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Let’s Talk Middle School CCLS

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An exciting development for the upcoming Fall 2023 school year is that  Diogo Santos, who is an experiencedmiddle school teacher International Baccalaureate (IB) art teacher and examiner–and who teaches TM–will be taking the lead in reimagining  CCLS in Middle School.  Diogo’s strength is in curriculum design and integration–and he is also passionate about Consciousness and Creativity, making him the ideal person to take on this opportunity and challenge. (Diogo will continue to teach in Lower School as well.)

 

Interview with Diogo Santos

  • As an educator and a TM teacher I’m really excited to teach CCLS to the Middle School this year, it feels like the perfect combination of academics and the special unique thing that our school has to offer. We are currently working on crafting a curriculum that corresponds to the Middle School student’s realities and expectations of CCLS this year.
  • We are trying to integrate what’s really special about Maharishi’s teachings and the student’s real world experiences with what is meaningful to them at this point in their lives. In order for this to happen we have to collaborative on the development of this curriculum with the students themselves.
  • We will work together to help figure out the topics, the life skills they want to learn, and integrate those to Maharishi’s teachings. The fulfillment of this is to have a curriculum that aligns with the school’s mission and core values and further them along on their learning journey.

middle school students

 

 

 

 

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Let’s Talk Middle School Science

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Mr. Aikar has been teaching Technology courses to our Upper School students this past years using a curriculum that ranges from cyber security and authentic sources, to designing games and building robots.
He will continue to teach technology as a Project to 7th and 8th graders in the Fall 2023 school year–and he will be incorporating technology directly into the curriculum as he teaches Grade 6 Science as well.

Interview with Mr. Aikar

 

  • What I intend to do next year is to make it a lot of hands-on activities. Students will be coming in and playing with things, and experiencing the joy of doing. I will have them get into the area of 3D designing and printing. I want to also introduce to them some coding so that we will gradually prepare them for our High School Robotics program. Then coding will lead to the programs Sketch (for 3d printing) and Scratch (making their own games). Then we will have 3D modeling and making their own remote control cars to play with.
  • We want them to enjoy learning and start their day with something like CNN10, so they can see what’s happening around the world and celebrate everything in class.
  • What I intend to do with Middle School Science is bring the lab into classroom. They can use a lot of props or materials of everyday use and see the science in them. They should be able to take a leaf, extract the chlorophyll out of it and see how the leaf looks without the chlorophyll. They will be able to answer their own simple curious questions. They will feel very fulfilled once they can know the answers for themselves. I don’t want to give them all the answers, I want them to be playful and joyful in the discovery of finding outthose answers.
  • Why students may not like Science and think it’s too hard or difficult to understand is because the approach is exactly the opposite in schools of what we should be doing. We come down with heavy theory and concepts that students feel are too abstract. What we want to do at Maharishi School is take those ideas, those concepts, take those phenomena and break them down into simple concrete theories that are associated with them. So students will learn as if they are breaking down real physical phenomena into simple math and that’s how I believe strongly that by looking at the nature around us we can use math rather than learning math and trying to fit it into nature.

 

middle school students

 

 

 

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Ukrainian Teens Find Refuge on the Tennis Court in Iowa

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Written by Andrea Gallagher | June 30th, 2023

While bombs flew through the sky in a war-torn country last year, three Ukrainian teenagers were safe in Fairfield, Iowa.

ukraine students

Ukraine students in front of boarding dorms.

Thanks to a generous community outpouring, they were able to go to school at Maharishi School, an independent, non-denominational college-prep boarding school.

While the three girls, a freshman, sophomore and senior, left their country and family behind during wartime, they were able to find refuge on the tennis courts. None of them had played the sport before, but decided to give it a try.

“We felt getting to smack tennis balls is good therapy for them,” said their coach, Lawrence Eyre. “It’s nice to be on a court where there are rules and they relished all of it.”

Eyre has been coaching at the school since he founded the tennis program back in the late 1980’s. The boys tennis team won 16 state singles, doubles and team championships under his leadership. He was selected by the USPTA as National High School Coach of the Year in 2009.

Pioneer Girls Tennis Team with Coach Eyre

Originally from the Quad Cities, Eyre later graduated from Yale University and came back to Iowa to work at the Maharishi School as a history teacher and tennis coach. He also coached collegiately at Grinnell College and Knox College.

“It’s fun for me to take whoever comes and see how much they can grow,” he said about coaching. “Improvement is how we measure success.”

