High School Counselor Week

More Cause for Concern About Fall Enrollment
Inside Higher Ed – April 28, 2020
As the traditional May 1 college decision day approaches, admissions leaders have been expressing concern that a significant number of students who’ve paid deposits promising to attend certain campuses will opt against enrolling because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Colleges Are Urged to Reassess Admissions Policies Because of ‘Extraordinary Hardships’ COVID-19 Poses
The Chronicle of Higher Education – April 29, 2020
That’s what the National Association for College Admission Counseling, or NACAC, urged institutions to do in a forceful written statement on Wednesday.

How the Coronavirus Pandemic Has Shattered the Myth of College in America
The New Yorker – April 28, 2020
The promise of college in America is the promise of a clear path to the future, of a reward for all the sleep deprivation and soul-deadening competition of high school, and, most of all, of instant adulthood…

Desperate for fall enrollees, colleges are luring students with campus perks and cold cash
Washington Post – April 22, 2020
Free classes! Free parking! Prime dorm rooms! More cash! The more they worry about whether students in this year of the coronavirus will show up in the fall, the more admissions officers have started sounding like the salesmen on late-night TV infomercials.

Letter grades get erased from school, with little consensus on how to replace them
Washington Post – April 25, 2020
Leaders across the region and country grapple with how grades fit into the unprecedented and imperfect world of online education.

National Signing Day is Different This Year
Post – April 30, 2020
Counselors’ Corner with Patrick O’Connor Ph.D.

Letters of Recommendation – Part 2
Tribune News Service – April 29, 2020
College Admissions Strategies with Lee Bierer 

Distanced Learning
The Chronicle of Higher Education – April 24, 2020
After his high school closed, a counselor confronted the digital divide — and the meaning of connection

Lowest student-to-school-counselor ratio since 1986
Hechinger Report – April 27, 2020
Economic recovery and concerns about school shootings led to hiring more counselors

Free 360 college campus tours to students sheltered-in-place
Fox 5 (Atlanta) – April 22, 2020
High school seniors don’t have the option during the pandemic to visit campuses in person. But one Atlanta college counselor has created 360 camera campus tours of the U.S. News Top 100 colleges. From Georgia Tech, UGA, and KSU to UCLA and Georgetown, all 100 videos are on YouTube.

School Counselors Worry Remote Learning Leaves At-Risk Students Vulnerable
Montana Public Radio – April 27, 2020
Counselors say the lack of daily face-to-face interactions may prevent some from getting the help they need.

Seven Tips for Parents Schooling Special Needs Kids
The Boca Raton Tribune (FL) – April 28, 2020
A special education teacher offers help and advice for parents of learning- disabled kids during this homeschooling period

Go to college or skip it? High school students face a new reality due to coronavirus
CNBC – April 24, 2020
In addition to concern about their own future, teens are also worried about their family’s immediate financial situation. That’s why it is important for parents to talk with their children about what’s happening and walk through the different ways to address the situation.

Common App, College Advising Corps Tap AI to Support College-Bound Students
Yahoo! Finance – April 23, 2020
AdmitHub’s pioneering conversational AI will provide real-time, personalized guidance; help colleges reduce ‘summer melt’ among low-income and first-generation students

Seven Ways 9th And 10th-Graders Can Use The Coalition To Get A Head Start On College
Forbes – April 29, 2020
As colleges become more and more competitive, students start to build their college applications as young as the ninth and 10th grades. While it can be challenging to get started when the deadlines seem so far in the future, some resources are available to help you get ahead.

With Campuses Closed, College Tours Move Online
New York Times – April 28, 2020
Colleges are ghost towns, but oficials are trying to reach prospective students with virtual visits and Zoom meetings. Can they replicate that face-to-face feeling?

Skip college this fall? How some students are rethinking their school choices
South Florida Sun Sentinel – April 24, 2020
The coronavirus pandemic has left many universities uncertain whether they’ll be able to welcome students to campus after summer, and many students don’t want to pay for top-flight universities if they can’t get the full in-person experience.

How to get more college aid money now amid the coronavirus pandemic
CNBC – April 29, 2020
Now more than ever, it may pay for students to negotiate with colleges for more money towards tuition.

This free Philly-made chatbot can help students fill out the FAFSA app
Technical.ly – April 21, 2020
Benefits Data Trust’s ‘Penny’ will soon be available to any student who has questions on how to get federal and state grants or scholarships.

Are College Students Eligible For The Stimulus Check?
Yahoo! Finance – April 27, 2020
There’s a subset of Americans who may not get any money at all despite being below the maximum thresholds: college students.

College Board CEO on Coronavirus and SAT Testing
Education Week – April 27, 2020
David Coleman is CEO of the College Board, which recently announced that spring and summer SATs have been canceled due to coronavirus. I reached out to David to find out what’s ahead for the SATs in light of the coronavirus. Here’s what he had to say.

AP Exams Are Still On Amid Coronavirus, Raising Questions About Fairness
NPR (LISTEN) – April 27, 2020
Most standardized tests, like the SAT and ACT, are on hold this spring. But Advanced Placement exams are going forward with a new online format.

College Board adds additional SAT exam in September
SILive.com (NY) – April 27, 2020
If it’s safe to do so, there will be weekend SAT administrations every month through the end of 2020, beginning in August. That includes the new Sept. 26 date, and…

Experts Weigh in on Future of ACT, SAT as Coronavirus Thwarts June Test Dates
The Harvard Crimson – April 27, 2020
As the ongoing coronavirus pandemic forces postponements, cancellations, and the possibility of online exams, higher education experts say colleges and universities should adopt flexible standardized testing policies for prospective students.