Get Involved

Today I spent some time meeting with some of my new freshmen students.  It was fun hearing about what each student likes about WKHS or misses about middle school.  One of the questions that stumped quite a few of the students that I talked with was what will you be involved with at WKHS?  Being involved in sports, clubs, volunteer outreach, or other areas of interest helps connect students to the school and community.  You have special gifts that only you can share and you can make a positive difference!  WKHS is very fortunate to have a wide range of opportunities available within the school setting for you to get involved.  There are 29 interscholastic sports, over 40 clubs, the school newspaper, video news team, yearbook and a wide variety of performance groups (choirs, bands, orchestra, and plays).  For underclassmen, it makes your transition to high school easier because you get to know older students and you find a place where you can belong.  For upperclassmen, being involved gives you the opportunity to demonstrate leadership and to grow in your areas of interest.  Before the school year started I mentioned the importance of setting goals for the year.  If you aren't involved in any activities connected to the school, perhaps this would be the perfect time to set a goal for yourself to join at least 1 club or sport!  I can't wait to see the impact you will have.

Also, just a reminder that we have a pep rally assembly schedule tomorrow!  The pep rally will be during 3rd period.  Here is the schedule:
1st period- 7:45-8:30
2nd period - 8:35 - 9:20
3rd period attendance- 9:25-9:33
Assembly- 9:33 - 10:10
3rd period class - 10:10 - 10:55
4th period class - 11:00 - 11:45
5th period class- 11:50- 12:35
6th period class - 12:40 - 1:25
7th period class - 1:30 - 2:15
8th period class - 2:20 - 3:05

Concordance Tables

As I mentioned in yesterday's blog, the ACT and SAT tests are a part of the lives of nearly all high school students. As a school counselor I receive questions about these tests all the time - one of the most common is how do you figure out how the scores compare to one another.
So, let's talk for a second about the score comparisons. A lot of seniors took both the ACT and SAT last spring have received their scores and are now considering which test (if any) to take again this fall. It's important to review the requirements for the schools you are considering and see what they are looking for and where you fall compared to their averages. Some students will want to repeat both tests and some will elect to focus on the test they did "better" on the first time through and try to improve that score.

But how do you know which test you did "better" on? Well, the ACT and SAT actually test different information, but you can see what scores would be most comprable by using the concordance tables. These tables can help students (and colleges) compare scores for students across the different tests. I'll be honest - these tables can seem a little confusing at first, but if you read the information on the pages prior to the tables then you will understand them. Table 1 will let you compare your SAT score based on a 1600 scale with the ACT without writing. Most of you will have taken the ACT with writing (and if you didn't, you NEED to take it with writing in the future as colleges are moving toward considering the writing test more and more) so you will use the data on Table 2 to get the writing score and then you will add that to the results from Table 1 to get an accurate overall score based upon the 2400 scale.

Try not to get stressed out about the college admissions tests... I know it can be frustrating, but remember it is only one piece to the puzzle that the colleges will be considering when evaluating students!

College Admissions Tests

There are two main college admissions tests – the SAT and the ACT – that enable colleges to compare students from different schools and backgrounds. Most colleges will accept scores from either test, but it is important to double check with the college admissions office to be sure they will accept the test you plan to take. One test is not better than another - take the test that is best for both you and the school to which you are applying. And yes, you may take both tests.

The Scholastic Aptitude Test I (SAT I) 
When people are talking about the “SAT” they are generally speaking about the SAT I test or the SAT Reasoning Test. No matter what you choose to call it, this is a 3 hour and 45 minute long test. There is a critical reading, math, and writing component to the test. Scores for each section range on a scale of 200 – 800.

SAT Subject Tests
The SAT Subject Tests are sometimes also referred to as the SAT II Achievement Tests. They are one-hour tests in specific subjects such as English, history, mathematics, or foreign languages. Some of the more competitive schools require two or three tests for first-year placement. Be sure to check to see if these tests are required (and if so, in what areas) before you sign up to take them!

