regular exam fee ($100)

·         Register for AP exams through My Payments Plus account

·         After November 3, all changes to exam status must go through Worthington Gifted Services Office

February 23 – Final Deadline

·         Last day to order exams with $40 late fee ($100 exam fee + $40 late fee = $140)

·         Last day to make changes to exam status

Questions? Contact Kyle Sarver or Suzanne Palmer in the Gifted Services Office, 614-450-6056/ ksarver@wscloud.org or 614-450-6055/ spalmer@wscloud.org.

OSU Branch Campus

Have you considered attending an OSU branch campus in the future?  It is a great opportunity for students to have the benefits of being an OSU student right after high school with a better price tag and smaller class sizes.  One challenge of the branch campuses is that housing is limited so most students will commute to the branch or live in apartments in the surrouding area.  

As I mentioned, by attending a branch of OSU you are already a Buckeye.  If you want to transition to main campus after a year of full time classes, you can do that with grades of a C or better - no application needed.  (It is simply a form to change which campus you will be taking your classes.)

If you know that you are not going to be a strong enough candidate for direct admission onto the Columbus Campus, applying directly to the branch can be a beneficial option for many reasons.

1. You don't have to write the essay.

2. OSU has their own direct branch admissions application on their website.

3. There are scholarships set aside specificially for students who apply directly to the branch campus and attend there.

4. If you apply before December 15th, the application fee is waived.

The two closest branch campuses to WKHS are OSU Newark and OSU Marion.  If you haven't already investigated them as options for your future, now is a great time to look into the opportunities on both of those campus locations.

College Admissions Interview

Some colleges require all prospective students to participate in an interview with an admissions counselor or an alumni representative as a component of the application process.  Other colleges may have optional interviews offered to prospective students. If you are applying to a school which requires (or offers an optional) interview – don’t panic!

It is important to relax and be yourself. This is your opportunity to shine. Display your personality and allow your interests and passions to be expressed.

In addition to answering their questions, don’t be afraid to ask any questions you have about the school. Be sure to complete some research ahead of time so that you are not asking questions you easily could have found by visiting their website.  We have some ideas about questions you can use to help prepare yourself for the interview and to consider asking posted on the Counselor website.

If there is anything about yourself that you want to be sure that the admissions representatives understand – unique circumstances, experiences, or special traits that they might not ask about don’t hesitate to offer up this information. This is your one opportunity to actually discuss these areas with a real person. By bringing up these topics, it may spur them to ask additional questions that you will be able to answer.

And, hopefully it goes without saying, but remember that first impressions are important – so be polite, smile, dress appropriately and arrive on time for your interview!