Mock Car Crash

On Monday morning the juniors and seniors had the opportunity to watch a mock car crash. This example of a serious car accident and the way that the police and fire departments respond was intended to help remind students of the importance of making good decisions and staying safe. Since standing there and watching the events of the day play out, I haven't been able to get it out of my mind. (Obviously the point of the entire assembly.) For me, this was seeing one of my biggest nightmares played out in person. I care about each of my students and I would never want anything bad to happen to any of you or your friends.

It is important to make safe decisions and to not drink and drive or drive with anyone who has been drinking. Unfortunately, even if you aren't doing anything wrong and someone else who has made the decision to drink and drive it is still possible that you can be an innocent victim. Selfishly, I hope that none of you will have to face the senseless tragedy that we saw in the demonstration. Thank you to Kat Elkins, Jessica Black, and Liz Bates - three of "my" students who participated in the Mock Car Crash.

As we approach prom weekend - and, for that matter, every day - please remember to stay safe and help keep your friends safe!

Senioritis

Senioritis - it's a term I hear often around my office and while I understand that it can be a challenge to continue motivating yourself to finish your high school career strong, it is important!

With Seniors only having 4 Mondays of high school left, the appeal of letting everything slide to just enjoy the remaining time seems to be very strong. I even have younger students who are claiming to have “senioritis” early and this is definitely not a good thing.

Third quarter grades were rough (to say the least). This is particularly a concern for seniors as it can jeopardize graduation (a very real fear for many) and it can also jeopardize your college future. For example, remember, that the colleges reserve the right to revoke your acceptance if the grades you are earning are not on pace with what they expected at the time of your application. They can also place you on academic probation and take back scholarship offers. Obviously, these would not be good scenarios, but it does happen. In fact, in 2008, 21% of all colleges revoked offers of admission. (65% were because of final grades, 35% were due to disciplinary issues, and 29% were revoked because of falsification of application information) Even OSU has requested students whose grades dropped off in the 2nd semester to provide written documentation about why there was a change.

So, while the improved weather, senior tag, and "fun" days like Arts in Action and the upcoming field trip to Cedar Point may make it hard to focus on the day to day responsibilities of meeting your classroom expectations it is very important!

Here are some articles that shed light on the problem of Senioritis and some suggestions for pushing through it.

Senior Slump: A cautionary tale

Beware of Senioritis (and Junioritis too)

Spring Fever: Staying Focused Now that it’s Sunny

Senior Survey

Seniors, please, take a few minutes to log into PrepHQ and complete your Senior Survey! The link to the survey is located in PrepHQ beneath the "My Organizer" section and is titled "Surveys." You heard about the survey in the Senior Newsletter and during the last class meeting and you will have the chance to complete it online on Wednesday during homeroom, but I think it is easier to complete it when you have all of your scholarship and grant information in front of you. Completed surveys must be submitted by April 30th! (This Friday!)

The information collected about colleges and scholarships will be used when putting together the information for Senior Recognition Night and when they are creating the graduation program so it is very important that the information is accurate! (For example, a few years ago one of my students had listed his scholarship by the wrong name and his parents were upset that it was listed wrong for the ceremonies, so please double check to give the correct details.) If you do not complete the survey we will not have anything to list in the commencement program, so please take a few minutes and complete the survey!

If you want to wait and complete the survey during the day on Wednesday, please be sure that you bring a list summarizing all of your scholarships and grants so that you have the complete and accurate information needed for the survey!

If you cannot remember your PrepHQ password, come and see me and I can let you reset it. As always, if you have any questions about your survey, stop in and see me.

Waiting Lists

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

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

You're on the Waiting List. Now What?

For students, a waiting list is scant hope

The Waitlist Scam

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

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

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

School News Updates

Congratulations to Chad Ellwood who was elected to be the Student Body President for next school year! I am proud of you!

I have been reviewing the third quarter grades and to say that they are disappointing is an understatement. Please, be sure that you work hard during the final quarter to bring your grades up before the semester ends.

And finally, I wanted to give you a heads up that I will be out of the building tomorrow (Thursday), but will return on Friday. I hope you have a good day tomorrow!

Multicultural College Fair

Oh my goodness... I missed 3 days in a row without posting! I have to admit that I have been completely exhausted and this has somehow just been pushed to the back burner. Hopefully you'll forgive me! :-)

Don't forget that tomorrow you have a late start day and don't begin classes until 9:10am. (I am jealous that you get to sleep in tomorrow!)

Tomorrow evening, April 21st, is also the 2010 Multicultural College Fair. The event will be held at the Vineyard Community Center, 6000 Cooper Rd. in Westerville from 7 – 8:30 pm.

This college fair is free and will provide a format for exchanging and disseminating information to families with students exploring plans for after high school. It will highlight information about what colleges have to offer minority and international students including scholarships, financial aid, and special recruitment programs.

Seven suburban school districts are sponsoring the event – Dublin, Gahanna, Hilliard, New Albany, Reynoldsburg, Westerville and Worthington.

Thank You Notes

I have recently been reminded of the power that a simple thank you holds. When you think about it, a thank you note is a simple enough idea - let someone else know that you appreciate them. I don't know about you, but a lot of times I am terrible at writing thank you notes. (In fact, I have a list of them that I need to write this weekend.) It doesn't mean that my gratitude is any less, but... and that is where everything falls apart. If I don't express my gratitude to the person who has been a positive influence in my life or who has done something nice for me or gone out of their way to help me, then how do they know how much I appreciate it? See the problem?