The ACT Tests
The ACT tests assess specific academic abilities in English, math, reading, and science reasoning, and writing. Scores range from 1 (low) to 36 (high) for each of the four tests and for the composite. The composite is the average of the four test scores, rounded to the nearest whole number.

Submitting Your Test Scores
When you register to take your test they will ask you which schools you would like to have notified of your scores. You automatically have 4 “free” choices of colleges to be notified of your scores. It is to your benefit to take advantage of this because the colleges will consider your highest score (and disregard your lower scores) and it will cost money to send the scores to the schools after you receive your results. Nearly all schools want the ACT/ SAT directly from the testing provider rather than from WKHS.

When should I take the test?
Students usually take it in the spring of their junior year, early in their senior year or both.

When is the next test offered?
The next testing date for the SAT is October 11th. The registration deadline is September 12th.  There is another SAT scheduled for November 8th.  The registration deadline is October 9th.

The next testing date for the ACT is September 13th. The registration deadline for this test has already passed. There is another ACT scheduled for October 25th. That registration deadline is September 19th.

Do I need to take the writing test?
Yes. For the SAT it is a standard portion of the test. With the ACT you will need to pick if you will be taking the test with or without the writing portion. At least one of the test score reports to your college should include the writing test.

How do I register, figure out costs, and find more information?
Visit the SAT and ACT websites. (I also have a link to the websites on the right side of the page.)

What is the high school code that the testing sites request?
The CEEB/ ACT Code number for Worthington Kilbourne High School is 365507.

And, last but certainly not least, do I *HAVE* to take the test again when I did OK the first time I took it?
Unfortunately this isn’t an easy answer. No, you don’t *have* to do anything. If you are confident in your score then relax and be done with the testing. If you are confident in your score, but know that you could do better… well, then I’d say relax (there is no testing pressure because you are confident in your score) and take the test again. Some of you are sitting there wishing you had not read that last line… but the reality is that if you take the test and improve your score it can only help you. You can benefit in the eyes of the college if you ended up on the bubble for their admissions decision and you can benefit financially if you are applying for any scholarships that consider your test scores. If you are not confident in your scores or if you know that you can do better – then the answer is simply, yes, take it again and see if you can improve your score.

Also, seniors, don't forget - tomorrow night is the College Information Night for you and your parents.  This is a critical night for you to learn all the details related to applying.

Confidentiality

It is very important to me that I work to earn your trust every day. During high school there are times when you may feel that there is no one there to listen and I want to remind you that I am here for you. Please remember that what you say to me is confidential between us unless you are a risk to yourself or someone else in which case I am required to report it.

If you want to meet with me - just drop by my office! That is honestly the BEST way to meet with me. You don't need to schedule an appointment in advance. I'm generally around before and after school as well as during your lunch or academic prep/ option periods for you to stop in and chat. You don't need a big reason to come down and say Hi. I am happy to see you even if you just wanted to tell me how well or how poorly you did on a test that day. If I am busy meeting with another student or parent - you can stop back down or leave a pass for me. If I don't know who you are and you have left a pass that leads me to search for you in the commons please try to help me out and let me know that "you" are the student. (I know, not always easy, but if you left a pass and I haven't tracked you down that day or the following day, chances are I can't find you in the commons - so please come back!)

Don't forget I have candy and toys in my office - so it is always worth just stopping by to say hello. :-) Nope, I am not above bribery if it means that I get to know you all better. :-)

Senior College Night

The Senior Student and Parent College Information Night will be held one week from today, on Tuesday, August 26th, at 7:00pm at WKHS. This is one of the most important meetings for senior students and parents to attend because there are so many college related questions that we will be able to answer.

We will be reviewing the college search and application process, the procedures for submitting your items to WKHS and to the colleges, and other information you need to know. I really hope you will make every effort to attend… and yes, this is for you and your parents because this is YOUR life, so you need to be there as you are the one responsible for completing all of the work to get accepted into college. It is beneficial for your parents to also attend because they will be a very valuable asset in helping you through this process. And, trust me, your parents will appreciate having an overview of how this entire process will play out so bring them along with you so that they can get the information all at once with you. 

