Spring Break is over...

Can you believe we have reached the end of Spring Break?  It felt like it went fast, but I am looking forward to hearing about your breaks and what you did during the week off.

Last week and the next few days are big weeks for college admissions decisions as selective colleges put out their acceptance/ rejection/ wait list offers.  This can be a very stressful time for students.  Try to take a deep breath and relax – you have put yourself in the best position possible with your applications.  If you are stressing out about the news, feel free to stop in and see me so that we can talk about it.

Also, I’d like to remind all students (in all grades) to be sensitive to the feelings of those who are receiving admissions decisions.  Getting the decision can be hard enough, but often the more difficult aspect is being asked, “Did you get accepted?” by well meaning friends.  Students who were accepted will typically be telling everyone their exciting news, but I’d suggest that you wait and allow them the opportunity to share the information with you on their own time.  If they don’t offer up the news that they were accepted or not, then be sensitive to the fact that they may not have gotten the news they wanted and don’t ask because that could put them on the spot to share disappointing news.

For those students who are among those individuals still waiting to hear from your college of choice – I hope you get the news you are wanting.  See you tomorrow!

Visits - part of the College Search

A few years ago I read an article written by a mom regarding her experience taking her daughter to start looking at colleges. On the road again, looking for the perfect fit points out the importance of trying to figure out what you are really looking for in a school and what is most important to you when selecting a college.

A few of the points I particularly liked from this mom's reflections include the fact that she encouraged her daughter to look at schools that were outside of her first instinct of what she thought she would enjoy for her future. Let me clarify that point, in no way am I saying that you should go to a college for the future where you will not be happy and do not see yourself fitting in, but I have realized that a lot of students don't really know what it is that they do or do not like about a campus. Looking at all different types of schools - large, small, urban, rural, etc. - will help you figure out exactly what you do and do not like. This will also help you refine and narrow your search to find other schools that will best fit your interests. The other point that I liked was the fact that the mom and daughter used this as a time to connect and enjoy being together. The reality is that high school flies past and you will be moving out of your parents home and starting college before long. Making positive memories together and enjoying the time you are spending while looking at schools is important. Yes, I understand that this process can be stressful, but it can also be fun. Try to approach the college search and your college visits with a positive attitude and cut your parents a break if they are driving you crazy about it all. Remember, they are trying to help, they are stressed about this too and, most importantly, they want what is best for you.

"Say Cheese!"

With spring break finally here, I wanted to remind everyone that if you are going to be out on college campuses - for formal tours, to visit friends or simply on vacation - please Take A Picture! The picture can be of you anywhere on campus... a pretty area, a building where you might spend a lot of time in the future, or (as most of the pictures on my "Oh the Places You'll Go" wall show) in front of a college sign. Enjoy your visit, make a few notes about what you think of each school, and when we are back in school I will look forward to seeing your picture and hearing about your visits!

Summer Volunteer

Volunteers make a significant impact - not only are the people that you help impacted, but the people who reach out to help someone else are also changed for the better. There is not just one choice about what you can pursue as a volunteer project. Community service opportunities are as different as each individual who decides they want to help make a difference in the world around them. The sky is the limit and I encourage you to find something that inspires you.

As the weather starts to get warmer and we begin looking toward the summer, I thought it might help you if I mentioned that the Ohio State University Medical Center allows high school students to volunteer during the summer. (They only utilize college students as volunteers during the school year, but are willing to work with high school students in the summertime.) They only accept applications for volunteers between March 1st and April 15th. Volunteers must be at least 16 years old. If you are interested in applying, visit their website for an application and additional information.

Local Scholarships

All of the parents of seniors should have already received an e-mail highlighting the local scholarship opportunities. If your parents didn't share the e-mail with you or for some reason you didn't get the e-mail, please go to the Kilbourne Counselor website at www.wkhscounselors.com and scroll down to click on the link for local scholarships. These scholarships provide a great opportunity for students to earn some additional financial help for college. And, with the scholarships being local, it means that there would be less people applying for the scholarships (compared to national scholarships) which gives you a better chance of receiving one of the scholarships.