“I signed up and instantly fell in love with the sport,” said Mariia Minieieva, the senior. “My coach, Mr. Eyre, was amazingly supportive, patiently guiding me and offering words of encouragement.”

Minieieva was very athletic as she was an aerial gymnast back home. According to Eyre, she had quick feet and was able to get to the ball to win points. She loved being part of a team.

“There’s something genuinely magical about how I feel when stepping onto the court. I don’t know how to describe it, but it feels like all my troubles disappear, leaving me with an overwhelming sense of lightness, ease, and pure enjoyment. In those moments, winning or losing becomes irrelevant,” she said.

ukraine tennis boarding iowa

Mariia Minieieva on the tennis court.

The sophomore, Olena Lysychonok, was a very patient learner and Eyre hopes she will come back and play next year. The  freshman, Sofia Kandyba, had worked her way up on the tennis court. By the end of the year she was playing at the #6 singles slot on the varsity team.

“She had good shot-making skills,” he said. “There was one match against a rival team and it came down to her. She lost the first set, won the second set and won the tie-breaker. She was thrilled to win the match, and we (the team) won the match.”

Eyre acknowledged that each of the girls had a lot going on when they arrived in Iowa, and he did the best he could to help them acclimate to their new environment.

“They had a lot on their plates, and we were extra alert to their feelings. We tried to keep a softer environment around them,” he explained. “Their opponents had no idea they’re from Ukraine where bombs were going off.”

The boarding school is unique as it incorporates Transcendental Meditation twice daily. They call it Consciousness-Based education.

“Our students and teachers take time to transcend twice a day, with the practice of yoga and Transcendental Meditation,” according to the school’s website. “It improves brain functioning. In a world of nearly incessant outer stimuli, it gives them a respite of inner silence, a connection with their own individual true self.”

Eyre said each of the girls are from different parts of Ukraine, so did not know one another when they came to Fairfield. The oldest, Mariia, graduated this year and will be attending Grinnell College in the fall, which is about two hours from Fairfield. However, the transition was anything but easy.

ukraine“The war changed so many things that I wasn’t prepared for,” she said. “Reflecting on it all, during my first semester, I dedicated my days and nights to working on college applications, leaving little time to form close connections or truly enjoy life. This period was the toughest I’ve ever experienced. I worried not only about my future, but also about the fate of my younger brothers, parents, grandparents, and the entire country.”

Mariia’s family recently moved to Atlanta, Georgia, where they are renting a house and looking for jobs. They had to abandon their properties, jobs, schools and country, all while learning a new language. Things are difficult but she’s thankful they are closer, and for the kindness of others.

“While things may seem challenging, I take comfort in knowing how strong my parents are and how many wonderful people support them. I believe that with their resilience and the help of those around us, everything will work out in the end.”

Eyre has coached many kids and adults in his storied career. Marria, Sofia and Olena have left quite an impression on him.

“Their willingness to take on so much change inspires me,” he said.

Meanwhile, Olena and Sofia will continue their education and tennis at Maharishi School, a world away from their former lives.

 

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End of Year Wrap Up 2023

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ROCKETRY
Our team qualified for The American Rocketry Challenge (TARC) Nationals in Virginia as one of the top 100 in the nation. There we finished 17th in the US, out of almost 800 original entries, which also qualifies our team to apply for the NASA Student Launch Program next year.
DESTINATION IMAGINATION
Our Upper School team advanced to the international Global Finals in Kansas City and received 1st place in Instant Challenge and 7th place overall in their Secondary Technical category. This is the first time a Maharishi School team has won the Instant Challenge award.
SCIENCE RESEARCH
We participated in multiple science fairs with achievements in each. At the Hawkeye State Science Fair, our students placed 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and Honorable Mention in their categories and Poojita Mukadam received an invitation to observe at the International Science and Engineering Fair in Dallas.
Ishita Mukadam earned an invitation to the National Junior Symposium in Virginia to present her research project.
ROBOTICS
Our team in the FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics Competition advanced to the Super-Qualifier round in the Iowa state tournaments.
TENNIS
Both our girls and boys teams advanced to the “Sweet 16” in the state competition.
Junior Ishita Mukadam earned a trip to the State Singles tournament and finished 7th, the first girl to place at State since 2011.
COLLEGE ACCEPTANCES
Our 17 multicultural seniors were accepted at universities across the United States, from UC-Berkeley and UC-Irvine to Purdue, Grinnell, Iowa and Iowa State, to Emerson College (Boston). Four will be attending Maharishi International University.

