November update

Now that the first quarter has ended, let's check in on a few fronts.

Report cards will be distributed November 14. Please follow-up with questions about progress directly with teachers, as they are best suited to answer questions about academic progress.

November 16 will be this month's College Shirt Day, so mark your calendars!

November 18 through 22 is American Education Week. More information will be available on edline and www.phs.edu.

NINTH GRADE
School counselors will meet with American Government classes from November 4 through 6 in the computer labs to complete a Career Cluster Assessment in Naviance and begin to evaluate the merits of careers in a cluster that they find appealing.
On November 26, school counselors will conduct an academic lesson in all of the Biology classes to help the freshmen understand how their quarter grades add up to final grades and how to calculate grade point averages. This is important for students to take ownership of their grades, since grades in high school are much more transparent, predictable, and permanent than in middle school.

TENTH GRADE
Between November 5 and 14, school counselors will meet World History classes first in the computer lab, and then in their classrooms, to take a personality assessment in Naviance and discuss how our personality types help us make sense of the world and find careers that suit our preferences.

ELEVENTH GRADE
Between November 4 and 15, school counselors will meet with US History classes first in the computer lab, and then in their classrooms, to take a career interest assessment in Naviance and evaluate the many ways different individuals can find satisfaction in similar career types.
Starting November and ending around the second week in January, each junior will have a 30-minute appointment (either 1:30-2:00 or 2:00-2:30) with their school counselor. Students and families were informed of their appointments when schedules were mailed in July, and students will receive a reminder in advisory closer to their appointed time. Parents are invited, though not required, to attend. Juniors will get an unofficial copy of their transcript, discuss their college priorities and preferences, and school counselors will help the students start their prospective college lists in Naviance.

TWELFTH GRADE
Thirty percent of our seniors have applied to college so far! We've even started hearing about college acceptances. The school counselors have been working very hard to honor our commitment to send out completed transcript requests within ten school days. Seniors should never hesitate to schedule appointments with their school counselors during the complicated and arduous process of college admissions. We are here to help, and happy to do so, but solutions are most readily available when concerns are raised earlier rather than later.
Once the applications are in and confirmed with the colleges, seniors are urged to turn their attention to finding and applying for scholarships. Tips are available from the "Paying for College" page on the blog, and we maintain the list of scholarships at the PHSCollegeCash document. Also, participate in the weekly #CollegeCash twitter chat for more suggestions.
Mark your calendar for December 12 at 7pm. We are hosting a MHEC Money for College event (their website inexplicably says 9; rest assured we're starting at 7, if not slightly earlier). Delegate Dana Stein will be on-hand to hear parents' perspectives on the financial aid process, MHEC's Benee Edwards will discuss the FAFSA and both federal and state financial aid programs, and Central Scholarship Bureau's Jennifer Bauer will prepare families for the scholarship application process.

About 10% of students have been asked to have their parent sign a permission slip for a video during one of the career lessons. Mr. Goldman is applying this year for certification by the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards, and one component of the portfolio is a 15-minute video from a lesson that he will need to critique and send in. Questions should be directed to him about the use and privacy of the videos.

Big Week For Seniors and AP

This is going to be a hefty week for seniors and students in AP courses.

English 12 classes will meet with school counselors in Dell 2 lab on their assigned day. We will show classes how to access the FAFSA website and our own scholarship page. Then, we will explain the local scholarship program, with its deadline of March 4. We will also give seniors time to log on to their ConnectEDU accounts to request midyear transcripts.

In addition, Mr. Goldman will put on his AP Coordinator hat and visit AP classes to explain the process of registering for the AP exams.

Here are some details:
AP exam registration materials are provided in a brown Manila envelope. Enclosed you will find the Bulletin for AP students and parents, an orange exam registration form, a blue sheet with information, a green form related to fee reductions, and an envelope to remit payment.
The AP exams will be held between May 6 and 17. The whole point of the AP courses is to prepare for the exams, on which a passing score could lead to credits or accelerated study at the university level.
The cost of each exam is $89. Students who qualify for a fee reduction based on income or other criteria specified on the form are responsible for $53 per test. This year, we are also introducing a partial voucher program rewarding students for taking exams last year. For every point you scored in 2012, you get a dollar reduced from your total payment in 2013.
For now, we can accept checks, money orders, and cash. If we are able to manage a system for accepting credit cards, that will be announced accordingly.
AP exam registration forms and fees are due to the school counseling office no later than March 1, but you are encouraged to register in advance of that date. Unless otherwise specified (world history or extended time), all exams will be given at the Pikesville National Guard Armory.
If you lose the forms, you may download them from edline.

Regarding scholarships, it is paramount that all students pursuing any type of post secondary education complete their FAFSA as soon as possible, but certainly before March 4. See the blog page for paying for college for more resources.
Students and parents are advised to monitor http://tinyurl.com/PHSCollegeCash for new regional and national scholarships that we hear about.
For the local scholarships, notice that there are two forms: one general application that is to be copied for each external organization to evaluate and must be accompanied by two letters of recommendation, and one committee application that needs no accompanying documentation since our own scholarship committee is comprised of teachers who know the seniors. Don't forget to provide a signed transcript release and submit all your apps, letters, and other requested information by March 4. All of the scholarships, forms, and applications are available for download from edline. This deadline will not be extended or excepted for any reason other than schools being closed on March 4.

Last, we will devote time with the English 12 classes to assist the seniors in logging on to their connectedu accounts in order to submit midyear transcript requests. The three school counselors will be able to submit midyears electronically on common app, but we need all of the other midyear requests posted on connectedu by February 8 in order for Ms. Billingslea and Mrs. Pope to organize and collate mailing the transcripts when common app is not used.

First Post

Welcome to the blog for Pikesville High School's School Counseling department!

In the pursuit to find the best way to convey the latest information, we are trying this venue. By signing up for email notifications, you can find out anytime the blog has been updated, which we plan to do on a regular basis as scholarships and summer programs are publicized.

This blog is also a way to provide a more in-depth discussion about current or upcoming issues that are pertinent to our students and their families.

So... what's current?

• We held a financial aid information night presented by Benee Edwards from MHEC, and posted (thanks to Jake F.'s mom) the video on our Library/Media Center's youtube page. 
• PSAT and ReadiStep score reports are in the building, and are in the process of being distributed to English classes in the computer lab, when we will assist all of the students in creating accounts at www.collegeboard.org. Such an account is necessary to register for the SAT Reasoning and SAT Subject tests, so it is important to start that now. Not only will students use the site to register for the tests, but their ReadiStep and PSAT score reports grant them access to MyRoad, to explore colleges, careers, and majors. 
• Half of our sophomores and half of our juniors took a Field Trial version of the SAT in September. The College Board tells us that they will ship the score reports to us by December 20, so they will likely be distributed to students in early January.
• Also in January, we will start the process of course advising for the 2013-14 school year. Look for links to our first Virtual AP fair!
• February 4-8 is National School Counseling week. One of our events that week will be the #PHSfit College Fair, attended by between 25 and 75 regional colleges. The fair will be held from 5pm to 6:30pm, with a college information session presented by Craig Meister from 6pm to 7pm. Dinner will be available as a fundraiser by our AVID students.
• March 4 and 5 will bring the CCBC/BCPS college fair, attended by more colleges (more opportunity) and more people (less intimacy) than our school's college fair. We recommend that you attend both to get the most exposure to possible appropriate college matches.