Please take the time to carefully read through the criteria for the scholarships to see which ones would be appropriate for you to apply for and then start working. When you go to the WKHS Counselors website and click on the local scholarships area (bottom of the home page) you will be taken to the listing of all of the scholarships and it has the links to each scholarship application.

Most of the deadlines for completed applications is the end of the school day on April 12th and no late applications can be accepted. I cannot stress enough the importance of planning ahead and starting to work on these scholarships now!

Also, please pay attention to see if the applications require a written recommendation letter and ask your teacher(s) for a letter as soon as possible - especially if they have not already written a rec letter that you can use for the scholarships.

Also, don't forget that a complete list of all the other scholarships that we are aware of are featured on the Kilbourne Counselor website in the scholarship area (at the top).

(This is the 2nd of 2 posts for tonight...)

Memorable Ceremony

Today the seniors had the opportunity to attend a Naturalization Ceremony in the WKHS Auditorium.  Our school was turned into a federal courtroom for this occasion.  70 men and women - I believe they said between the ages of 18 and 80 - became United States citizens today and we were honored to be able to witness this special moment.  Naomi Barker did a great job as she shared her personal experience with her dual citizenship and shared her recollection of attending her dad's naturalization ceremony.  Additionally, the WKHS band and choir performed beautifully which helped make the day even more touching.  My favorite part though was as each individual gaining citizenship went around to introduce him/ herself.  It was heart-warming to hear their excitement and emotion.  I was brought to tears multiple times as I watched and listened to the people declare that this was a dream come true and/ or the best day of their lives.  Citizenship is something that I am so grateful for, but, to be honest, is something that I do take for granted.  My gratitude for living in this incredible country and the blessings that we have as a result of where we live is something to be celebrated today and every day!

(This is 1 of 2 posts tonight... I just couldn't let today pass without sharing about it.)

Academic Honors Night

Tonight was the Academic Honors Night recognizing the students who have achieved consistently outstanding grades at WKHS. 257 students were honored as a part of tonight's ceremony. To qualify for the recognition of a Bronze, Silver, or Gold Key students had to have earned a cumulative grade point average of a 3.5 or higher for 3 (Bronze), 5 (Silver), or 7 (Gold) semesters. Congratulations to each of "my" 67 students who received this special recognition!

PSEO Reminder

Just a quick reminder about the PSEO (Post-Secondary Enrollment Options) program... The PSEO program allows students the opportunity to take college classes for free while still in high school. If you are interested in participating in the PSEO program next year, all of your completed forms must be submitted to the WKHS Counseling center by Friday. There are two forms that you must turn in to me - one is the checklist form and the other is the form where you make your best guess about courses you hope to take in college next year.  Stop and see me if you have questions about these forms!

Summer School

Information about summer school was distributed along with the rest of your registration materials. I know that a lot of students have indicated that they intend to take a class in summer school, but as we met to review your courses, many students were uncertain if they had actually signed up yet. I wanted to remind you that it is important to make sure you sign up for soon if you are planning on taking summer school classes. There are limited courses available in summer school and seats are filled on a first-come, first-served basis.

If you failed a class during the 1st semester, you need to discuss signing up for summer school with your parents. The success rates for students who take summer school is very strong because you are only asked to focus on one subject at a time and it is a more relaxed environment.

This year summer school will be held at Thomas Worthington High School and most courses cost around $200. (Students on the free and reduced lunch program are allowed to attend for $50.)

The first term of summer school will run from June 11th until June 28th.  The second term of summer school runs from July 8th to July 25th.  Please note that for all of the classes taught by a teacher (not the online credit recovery courses) the terms of summer school represents the semester of the class.  So, for example, if you failed 1st semester, you would need to attend the 1st semester to make up the credit.

If you have lost your summer school registration brochure, please stop in the Counseling Center and ask one of the secretaries for a new brochure.  You can also access the brochure on the district website under district info and then summer school.  Here is a link.