I know that it is not always possible for every student and family to attend, but I hope you will try. Remember, I have approximately 100 seniors, so it becomes very challenging to try to repeat the same basic information and make sure everyone understands unless we all start with the same foundation of information. This evening will answer a lot of your basic questions and then we’ll figure out the rest together as the year continues. I’m looking forward to seeing you on August 26th!

Welcome Back

The first day of school was a success! Hopefully you loved all of your classes, found everything without a problem, enjoyed connecting with your friends, and are looking forward to a great year ahead. :-)

If, for some reason, you have realized that you want to make a schedule change, remember that you must have your parent's signature of approval and that Wednesday is the last day to add a class.

It's a School Night!

It's a school night!  I hope that you are looking forward to starting back to school and I especially hope that you are not filled with terror.  This will be a great year and I am excited to see you and catch up on all the fun that you had during your summer break.  So please, get a good night's sleep tonight because 7:45am is going to feel REALLY early!

E-mail

I realize that many students do not utilize e-mail regularly, however, it is very important to have an e-mail account of your own when it comes to college application time. College applications will ask you for your e-mail address. Often times the colleges will use your e-mail as their way to communicate with you including notifying you of your admissions decision. (This also points out that it is important to regularly check your e-mail.) Some questions to ask yourself, Do you have an account? (If not, you need to create one. There are tons of free choices available - gmail, yahoo, hotmail, etc.) Do you have an appropriate account? (In other words, is the name of your account appropriate as the college admissions officers will be seeing the e-mail address when reviewing your application.) Is it YOUR account? (A lot of times students just rely on their parents e-mail addresses which works a lot in high school, but when you reach the point of applying to college it is important to have your own account as many of the colleges will ask for your address and your parents address.)

In addition to having an e-mail account, it is also important to remember to use proper etiquette when communicating with college representatives via e-mail. For example, when you need to e-mail admissions officers for any reason, as well as any other college representatives (advisor, professor, etc.) that you communicate with, please remember that the way you write your e-mail is a reflection of you. Please do not use text talk, avoid ALL CAPS, be mature, and write it in an official format “Dear _(insert their name with Mr/ Mrs)_, Text of your message, Sincerely, _(insert your name)__”.

Schedule Changes

I have no idea how many schedule changes have been requested - definitely too many to count! The reality is that while some were possible, many were not. Remember, we cannot make teacher changes. If you have a schedule change, you can pick up your new schedule from the red trays in the middle of the counseling center. Each of the trays are identified with a counselor's name. You will see my name on the top tray and just look through the schedules in that tray to find your schedule if you still need to pick it up. This way you don't have to miss out on getting the new copy of your schedule just because I am in a meeting or trying to help another student.

Please Be Patient

As the dreaded schedule change requests start pouring in I beg you to be patient with me. Not only in the process of waiting in line to see if your schedule can be changed, but, more importantly, in helping me to remember your names. I am absolutely terrible at remembering names! I will recognize faces, but coming up with the names to go with those faces is a challenge for me especially after the summer break and with so many of you streaming in one right after the next. So, please, know that I am doing the best I can and forgive me if I can't come up with your name. 

Also, remember, you do not need to wait in line to see me in person!  If you are requesting a change I encourage you to leave the schedule change request form in the designated black bin. I will make the change (if it is possible) and will leave the updated schedule in the red bin so that you can pick it up at your convenience between now and the start of school. 

Schedule Pick Up Day Reminders

I was back at work today and everyone has been working very hard to prepare for the start of the school year.  By now you should be aware that the next two days are schedule pick up days!

Tuesday, August 12th: 
9th graders - 8:30 - 11:00am 
All students new to the district (regardless of grade) - 8:30 - 11:00am
12th graders - 12:30 - 3:00pm

Wednesday, August 13th:
11th graders - 8:30 - 11:00am
10th graders - 12:30 - 3:00pm

Don't forget, schedule pick up day is packed with lots of activities - finding your locker, getting your school picture taken, picking up your books, etc. 

