High School Advice and Info

Seniors Need to Apply for Financial Aid NOW

2009-01-07T07:46:00.000-08:00

I am a high school counselor and I am telling all my students how important it is to fill out their Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) on January 1st and I cannot tell you how many of them will not do this. I want to get the word out. Maybe if you put something in print for ALL HIGH SCHOOL SENIORS some of them will listen and if I post a newspaper column telling the kids it is necessary, more might do it.
High school seniors need to fill out their FAFSA on January 1st if at all possible. Seniors will not receive any of these grants or loans without filling out this form first. Families should visit the website right away to gather the tax forms and information they will need to supply so that they can fill the form out as soon as possible. The website is http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/ and you can fill it all online. They make this as easy as possible. There is no excuse for not doing this on the first day.
When I was a senior in high school, my counselor Mr. Tsuji made me fill out these forms and helped me turn them in on time. He insisted college was possible and he made it possible for me. I put myself through college with the help of the grants I got all because he helped me with this process. College is possible and there are grants and loans out there, but they are first come, first served, so if kids want a shot at any of this money, they need to fill out the form January 1st.

CIF Transfer question

2008-08-31T15:36:00.000-07:00

My husband took a new job and we just moved to south Orange County (we were in Bakersfield before) and my son is livid and telling me he will not be eligible to play football or basketball for a whole year. A friend of his transferred to our last high school and had to sit out a whole year and my son thinks the same will happen to him. Can you help us in some way? Is there a way to transfer and have your child eligible to play sports? He played both football and basketball at his last school when he was a freshman. He will start this year as a sophomore and he has dreams of trying out for varsity. Do you have any suggestions?

Your son should be fine. A residential move for a child with his parents is not considered a transfer under California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) rules. When he enrolls in his school, he will be immediately eligible to play all of the sports he played at his last school. Those transfer rules that he knew about are in effect only for children who are transferring schools without a residential move. If a child does not move, or if one parent moves, but the other parent continues to reside in the home for which they enrolled their child, that child needs to fill out transfer paperwork to be eligible to attend a new high school. Your son, however, is simply going to a new school, so tell him to get ready to try out for his new team.

Failing kids sometimes have parents to blame

2008-08-31T15:34:00.000-07:00

Be careful when advising people to simply "blame" their kid’s problems on "learning problems". My kids is having much of the same issues [as the mom in your column last week], he's the same age and grade. But I see it as my lack of involvement is the real problem.

People have suggested that my son may have some learning problems, but I know this is nonsense due to his complete ability to do other things in life that "he wants to". He can operate a computer in the dark, if he needs to find the latest clothes or the latest skateboard, he has no "problem" then. My kid can do anything he wants when it is in "his" favor.

I suggest you tell that lady to be more active in the learning process, and not buy into the "learning problem” thing. Ask her if her kid gets things done when it's in the kid’s best interest? I bet you her kid has no problem then! Kids aren't dumb either. They pick up on this "learning problem" thing and use it as an excuse. One more sign that kids are "smart."

You make an excellent point and I thought I was clear last week. Last week, my words were, “If a child fails, it is an indication of either a learning problem or an active attempt to do nothing.” You have to rule out the learning problem because there are parents out there looking for excuses. Once you take away the excuse, you make more progress.

There are good parents out there with rules, expectations, and an understanding of their own children, yet their children are still failing. You sound like one of these parents. You have your child’s number, and you are not giving him wiggle room; yet he is not performing. There has to be a constant pursuit for change. Your child, and all children, cannot be allowed to fail. Failing an assignment is much different than failing a class. You cannot let a child flounder for whole semesters or years and still say they are learning from this method. I hope your child has no computer, fashionable clothes, or skateboards to turn to while he is turning away from books. Also (and this comes back to giving an excuse to kids, so you might not want to show him this comment), if your child excels at hands-on technical experiences but is not reading or writing on grade level, there can be learning deficits that should be explored. This does not mean that he should get away with it. His interests may have helped him build skills in one area while ignoring another, but he still needs to read and write. We all need that skill. If he needs remediation, find it for him while he is still in school.

High Schooler failing - what should we do?

2008-08-31T15:33:00.000-07:00

What should I make my failing son do over the summer? He is in high school. He failed a lot of classes. He is not special ed. He is lazy.