Some students and parents have had questions related to taking classes through a different school district or through an online school.  The basic answer is yes, you are allowed to take classes through any accredited school.  Please be sure that they are accredited before you sign up for their classes.  After you have completed your course, they will give you a transcript and you will need to provide that to us at WKHS so that we can transfer your credit.  As these courses are not coordinated or run by Worthington, I don't have a lot of details about options, but a Google search has been successful for students in the past.  My top tip is to make sure you are signing up for their summer school classes because I do know that in the past students found there was a significant difference in the cost if they were taking a class online during summer school vs. taking a class online during the school year.

St. Patrick's Day & Crisis Communication

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! I hope that you enjoyed your weekend.  The countdown is on - just 5 days of school left before spring break.

Every St. Patrick's Day I cannot help but think back to March 17, 2006 when I was working as a school counselor at Grove City High School. On that day two students were in a critical car accident. One student passed away and the other, fortunately, lived. Each time I think about this crisis, I remember how much it impacted the families involved as well as the entire school. So, I feel this is an appropriate time to review the importance of communicating when crisis situations occur. It is important that the school is aware of any major incidents that impact students from the school as soon as possible so that we can help prepare an appropriate response. For the record, if you are trying to reach me, I tend to check my e-mails over weekends, holidays, and the summer for any critical incidents, but I do not check my school voicemail, so the best way to pass along any important, timely news is e-mail. Obviously, my hope is that this information is never needed and that we will not face any crisis situations in the future, but I also know that it is better safe than sorry.

Enjoy the rest of your St. Patrick’s Day and please, be safe today and every day!

Anxious about Future

Now that I have finished with most of the registration meetings I have tried to catch up with many of you who have been leaving me passes and had to wait to see me.  I realized how many of the seniors are struggling with mixed emotions about the future. Sure, many of you are excited to graduate and be done with high school, but that also means facing the future, starting college, getting jobs, and being "adults" is just around the corner. I know that this is a time of high anxiety and remember, I am here to help support you. Please, do NOT sabotage yourself and your grades in your classes as a *solution* to not feeling ready to leave high school. Stop in and see me - let me know how you are feeling about high school coming to an end. I look forward to chatting with you soon!

Academic Honors Night

One week from tonight, Wednesday, March 20th is the WKHS Academic Honors Night.  Held annually each year, this evening recognizes students who have achieved three or more semesters with a grade point average of a 3.5 or higher.  This means that sophomores, juniors and seniors have a chance at being eligible for receiving an academic honor.  The honors are Keys of Academic Excellence - a bronze key is awarded when students have 3 semesters with a 3.5, a silver key is awarded when students reach 5 semesters with a 3.5 GPA and a gold key is awarded for those students who achieve 7 semesters with a 3.5 GPA or higher.  All students who have earned a academic excellence key should have received an invitation to the awards night.

We look forward to celebrating your academic accomplishments with you are your parents.  The program begins at 7:00pm in the WKHS auditorium.  You should "dress to impress" - in other words, please dress up as this is an honors night.

March Students of the Month

At the beginning of the month (yes, sorry, this is a well overdue post) 14 WKHS students were honored as March Students of the Month.  Students can only receive the award of Student of the Month once in their high school career and must be nominated by WKHS faculty and staff for their academic achievement, good citizenship, and/ or service to the school and community.  4 of "my" students were among those who received this special recognition.

Congratulations (L to R): Nick Barrie, Michael Dillow, Neil Hedges and Eleanor Donaldson!  I am proud of you all!

I hope OGT's are going well so far.  Keep working hard to do your best and show what you know!

Junior College Information Night

Tomorrow night, Tuesday, March 12th the WKHS Counseling department will be hosting a Junior Student and Parent College Information Night. Over the last few years, this program has received some of the best feedback out of all of the information nights we host. The students and parents who attended this meeting in the past have expressed how much this helped them get started and move forward with the college search process and developed a better understanding of what to expect along the way. 

The meeting is at 7:00pm in the auditorium. I hope you will plan to attend! And yes, I want you to bring your parents to this meeting and no, I don't want you to just send your parents instead... this is YOUR future and you are responsible for deciding what direction you will take.