 

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Learn More About the Education Savings Accounts (ESA) in Iowa

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What is the ESA?

The Students First Act, introduced by Governor Reynolds and signed into law on January 24, 2023, supports the success of every K-12 student in Iowakindergarten by makes state funding available. The bill establishes a framework and funding for education savings accounts, which may be used by eligible families to cover tuition, fees, and other qualified education expenses at accredited private schools in Iowa.

How does ESA work?

Parents who choose to enroll their eligible children in an accredited private school will receive an amount equal to the per pupil funding allocated to public school districts for the same budget school year. Funds will be deposited into an education savings account (ESA) to be used for tuition, fees, and other qualified education expenses as specified in the legislation.

The state has signed a contract with Odyssey to manage program administration for Students First Education Savings Accounts, including applications, financial transactions, compliance, fraud prevention and customer service. Odyssey was selected through a competitive bid process based on its ability to first gradesecurely administer funds, provide families with direct customer service and support and offer the state real-time insight into the program’s effectiveness.

The Office of the Governor, Department of Education, Department of Management, and Office of the Chief Information Officer are working with Odyssey to implement the technology platform. The state plans to begin taking applications during the month of May, but a specific date has not yet been announced. Details regarding the application process will be provided later this month to help families prepare to apply. Applications will be due on June 30, 2023, for the 2023-2024 school year.

 

Who is eligible?

Students First ESAs will be available based on the following eligibility:

Year 1: School Year 2023-24 

  • All entering kindergarten students
  • All students enrolled in a public school
  • A student enrolled in a private school with a household income at or below 300% of the 2023 Federal Poverty Guidelines, $90,000 for a family of four

Year 2: School Year 2024-25

  • All entering kindergarten students
  • All students enrolled in a public school
  • A student enrolled in a private school with a household income at or below 400% of the 2024 Federal Poverty Guidelines that will be updated January 2024

Year 3: School Year 2025-26

  • All K-12 students in Iowa regardless of income

Find more details, here.

 

 

 

What is Destination Imagination?

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Destination ImagiNation, Inc., the world’s largest creativity and problem solving organization, inspires participants in all ofDI team 2022 its programs to learn the process, art, and skill associated with problem solving. 

DI is a place where kids take what they know and what they are good at, and learn to apply it to solve challenges, working together and cooperatively with a team and pushing the limits of imagination to best not their competition, but themselves.

Up to seven participants work together as a team for up to 5 months to create their unique solution to a Team Challenge.  Every year 6 unique and new challenges are put out in 6 different areas: Technical, Engineering, Fine Arts, Scientific, Improv and Public Service. Frequently, challenges also incorporate history, culture, literature, math, science, technology and the arts. 

Teams also learn and practice “think on their feet” skills for the Instant Challenge portion of the competition.
Destination ImagiNation helps young people learn in a fun and supportive environment, and the valuable skills they have acquired will be with them for a lifetime.
competition DIParticipants learn unique and critical life skills including teamwork, critical and creative thinking, project management, resource management, mutual respect, research and presentation skills and, as all challenges must be strictly team-solved, self-reliance. These skills make Destination ImagiNation participants more valuable to their communities and as future employees.

Maharishi School Teams

This year Maharishi School has 5 teams.  We have 3 Elementary teams, 1 Middle School Team and 1 Upper School team.  2 teams choose to solve the Engineering Challenge, we have 1 Fine Arts team, 1 Improv team and 1 Technical team.

We are the only DI teams in Iowa so we compete in Illinois.  Our first competition was a Regional Competition, Saturday, March 4th, in Pekin, Illinois. Our teams did very well, and we’re preparing for the  bigger State Competition on March 25th in DeKalb, Illinois.  There they will compete against the best teams from the 4 Regional Competitions that Illinoiis holds.

Elementary Level:

Fine Arts team:  3rd place, 

Team Manager: Moss Cook

  1. Gus O’Connor
  2. Myka Wallace
  3. Hazel Cook
  4. Scarlett Kranz
  5. Harlo Olsen

The Fine Arts Challenge this year requires : 

  1.  Research well-known stories from any genre, culture, medium, and time period. It is up to your team to determine what it means to be well-known. 
  2. Choose one researched story.  Create and present a Flipped Tale. For this Challenge, a Flipped Tale is a team-created story that is inspired by the researched story but focuses on a New Main Character.
  3. For this Challenge, a New Main Character is a character who existed in the researched story but who is not the main character of the researched story.