Your emergency medical information needs to be updated online prior to coming through the schedule pick up lines.

I know that every year there are questions about what you should do if you are not available to attend on your designated schedule pick up day.  If you cannot pick up your schedule and books on your designated day, then you can come to school on the other schedule pick-up day.  If you will not be able to attend either day, then you will not be able to pick up your schedule and get your books until the 1st day of school.  Please plan on coming to school early on the 1st day if you are picking up your schedule and turning in any remaining forms and fees.

I'm sure it will be a few crazy days in my office, but I am looking forward to seeing you!

Ready, Set, Go!

I have had a chance to e-mail or chat with a few seniors in the last couple of days and have realized that many of you are waiting to start working on your college applications until you get back to school. Please (PLEASE!) don't wait! The time to start working on your applications is now. That doesn't mean you have to have the entire application complete, but begin working on your essays, start filling out the "easier" paperwork section that requires name, address, and other basic information because it can become time-consuming.

And, if you still don't know which schools you will be applying to - it is definitely time to start determining your list. Start searching for the characteristics of a school that you are looking for and, if possible, go and visit different campuses. (Of course, if you make visits to schools, don't forget to bring me a picture!)

Preparing for Success

There is just 1 week of summer left before we start a new school year and it is important to put yourself in the best position possible to successful.

The first step is to set your goals for the year.  What are you hoping to accomplish?  What do you need to do to reach these goals?  It is often easier to dream big and quite honestly, most of you could achieve any goal that you set your mind to, but it will take dedication and commitment.

Many of you are also spending the last week searching for new school supplies.  As you buy your folders, binders, and notebooks pause for a moment to think about what organization system tends to work best for you.  Are you a "stuffer" who just stuffs papers into whatever happens to be available?  If so, folders are probably best for you. (Try to get thicker folders that can hold up to a lot of papers.)  If you are the type of person who wants to be able to combine notes from class with notes that you take from the book, you might gravitate toward a binder with loose-leaf paper rather than a spiral notebook. Whatever system you select, make sure it is one that will work for you.

Preparing for success is probably most closely connected to having an organization system for tracking your assignments.  Planners, calendars, voice memos, phone, etc...  It doesn't matter to me what type of an organization system you have selected, but it is essential that you pick something and commit yourself to using it.

This will be a great year!  I hope you are looking forward to getting started (even though it means that summer is over) and if you need help with setting reasonable goals or with organization, please don't hesitate to stop in and see me once school gets underway.

College Visits

One common summertime activity for many students and parents is making college visits.  While traveling this summer for family vacations, I hope you stopped by the local colleges and explored their campuses.  Even if it isn't a school that you are considering, it is always beneficial to see a variety of different college environments to get a feel for the options available to you in the future.  And, even if you are not traveling over break, you can still explore nearby colleges on a day when you are feeling bored and wondering what you're going to do with your time.  It probably goes without saying, but please remember that I would like your picture from somewhere on EACH campus that you visit!

Deadline Reminder

Just a quick reminder for all students planning on taking the ACT in September, the registration deadline is rapidly approaching!  The last day to register without a late fee is this Friday, August 8th.

The September ACT will be held on Saturday, September 13th and while I really recommend that you register this week, there is a late registration deadline of August 22nd.

As a reminder, you will register for the ACT directly on their website - www.actstudent.org.

Are you being productive?

I'm curious to know how productive you have been this summer? Personally, I find that I need to structure my time or else I can waste a day away and not have any idea where the time went. I am particularly anxious to hear (and see) how productive all of the seniors have been this summer. Last spring when we met for your individual meetings as well as in the large junior student & parent meeting we talked about some of the things you could (and ideally should) be working on this summer to prepare yourself for the college application process.