Also, it was great to see so many of you at the ZAPS ACT Prep Workshop this morning.  2 more days and then you can enjoy a few days of sleeping in for the OGT late start days.

Ohio Graduation Tests (OGT's)

This week the Sophomores will be taking the Ohio Graduation Tests (OGT's). Each day will feature a different test -Monday is Reading, Tuesday is Math, Wednesday is Writing, Thursday is Science, and Friday is Social Studies.

I cannot stress the importance of EVERY sophomore student attending school all five days to complete the tests. If you are too sick to make it to school you will have to take the test during the following week which is not as ideal of a testing environment.

Freshman, Juniors, and Seniors are probably looking forward to OGT week because they have the special added treat of a few extra hours of sleep. :-) The busses are running twice next week in order to make sure that the Sophomores are able to arrive at school in time for their tests and also for everyone else to come to school after the extra time sleeping in each morning. Classes for the week will only be 35 minutes long so the week should go past pretty quickly for you.

For your information below is the daily bell schedule for this coming week:
OGT Tests: 7:45 - 9:35
1st Period: 9:50 - 10:25
2nd Period: 10:30 - 11:05
3rd Period: 11:10 - 11:45
4th Period: 11:50 - 12:25
5th Period: 12:30 - 1:05
6th Period: 1:10 - 1:45
7th Period: 1:50 - 2:25
8th Period: 2:30 - 3:05

Also, juniors, don't forget, if you are taking the ZAPS ACT prep class, it will be in the auditorium on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.

Good luck on the OGT's!

AP Test Sign-Ups

If you are currently enrolled in an AP course, the deadline to sign up to take the end of course AP exam is this Friday, March 8th.  Taking the AP exam (and doing well) is how students have the opportunity to earn college credit for the classes you completed in high school.  Please remember that the colleges are responsible for establishing their own policies about what scores are required to be able to earn credits at their school.  The fee for each AP exam is $97 and must be submitted directly to the Worthington Educational Center (on Wilson Bridge Road) by Friday.  If you have lost your AP registration paperwork, you can download it off of the Worthington website at www.worthington.k12.oh.us and then you will find it in the Gifted Services area (which is located in the Departments tab).

ZAPS ACT Prep Course

At the end of each year we survey the senior students as a way to help evaluate what we are doing and to identify areas that need improvement. Over the last several years we had heard that students would have liked to have more ACT/ SAT preparation options. We have consistently heard from ACT representatives that the best preparation is a rigorous high school curriculum, but we wanted to try to be responsive to the student feedback we have received. As a result, we investigated several test prep course options to try to find one that would work with us on scheduling and would be a cost effective alternative.

We were thrilled to find ZAPS, a test prep company, who has offered to work with our students by providing a course that will span 3 mornings on March 11, 12, and 13 from 7:45 - 9:30am during the late start times during OGT testing.

An informational letter including registration instructions was mailed to the home of all junior students. The cost of this 3-day ACT prep course is $79. If you are interested in participating, please be sure to register as soon as possible to make certain that you don't get closed out of the course.  You can register online at www.zaps.com.

Registration Reminder

Did you complete your online registration?  By now all of the freshmen, sophomores, and juniors should have completed your online registration.  (Last Friday was the deadline, but I believe they left the window open for the weekend.)  This means that if you didn't finish your registration, please, stop reading right now and log onto Infinite Campus and submit your course requests for next year!

Please make sure that you have the registration recommendation forms with all of your teacher signatures regarding courses they are recommending along with your parent's signature to turn in this week!  Sophomores will submit their forms on Tuesday during your US History classes.  Freshmen will turn in their forms on Wednesday during your PESS classes.  And, Dr. K's Honors PESS classes along with Mr. Strausbaugh's US History classes will submit your forms on Thursday.  Juniors, your forms are due at your individual meeting times.

I have enjoyed having the chance to meet with over half of my juniors and their parents already.  I also must admit that I am looking forward to not feeling like I am bound to the alarm clock for every meeting once this week's registration meetings are complete.  :-)

Don't forget, you have a late start tomorrow.  (I'm so jealous... enjoy sleeping in!)