Improv team:  3rd place

Team Manager:  Whitney Schutten

  1. Chunni Bregenzer
  2. Prithvi Kalra
  3. Keya Thakker
  4. Fuji Aikar
  5. Isabel Everett

This year the requirements for the Improv Challenge are:

Use up to 2 minutes of Preparation time to create an improvisational Skit about an Underdog preparing for and/or participating in a Competition. Incorporate an Expert into the Skit. Enhance the Skit with Trash Bags and Rubber Bands. Use up to 5 minutes to present the Skit to the audience and Appraisers, incorporating a Complication.

Engineering team:  4th place, and highest Instant Challenge score of our Elementary teams

Team Manager:  Amandeep Negi

  1. Ryder Schuldt
  2. Ishaan Desai
  3. Lyra Montgomery
  4. Mehar Negi

This year the requirements for the Engineering Challenge are:

  1. Research roller coaster design.
  2. Design and build a Roller Coaster that will be assembled and then tested during your team’s Presentation at the tournament. For this Challenge, a Roller Coaster is a structure that supports and guides a tournament-provided golf ball along a single, continuous track. 
  3. Design and create a Launching Mechanism that starts moving the golf ball along the Roller Coaster track.
  4. Test how far and how fast the golf ball can travel along the Roller Coaster track.
  5. Team members must do all designing, cutting, shaping, and assembling of the Roller Coaster and Launching Mechanism.
  6. Create and present a skit telling the story of the roller coaster experience

Middle Level:

Engineering team:  1st place

Team Manager:  Mark Wilkins

  1. Ayaan Desai
  2. Sohani Singh
  3. Pranit Ruia
  4. Eliana Alsenosy

Requirement the same as the 4th grade Engineering Challenge

Secondary Level:destination imagination trophy winners 2023

Technical Team:  1st Place

Team Manager:  Celeste Siemsen

  1. Miles Siemsen
  2. Trent Hefner
  3. Uma Wegman
  4. Eva Marie Quevedo Rubio
  5. Jace Wallace

Requirements for the Technical Challenge this year are:

  1. Design and create a Puzzle that will be assembled during the Presentation.

For this Challenge, a Puzzle is a set of separate, physical pieces that create a single unit when assembled.

  1. The Puzzle must have a minimum number of pieces, according to your team’s competition level:
  • Elementary Level teams must have at least 6 pieces.
  • Middle Level teams must have at least 10 pieces.
  • Secondary and University Level teams must have at least 14 pieces.
  1. Designate one piece of the Puzzle as the Crucial Piece. For this Challenge, a Crucial Piece is the most important piece of the Puzzle. It is up to your team to determine why the Crucial Piece is the most important.
  2. Design and build all pieces of the Puzzle using your own ideas and skills. Your team may incorporate commercially produced items, but for scoring, Appraisers will only consider your team’s changes and/or additions to those items.
  3. Each Puzzle piece and the completed Puzzle should be visible from 25ft (7.62m) away.
  4. Create and present a story about how at least one character’s understanding changes at a Pivotal Moment. For this Challenge, a Pivotal Moment is an event or point in the story when something important is revealed, discovered, and/or learned.
  5. Integrate the Puzzle, the Crucial Piece, and Puzzle assembly into the Presentation.

 

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Middle School Empty Bowls Project

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Empty Bowls

The core purpose of the Empty Bowl project, was for the students to raise money for local food banks as well as food for the bowls international community, while working on project management skills. While our 8th graders worked on various layers of the project to ensure its financial success—it was more than tallying up checks, counting dollars, and change—the event strengthened our community, celebrated the preparation of a variety of delicious soups in beautiful pottery made by the students, and raised community awareness about hunger and poverty, both locally and internationally.

The students set an ambitious financial goal of raising $5000 for the Empty Bowl Project but missed the goal by only $687.19! The students were able to inspire donations and ticket sales to raise $4312.81. This is the most significant amount raised since the Maharishi School began hosting this event.

After the expenses ($154.54) were subtracted, the total being donated to Golden Magnolia Sanctuary Fairfield and World Central Kitchen for Ukraine is $4158.27—51.5% and 48.5% respectively.

 

Learning Objectives

  • Learn how to create and set goals for a planned project.
  • Project Planning and Management Interpersonal skills.
  • Communication skills:  sending emails, add input to newspaper articles, outreach to potential guests.
  • Learn how to make ceramic bowls.
  • Experience one of their 16 Principles in real time: “Thought Leads to Action, Action Leads to Achievement, Achievement Leads to Fulfillment.”