We talked about researching colleges, making college visits, asking teachers for recommendation letters, organizing your list of high school activities and awards (into resume format or at least a list), narrowing down your college list so that you have a pretty solidified list about where you plan to apply when we start school, organizing all of your intended colleges so that you know their deadline dates and what materials you will need for applying, reading, doing any prep-work for the ACT/ SAT that you still wanted/ needed to do, working on your essay questions, volunteering, looking for scholarships, and, if applicable, completing all of your summer coursework for AP or Honors classes. It is a pretty demanding list and a lot of times students think they'll have "more time" to work on it "later" when it isn't summer and they are back in a school mindset. Please remember, that once you start your classes you will have teachers demanding homework, over 7 hours of your day spent in school, plus athletics and other activities occupying your time.

Summer is also a great time to be able to ask questions of your friends who are home from college about what their experience has been like. Types of questions you might want to consider asking include:

- What did they like best about college? Least?
- What best prepared them for college?
- Did their college search give them an accurate picture of what college would really be like?
- Are there particular things they would recommend that you look at or consider when researching schools?
- How large are the majority of their classes? Biggest class? Smallest?
- What activities did they get involved in on campus?
- Was it easy to make new friends at school?
- If they could go back and repeat their senior year over again, would they have done anything different? Would they still have made the same choice about where to apply and attend?

Those are just a few ideas to get you started. In my experience, students are always more than happy to spend some time talking about their first year (or two) of college. Take full advantage of the opportunity - it really might help guide you in your own college search, or, at the very least, hopefully it will motivate you to get started. :-)

In all sincerity, I also hope that this summer you are finding some time to do things you enjoy, to relax and de-stress, and to spend time with your family and friends! Enjoy the rest of your summer break and if you are a senior who hasn't started thinking about your college application process yet, please get started!

Common App

The Common Application is a centralized application that students can complete for over 500 different colleges and as of today it is now updated and released for the Class of 2015 to begin working on their applications. The colleges that participate in this application commit to treating applications received through the Common App with the same consideration as if students had applied through the institutions individual application. This will generally mean that you have to spend less time filling out all of the basic information about yourself and can mean that you have fewer essays to write (but maybe not).

On the common app there is 1 essay that must be completed for all colleges, but you do have a choice about what essay to pick from a list or prompts.  Then, the "tricky" part of it all is that many of the schools will also have supplements required which are other questions of their own that they want students to complete. Sometimes it is just simple questions that weren't covered on the common app, but would have been if you had applied through their individual application, but often times it includes short or long answer essays. Be aware and be prepared for that when completing your application. 

Not all schools use the common app - there are 20 Ohio schools which will utilize the common application this year, but as you are getting ready to start applications for the schools you are considering it is worth your time to look and see if more than one school from your list uses the common app.

I have spent the last few hours playing around on the Common App website and the new format will be pretty straight forward for you to use.  A few things I want to make sure you are aware of to help as you are completing your application...

- When you are looking at the college information section to see the number of recommendations required sometimes it may say "0" but the reality is that a recommendation letter is required.  You will want to double check on the college's website to see if they require a rec letter.  Miami and Ohio State are two examples of colleges where this problem will be seen.  They allow your recommendation letter to be from any adult (non-relative) so they don't require that it is from a teacher or from a counselor or from a non-academic source and therefore it lists required as 0, but they do want 1 recommendation letter from the adult of your choice.

- After you have selected your colleges and added them to your list you will see specific questions (the supplements specific to that school) and some of them are updated now, but others haven't been posted yet so you may have to check back.

- It will ask you questions about me and so you will want to be sure that you spell my name and e-mail address right or else I won't receive the e-mail to complete your school forms.  (Brianna Abbott, Title: School Counselor, E-mail: babbott@worthington.k12.oh.us, Phone: 614-450-6490)

-  Your graduation date is May 24, 2015.

-  I strongly encourage you to make a complete list of your activities and honors BEFORE attempting to fill out the Common App.  For example, you will need to give a total number of your honors before you start naming them.  If you haven't developed that resume list then you'll have a tough time filling it out.

-  As you are working on each area there is a panel on the right side of the page titled "Help Center" and I found it very helpful as I was going through the different areas.  Some of the typical questions kids have asked me in the past as they are completing the Common App are now answered in the help center.

-  You will have to indicate your class size - for the Class of 2015, it is 280.