March Newsletter

Hello from the EHS Counseling Department!

We are featuring a monthly newsletter to inform our student body and their families about the current happenings in our world of counseling. We would like to let you know that we have created a Counselor Blog. Each month we will feature important upcoming dates, college information, scholarship information, SAT questions, and more! The monthly newsletters will be hosted on our blog as well. Anyone may become a follower of the blog by visiting http://www.ehscounselorblog.blogspot.com/ and clicking on the “follow” link on the right hand column. It is easiest to become a follower if you have a twitter, yahoo, Google, or AIM account, and posts can be sent directly to your email.

Counseling in the Classroom

This month we are doing some exciting work in the computer labs with the student body. Seniors will have an opportunity to apply to College of the Redwoods and a CR representative will be visiting the lab sessions to answer any questions students may have about the registration process. Now is a great time for students to apply to CR and establish their student identification number. To apply now, students should apply for the “summer term” on the application, as the fall term is not yet available on the CR application. In addition to applying to CR, seniors can utilize their time in the labs to finish any scholarship applications or college admission to-do’s.

Freshmen, Sophomores, and Juniors will have an opportunity to learn about the costs of a young-adult lifestyle. Students will be using the California Reality Check website (californiarealitycheck.com) to determine how much living expenses such as housing, food, utilities, and auto will cost in order for them to live in their favorite California city. These lessons have been realistic, tangible, and life-applicable for the students so far, and have been a great success. At the end of the reality check, students learn what yearly income they will need to generate in order to fund their lifestyle. Following the reality check, students can then find careers that offer wages within the range of their lifestyle needs. Using our Kuder Navigator program, students will further research compatible career fields and college training needs for each career field and its various job opportunities. Based on vocational assessment outcomes, each student will receive individualized career recommendations related to his or her personal interests, skills, and values. These lessons are meant to foster students’ post-secondary goals and interests.

Important Dates and Deadlines

There are a couple important dates to take note of for the month of March. On March 17, 2011 from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Eureka High is hosting a College Information Night for Juniors in the Lecture Hall. Parents and students are encouraged to attend together. This will be a very informative event which will touch on the college application process, financial aid, testing, University of California and California State University information, and junior college information. The event will feature guest speakers who are experts on each of these topics. This is an incredible opportunity—don’t miss out!

The next important date to take note of is March 15, 2011. This is the final deadline to turn in the Humboldt Area Foundation scholarship applications (www.hafoundation.org). The Humboldt Area Foundation is a local entity that provides seventy-nine scholarships to local students. This year the scholarship range is from $250 to $7,500 dollars. There is only one application required for all of the scholarships and the applications can be submitted to your counselor on March 15^th for an afternoon drop-off at the Humboldt Area Foundation office. Otherwise, the applications can be delivered or mailed to (postmark by March 15, 2011):

Scholarships

Humboldt Area Foundation

373 Indianola Road

Bayside, CA 95524

Many scholarship applications require a letter of recommendation. EHS Counseling has a letter of recommendation form for students to fill out regarding their achievements and goals, which assists the letter-writer in tailoring a strong letter for the student. This form can be found on the EHS Counseling website at: http://www.eurekacityschools.org/index.php?option=com_remository&Itemid=419&func=fileinfo&id=1438

At this time, the FAFSA priority deadline has passed. If students have not submitted their FAFSA, they should do so immediately (www.fafsa.ed.gov). For those who have submitted their FAFSA forms, keep a look out for the Student Aid Report (SAR), which outlines the expected family contribution (EFC) for college for the 2011-2012 school year. You should receive your SAR 3-5 days following your FAFSA form submission. If you do not receive this form, double check that your FAFSA was submitted (you should have a confirmation notice) and/or contact a FAFSA representative.

            Placement Testing: Students who are attending a California State University should sign up to take the English and Math placement tests, known as the English Placement Test (EPT) and the Entry-Level Mathematics Test (ELM). Each student’s scores on these tests will determine their entry levels for college math and English courses. First-time college students will not be able to register for their classes until they have taken the EPT and ELM placement tests. Humboldt State University recommends incoming freshmen to take the EPT and ELM in March. First-time freshmen who are attending Humboldt State in the fall MUST take the EPT and ELM on either March 19^th or May 7^th, 2011, no later. The deadline to register for the March 19^th test is March 4^th, and the May 7^th test date registration deadline is April 22, 2011. You can find more information about the EPT and ELM, including cost and test exemption rules at: http://www.ets.org/s/csu/pdf/csu_information_bulletin.pdf.

Junior college students must also take a placement test before registering for their Fall 2011 classes. Any student who plans to attend a junior college such as College of the Redwoods will have an opportunity to take the Accuplacer test during the month of March. A CR representative will be hosting testing sessions in a computer lab at Eureka High School. Many junior colleges utilize the Accuplacer to determine Math and English placements, however, some junior colleges use an alternative placement test. Students should contact their junior college to determine which placement test is used at their campus. For more information on the Accuplacer, including practice, visit: http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/accuplacer/.

Another month has successfully whizzed by, and spring is quickly approaching! Seniors, now is the time to be checking your “to-do” list and marking off your completed tasks. Colleges are looking for a strong finish from each of you! The counseling department is looking forward to seeing each of our students pursue and achieve their post-secondary goals, whether they may be junior college, four year-university, or vocational training programs. Our goal is to help you succeed!

Sincerely,

Audra Gosvener, M.A., on behalf of the entire Counseling Department.