 

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Top 10 Achievements for 1st Semester

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Maharishi School Top 10

On January 12th we honored Maharishi in our traditional Founder’s Day celebration, by recognizing our successes of the past semester, and making wishes for the new year. Your support has given children access to the #1 ranked Private School in Iowa and the benefits of Consciousness-Based education. Thank you for helping our wishes become a reality.

 

  1. NEW UKRAINIAN STUDENTS
    The inquiries came last spring: four Ukrainian students, exiled from their home by the war, asked if they couldukraine students in front of dorm continue their education at Maharishi School. They were attracted to our academic reputation and development of consciousness programs. Within two months, generous donors from our community and across the country raised enough money to fund their living expenses and transportation. Later this fall, three of our seniors, including two Ukrainians, were awarded QuestBridge scholarships for high-achieving, low-income students, covering all of their college expenses.
  2. # 1 RANKINGS
    For five years in a row, Niche.com has ranked Maharishi School #1 in Iowa:
    * Best Private K-12 School
    * Best Private High School
    * Best Boarding School
    Our National rankings continue to improve:
    *Top 4% Most Diverse Private High School
    *Top 5% Best Private K-12 School
    *Top 10% Best Private High School for STEM
    *Top 16% Best College Prep High School
    For more details click here: NICHE #1 for Maharishi School
  3. BOARDING
    We currently have 22 boarding students in our residential life program, a 70% increase over last year. Ourboarding school multicultural dorm includes students from around the world: China, Ethiopia, Germany, India, Nepal/Bhutan, Tanzania, Ukraine, United States and Vietnam. We are eager to fill our dorm to capacity for 2023-24!
  4. AP CLASSES
    Maharishi School earned another 1st place in the state this year… in the “AP Index.” We have the highest percentage of high school students enrolled in Advanced Placement courses of any Iowa school! Our students are enrolled in nine AP courses this year.
  5. CHILDREN’S HOUSE
    Enrollment in the Children’s House are steadily rising back to pre-Covid levels, with new applicants consistently rolling in. We continue to foster, through our Montessori-inspired curriculum, a multi-age classroom, where children can follow their individual interests, while still hitting the benchmarks of the Iowa Standards.
  6. LOWER SCHOOL
    This year the Lower School began their own Student Council, with Ambassadors of Responsibility, Respect, Solutions, Service, and Transcendence, each representing Maharishi School’s Core Values. The Student Council meets regularly to plan activities and initiatives for the Lower School, and they even go into the other classrooms to deliver news or well-wishes to the youngerstudent council students.
  7. CULTURAL PARADIGMS
    New this semester in Upper School, the Cultural Paradigms class was designed to explore the myriad ways of “being human,” through the lens of acceptance and adaptation to differences. Topics include an exploration of cultural values, race, religion, ethnicity, neurodiversity, plus challenges such as physical disabilities, Adverse Childhood Experiences—and the importance of removing barriers to create an equitable society. Pictured in photo is Rabbi Alex Green discussing Judaism. Students are recognizing that complex problems must be solved through collaboration with people who bring different abilities and perspectives to the table—so it is critical to learn how to leverage these differences and celebrate them.
  8. GLOBAL SOLUTIONS
    seniorsFacilitated by Anne Walton, the Senior class recently spent three days at a leadership training retreat learning what it takes to become genuine changemakers. Ms. Walton explained how this includes examining the impact of economics, public policy, community engagement, technology, and the importance of anticipating unexpected consequences, both positive and negative.
    Seniors will apply these principles of collaboration to solve complex problems in the newly created Global Solutions class that begins this month. Small groups of students have already identified their own global challenges, ranging from fast fashion to sustainable housing to support for refugees. These findings will be presented in a final capstone project, to be presented to the community in May.
  9. RAISE CRAZE SUCCESS
    Raise Craze was once again a HUGE success. Students asked friends and family to donate to Maharishi School, and as a way to pay their generosity forward, they performed Acts of Kindness for others. Raising $21,080, our students also performed 924 Acts of Kindness, and school-wide collected 425 pairs of shoes, helping needy people throughout the world.
  10. Maharishi School is deeply grateful for the support shown during our December “Season of Giving” campaign. Our Development Team together with your help, raised $30,000 through Giving Tuesday and Matching Funds.
Thank you all for your
wonderful support!
Cheers to your good health, happiness, and abundance in 2023!

