Welcome Back 2014-2015!

We're back! Welcome to all students! I'm looking forward to a great year. As we settle in, below are the things to keep in mind for each grade level:

9th - You just got here. Enjoy it, get comfortable with your new school, talk to people you don't know, have fun at Ramapo, build relationships with your teachers. You are going to college, no need to start worrying about it now. Take your academics seriously (your grades, after all, are going on your transcript) but cut yourself a little slack as you learn to be a successful high school student.

10th - This year you are going to take the PSAT for the first time. We all talked together yesterday about how the College Board plans to change the SAT exam for your class, but use the PSAT as an opportunity to get a feel for standardized testing conditions and be open to learning what skills you might need to strengthen as you approach taking the real thing. Haven't found your niche yet? Now is the time to get involved (be it in school or in your community). You live in New York City, take advantage of your ability to truly pursue your passions. Colleges want to see students who are both committed to their academics and who have a three dimensional personality. They also value quality over quantity, so it is ok if your interests have a narrow focus so long as you dive in and explore them deeply.

11th - We are really going to get to know one another well next semester, but as you begin your 11th grade year know that this year is the one that makes a big impression on the colleges. Your 11th grade grades are the last ones that colleges will see on your transcript as they are reading your application. Prove to them the type of student that you are. You too will be taking the PSAT this fall, but for your class you will be the last group to be taking the exam on the 2400 scale. We have over 100 colleges visit our school each fall. If you have a free period, study hall, or lunch you are strongly encouraged to attend some of these visits for schools that you are interested in. It is a great way to learn about the schools and dip your toe into the college search process.

12th - Buckle your seatbelts, this semester is going to be challenging, but I believe in you! You can make it through without being overly stressed. Be organized. Breathe. Search for the answer before you panic, you'll be surprised how often you already have the solution sitting right in front of you. I'll be meeting with each of you individually over the next few months and this is a time when we will discuss your college application list and make sure it is balanced. Students, if you aren't used to checking your email daily, you need to start. This is the main way that both I and the colleges will be communicating with you. I'm excited for our work together!

Where can you find information about the college process and ElRo college office offerings? You got a mailing this summer with the main events that are planned for the year. Save the dates now so you can be sure to join me! You can also find the answer to many questions by looking at the ElRo College Office website, including the College Office Handbook that is available in PDF form on that site (both in the parent/guardian tab and the Junior and Senior tab). Other useful links are found on the right hand side of this blog.

Image

Juniors: Ready, Set, Go!

Last Wednesday marked the first ever Junior College Kickoff - a new approach to the college process that meant jumping right in! (In the past, students got a slow introduction to the process over a series of weeks). THANK YOU to the Class of 2014 for truly making this afternoon presentation a major success. Over the course of two hours, students heard a presentation about the ins and outs of the college process, got a crash course in the Naviance website, got registered on their Naviance accounts, filled out paperwork for me, and took home important forms that will be used to schedule their Junior College Meeting.

I have posted the powerpoints that were presented on the ElRo College Office Website under the 'Juniors' tab. Students were also given their hard copy of the College Office Handbook. This Handbook should be the first place you go to look when you (or your parent/guardian) have a question about the college process.  The next year might be stressful, it might be overwhelming, but very few parts of it will involve a question that doesn't have an answer that can be found in that handbook. Read it cover to cover. Take notes in it. Share it with your family.

Over the next semester, I will meet with each student individually for a one on one meeting. This first of two meetings will mostly focus on getting to know you and brainstorming the qualities you are looking for in a college. Other tasks for juniors this semester include taking standardized testing and starting to visit colleges over weekends and breaks. Remember, students shouldn't turn in their junior meeting request form until AFTER they have completed their Junior Survey in Naviance.

And we're off!

Image

Junior Kick Off!

I've been waiting for this week for awhile now - the start of the college process for students that came to ElRo the same year that I did! Well Class of 2013, the time is now! On Monday, we had the official kickoff to the college process with our College Office assembly. Students heard a very broad overview of the process in an assembly and were also given a paper copy of the College Office Handbook to hopefully take home, read, and share with parents/guardians. As an aside, each student will only get one hard copy of the handbook, so guard it well and don't lose it! Just in case, a digital copy of the College Office Handbook can be found here

Next Monday, Seniors will visit Advisory classes to present on how to use Naviance and then Juniors will register for their Naviance accounts. (Registration codes will be emailed to students on Monday and every student is expected to sign up by mid-week).

Once registered with Naviance, Juniors should complete their Junior Naviance Survey and then fill out the Junior Meeting Request online form in order to be assigned their Junior meeting with me. I know that is a lot of steps-- so, let's summarize:

1) Get trained on Naviance on Monday
2) Log in to ElRo email, get registration code, and sign in to Naviance for the first time
3) Fill out Junior Survey on Naviance
4) Using link posted on Naviance, fill out Junior Meeting Request
5) Keep an eye on your inbox to find out when your Junior meeting will be!

Image

Welcome to the College Blog!

     When I joined the staff at Fordham we were inspired by the ever impressive MIT admissions blog and I was one of the three people on staff that was asked to blog for the office. I'm about 95% sure I was the only one actually excited about the task, but needless to say one thing led to another and the blog never went live. . .
    Fast forward a few years and now I've transitioned to working as the college counselor at Eleanor Roosevelt High School and I couldn't be more happy with my job. I have been working to post weekly (ahem, sometimes bi weekly) newsletters with a column at the start but my hunch is that the newsletters go largely unnoticed. I understand why: they are not posted the same time each week and they are a little on the long side will all of the updates and announcements. It also takes a few clicks and opening a pdf to see them. So I got to thinking it would be easier, and maybe a little more fun, to start a blog instead.
    Posts will run the gamut from application advice, college related national news, my own experiences with working on both sides of the admissions desk, financial aid, and general ElRo College Office announcements (sorry those, in combination with my pesky emails to students, won't be going anywhere).
    You can follow the blog posts by subscribing via the links on the right. There will also be a link on the ElRo College Office website. Hopefully the things I post here will be useful for students and parents alike. The college process can be stressful, but I'm a firm believer that information and action pave the way to reducing that stress. Having a positive attitude and approaching this topic from a place of calm are the first steps toward a healthy college process. With over 3,700 colleges and universities in the United States to choose from, there are multiple options out there for every student to find the right 'fit.'
    Thanks for reading!