First, he should attend summer school. If he is failing now, he is mapping a tough route for himself after high school. Focus on making him graduate. Before school is out, make an appointment with his high school counselor to see what he needs to do to graduate. At this point, you might need to explore the school district’s alternative high school. The kids that fail in high school sometimes need to go here to get the credits to graduate. Also, make him get a job, the tougher the better. If he can do any manual labor, hauling, loading, digging, outdoor physical work, sign him up. You need to show him that by failing classes, he is not destined for an office job. No one will hire a child to run an office if he cannot pass high school English or Math. Check to see if any grocery stores need cart retrievers. This is a tough job and it may open a door for a career for him later since grocery stores have positions he might be able to move into if he gets his act together.

Ask a Question or Post a Comment

2008-01-29T16:18:00.000-08:00

Ask a question or post a comment. You can do this anonymously or leave a name. I will try to help and your question may be featured in my OC Register Column, on page 2 of the Local Section on Wednesdays.

How To Prepare To Get Into IVY LEAGUE Colleges

2008-01-29T16:09:00.000-08:00

How do we set our kids up to get into Ivy League schools? My child is in the seventh grade, but he is on the path to greatness. I just want to make sure we have him take the right classes and go to the right school. What do kids take to get into these schools? Do we need to do private high school? Our high school will be Mission Viejo High School.

Mission Viejo High School just sent students off to several Ivy League schools, including Harvard and Yale, not to mention Georgetown, UCLA, USC and many other quality schools across the nation. I do not think you are better off going to a private school when you have MVHS as your option.

Your question about what kids should take to get into an Ivy League school was an interesting one. I spoke with a high school counselor from Mission Viejo High School, Gerri Evans, to find out what students need to do these days to get into such schools. Here is what I learned about the children who got into Ivy League schools last year:

“Students who were accepted to the Ivy League schools last year had grade point averages that ranged from 4.92-5.12. They were involved in many extra curricular programs such as, athletics, Drama Model United Nations, Academic Decathlon and were full diploma International Baccalaureate students.

Many students took advantage of the summer programs at the Ivy League and other competitive colleges.

One student had completed 55 semesters of honors courses at MVHS.

Students had typically completed 5 years of a foreign language. One student had taken 2 foreign languages and had completed 4 years of German and 5 years of French by the end of this senor year.

One student had completed 29 “A+’s” during the 4 years at MVHS.”

Encourage your son to do his best and support his education. It sounds like Mission High School has more than enough to offer him. Set goals together. Capable children need to have desire and commitment to achieve something like this.

HIV/AIDS Prevention Education in Schools

2008-01-29T16:08:00.000-08:00

I have to write a letter to the school to get them not to teach my son about HIV and AIDS. How did we get to this immoral place?

The California Ed Code requires all schools to teach HIV/AIDS prevention at least once in junior high and at least once in high school. Ed Code also recognizes that parents have the right to excuse their children from this instruction. This is not a question of immorality, it is a question of making sure our children have all of the information and education we can give them to avoid this epidemic.

Centers for Disease Control (CDC) finds that half of the new HIV/AIDS cases each year are found in young people under the age of 25. California Ed Code demands HIV/AIDS education just as the CDC recommends.

If you choose to teach your children at home about the dangers and significance of HIV/AIDS, you are making a perfectly acceptable choice. Simply notify the school of your wishes, and they will abide by them.

Schools imparting this information to our youth are not acting immorally. They are acting responsibly.

Time to Prepare your FAFSA, Jan 2008 for high school seniors

2008-01-29T15:58:00.000-08:00

It is almost time for High School seniors to fill out and turn in their FAFSA forms. Could you remind your readers how important it is that they turn this form in if they are hoping for any financial aid in college?

Over the holiday, many students and parents should sit down and figure out their tax information in order to prepare their Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) forms. In order to receive any federal financial aid, as well as many types of state student aid, families need to have this form filled out and turned in starting January 1st. The sooner the better is my philosophy. Students also need to check with the financial aid offices of the colleges they are considering to check on additional deadlines and forms these schools may require.

When you fill out the form, you can list up to six colleges, including junior colleges and four-year universities if you are trying to decide between the two. Some families decide to have their child attend community college in the hopes of saving money for the first two years. Regardless of the path your child is taking next year, fill out the form. There is money for kids attending junior college as well as universities.

You will never find what you do not seek.

For more information on the FAFSA and to apply on-line in January, go to http://www.fafsa.ed.gov . Visit the California Student Aid Commission for information on Cal Grants and other student aid information and timelines at http://www.csac.ca.gov .