 

 

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Ten Tips to Prepare for College

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It’s not to early to be thinking about…
  1. Utilize AP courses to your advantage but don’t let AP pursuits come at a cost to your grand point average (GPA).
  2. Look for mentors in a field that you can see yourself doing, it helps you start making learning how to network while getting more comfortable at approaching adults that you admire.
  3. Volunteer in your area of passion or something that isn’t related to academia. This shows how well rounded you are and colleges will be looking for that type of individual who stands out in their hours clocked after school.
  4. GPA needs to stay up, in 12th grade there’s often this feeling of “coasting” or “senior-itis” but the truth is that if you let your grades slip during the last few years, your GPA will suffer in the end.
  5. Participate in clubs and school activities. This could mean joining the student council or asking your student council members about how you can get more involved.
  6. Do community service related projects or unique assignments that your teachers offer. If you don’t know where to begin always ask your teachers and they can guide you appropriately.
  7. Internships that are offered over summer break can be give you a huge advantage on your college applications as well as gaining useful skills for life.
  8. Develop strong relationships with at least one of your teachers, they will be the ones who write a recommendation letter for you to get into college so it’s good to have at least one teacher that you can feel closely aligned with.
  9. Start thinking about all of this in 9th grade. It’s not too soon to be considering these tips. Be sure you’re working with your college counselor who will keep you on track!
  10. Look below to find more specifics tips from our college counselor.

 

 

Freshmen preparing for college should plan to:

  •     Take challenging classes in core academic courses.
  •     Work with their school counselors to create a yearly schedule to meet graduation and college admissions requirements.
  •     Talk to an advisor or school counselor about taking Advanced Placement®* and honors courses.
  •     Identify interests and potential career fields through online resources, like this interest profiler, and by attending career fairs and other events.
  •     Get involved with community-based and leadership-oriented activities that best reflect their interests.
  •     Browse the College Scorecard to see what types of schools interest them.
  •     As they find and review them, bookmark resources for college planning.
  •     Start a running list of accomplishments, awards, and recognition’s to use when completing college applications and writing resumes.

Sophomores preparing for college should:

  •     Consider taking a practice test to prepare for the PSAT.
  •     Attend college and career information events.
  •     Start learning about funding for college, including scholarships, grants, loans, work-study jobs, etc.
  •     Consider the types of careers that fit their interests and what college majors they require.
  •     Reach out to school counselors and/or mentors to discuss occupational interests and college requirements.

In the Fall semester, Juniors should:

  •     Take the PSAT if they have not already. Students should generally take the test no later than fall semester of the eleventh grade to qualify for National Merit scholarships and programs.
  •     Attend in-person or online college fairs.
  •     Explore careers and their earning potentials in the Occupational Outlook Handbook.

In the Spring semester, Juniors need to:

  •     Register for college admission exams—SAT, the SAT Subject Tests, and the ACT—and take practice tests. College admissions professionals recommend students have at least one standardized score before the end of their junior year.
  •     Research how to pay for college and what federal student aid may be available to you.
  •     Identify scholarship opportunities to pursue; note deadlines on calendar.
  •     Contact colleges to request information and applications.

During the Summer, rising Seniors should:

  •     Plan college visits.
  •     Narrow down the colleges under consideration.
  •     Make decisions required by colleges’ early-decision or early-action programs.
  •     Complete the Federal Student Aid Estimator.

In the Fall semester, Seniors will need to:

  •     Register for and take (or retake) the SAT and/or ACT, if not already done.
  •     Complete and submit college applications prior to deadlines.
  •     Request transcripts and letters of recommendation at least 30 days before they are due.
  •     Work with parents to complete and submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA® form). Before each year of college, you’ll need to apply for federal grants, work-study, and loans with the FAFSA.
  •     Complete and submit scholarship applications prior to deadlines.
  •     Meet with a counselor to verify that they’ll meet graduation requirements on schedule.

During the Winter months, Seniors should:

  •     Review and make any necessary changes/corrections to their Student Aid Report.
  •     Finish submitting scholarship applications.

In the Spring semester, Seniors will need to:

  •     Visit colleges on their “short list.”
  •     Consider college acceptances; compare financial aid packages offered.
  •     Call college financial aid representatives with questions.
  •     Decide on the college to attend (typically by May 1) and contact its offices.
  •     Make informed decisions about student loans.

While some seniors think they’ve “made it” and can coast in their last year of high school, students preparing for college should recognize that college admissions officers will expect to see they’ve worked hard to keep grades up and stayed involved in school and community activities. Parents may reassure aspiring college students that they can still enjoy life and time with friends while remaining focused on larger goals.

 

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