And I am pretty confident that many of you face the same problem. So, I want to remind you of the importance of thank you notes. They do not have to be long or flowery - simply thank the person who has helped you. This is especially important for teachers who have written recommendation letters for you. Many people do not realize the time and effort it takes to write a good recommendation letter. If you didn't thank your teachers at the time they wrote your recommendation letters, perhaps now - as you finish your high school journey - is the perfect time! Thank them for their help and support in your college application process. Let them know where you ended up being offered admission and where you have decided to attend and make sure that they know how much you appreciate their help along the way. It won't take you a long time, but it will certainly mean a lot to them.

Before I close this post, I want to be very clear - I am NOT talking about writing to me! I do NOT need nor am I in any way hinting, asking for, or needing you to write a thank you note to me! I just figured we could all use a reminder in the importance of writing thank you notes and expressing our gratitude for those around us. Have a great weekend!

Report Cards

Report cards for the 3rd grading period will be distributed tomorrow (Thursday) during a walk-through homeroom which will be between 2nd and 3rd periods. You should already know what to expect on your reportcard, but I want to remind you that you have 9 weeks left plus exams. Most classes function on a 40/40/20 principle which means that 40% of your grade is now finished, but you still have 60% remaining. (40% in 4th quarter and 20% on the exam) Every point matters - so please do your best to finish the school year strong.

Diploma Presenters

A reminder to all seniors - if you plan on asking someone to present you with your diploma at graduation - the deadline for submitting your presenter request form to the co-curricular office is this Friday, April 16th. I love the fact that you all have this opportunity as a way to make graduation an even more memorable experience. If you do not select someone to give you your diploma, an administrator from WKHS or central office or a school board member will present your diploma to you.

Also, don't forget that tomorrow we will be on a 3A/ 3B Assembly schedule. Seniors will be in the gym for a presentation about staying safe at college as well as being able to pick up the caps and gowns you ordered. Everyone else will be in the auditorium to hear the debates of the students running for Student Body President and Student Body Vice President.

April Students of the Month

I promise now that we are back at school I will return to blogging more routinely again. It was great seeing so many of you today - I would love to see the rest of you in the days ahead and hear about your spring break adventures. Seniors, you have 37 days of school left. The rest of you have 41 days remaining (including your exams). It will go by fast!

Just before we started spring break, 16 students were recognized as April Students of the Month. As you are probably aware, students can only be nominated for this recognition once throughout their entire high school career.

A special congratulations to "my" three students who were among those recognized as students of the month! I am proud of you! Pictured left to right: Zac Eanes, Gina Badillo, and Miranda Defourney

Local Scholarships

Any big plans for your last day of spring break? For the current seniors, my recommendation is to spend at least part of your day finishing up your applications for the local scholarships.

Deadline for the local scholarships is the end of the school day on Tuesday, April 13th. Be sure to review your applications and make sure that you have all of the required pieces ready to be turned in by Tuesday. Hopefully if you needed recommendation letters for your applications you have already requested those as it will be difficult (if not impossible) for teachers to write letters in one night for you.

While, like most of you, I'm not really ready to start getting up early in the morning again, I am looking forward to seeing all of you and hearing about your spring break adventures. Be sure to stop by and give me an update on Monday!

Sad Days

Sad days - and no, not just because spring break is coming to a close although I am sure that has plenty of you singing the blues, but for me the last few days have been sad ones because of the death of someone I had been lucky enough to know. Jonah Hoser was 13 years old and had received a heart transplant nine years ago. He was re-listed for a new transplant two weeks ago, unfortunately, that second transplant did not happen in time and he passed away on Wednesday night. He was a special little boy with an incredibly loving family. My heart breaks for his parents and his sisters. Definitely an important reminder of living each day to the fullest and never having regrets. The Columbus Dispatch ran a story on him today.

Since I have been slacking on providing useful updates this spring break, I also thought you might want some more college posts to catch up on. The Choice blog from the New York Times has a few more updates from their series from high school students across the country and their feelings as admissions decisions arrived.

Sixth in the Class, Straight A's, Immediate Future Unsure

A Sheaf of Rejections, but still 'Fabulous'

An Agonizing Wait Yields Tough, but Enviable Choices

The Return Address on the Envelope was N.Y.U.

Four Doors Close, but Another Opens Wider

Leave New York? Maybe Not

A Winning Streak Ends

Enjoy your last few days of being able to sleep in! :-)

Cut Them Free!

For a while now I have been reminding students individually that as they start narrowing down their college choices that it is important to cut the other schools free. I realized that I had not mentioned this for everyone to hear... so I want to remind all seniors that as you begin identifying which college or the few colleges that are still in the running that it is important for you to notify the other colleges that you do not intend to attend their school beginning next year. Please wait to tell the schools that you will not be attending until you are completely sure that you are no longer considering them. However, I realize that many of you have narrowed your choice to a smaller group of colleges and you have completely eliminated others from consideration. Those which have been completely eliminated are the colleges I am recommending you notify as soon as possible. This is important because it allows the college to plan for their upcoming student body and to know if they have room to accept other students off of their wait-lists. Think about your classmates who might be on the waiting list for a school and they want to hear back from the schools as quickly as possible and there are other students across the country in the same situation. Colleges can't begin opening up additional slots until they know which students will or will not be attending. 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.

Happy Easter!

Are you enjoying the start of your Spring Break? I hope so. Hopefully you understand that I will not be updating as often during the break.

I am enjoying the long weekend with my sister and her family in Kentucky. We have had a great time. The kids were not really interested in posing to have their pictures taken... I tried though. We did enjoy looking back at pictures from their first Easter's and I thought you might also enjoy seeing the pictures that made us all smile today.

The picture above is Carly in 2003. The picture below is Cole in 2006.