Cameron Reed Voted Senior Class President

The First Israelite SGA Senior Class President of Paulding County

Hello, my name is Cameron Reed and I proud to say I am the first Israelite Senior Class President of Paulding County High School. I thank my God the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob for blessing my with this leadership role. At first I had a lot of critics even my so called friend doubted me. They told me “I am too dumb, not qualified, or you are black and white people always win that type of positions.” All the critics and haters just made me work even harder to get success. I worked hard for this position. I created a funny video and the link is below. I and my family had prayed about it and God of Israel heard. God of Israel blessed me with the position to be the SGA 2016 Senior Class President.

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Way to go Cameron!!!

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A Roundtable with President Barack Obama: The Cost of Education

VICE hosted a roundtable discussion, moderated by VICE founder Shane Smith, with President Barack Obama and five students who discussed the challenges surrounding student debt and the pursuit of higher education in the US.

University of Toronto Schools

 

University of Toronto Schools (UTS) is a university preparatory school, grades 7 through 12, affiliated with the University of Toronto. Located on U of T's St. George Campus, UTS offers high-achieving students a specialized curriculum and a unique co-educational learning environment that encourages creative interests and physical activity as well as a sense of social responsibility.

UTS graduates are admitted to highly-selective North American colleges and universities, many on scholarships. UTS is renowned for educating generations of outstanding graduates including two Nobel Laureates, 20 Rhodes Scholars and numerous leaders in commerce, industry, academics, the arts, sports, government and public service.

UTS is the only merit-based university preparatory school in Canada affiliated with a university and located on a university campus. Admission to UTS is based on overall performance. Financial accessibility is supported through a generously endowed bursary fund to which families may apply and which has been set in place to provide opportunities for qualified applicants.  

Congrats to Mock Trial Winners!

Congrats to Naomi & Sarah for winning their Mock Trial Competition. 

The Missouri High School Mock Trial Competition is the largest and most established program coordinated by the Bar Association of Metropolitan Saint Louis.  It serves more than 600 students from more than 65 schools throughout Missouri. During the summer, volunteer attorneys develop and write the mock trial case or problem for the regional and state competitions. After the case is completed, a manual is developed to help the students.  With the support of attorney volunteers, students tackle age-appropriate legal problems, engage in legal analysis, and ultimately try a case in a real courtroom before an actual judge and a jury made up of community members.

 

Join A Mock Trial Competition in Your Area - Highly Recommended!

 

President Obama Proposes Free Community College for All

President Obama has proposed that two years of community college be available free for all students. Under the plan students would have to attend community college at least on a half-time basis. Students must maintain a 2.5 grade point average and continue to make progress toward an associate’s degree or technical certificate.

Under the plan the federal government would issue grants covering three-fourths of all tuition costs with participating states paying the remaining one-quarter of a student’s tuition.  The White House estimates that the program would benefit nine million students annually and save them an average of $3,800 in tuition costs each year.

The White House did not specify where the funds would come from to finance the new program. With a GOP-controlled Congress, it undoubtedly will be very difficult for the President to establish a new massive public program.

While the new plan would seem to be highly beneficial to the educational prospects of African Americans, some Black leaders have expressed a fear that a free community college education will serve to drag down enrollments at four-year historically Black colleges and universities. Many of these schools are struggling financially. If large numbers of Black students opt for the free community college plan, enrollments at these four-year HBCUs might drop significantly

Oakland Teen Akintunde Ahmad Has 5.0 GPA, Scores 2100 On SAT, Accepted I...

New SAT: The Essay Portion Is To Become Optional

Essay optional. No penalties for wrong answers. The SAT college entrance exam is undergoing sweeping revisions.

Changes in the annual test that millions of students take will also do away with some vocabulary words such as "prevaricator" and "sagacious" in favor of words more commonly used in school and on the job.

College Board officials said Wednesday the update — the first since 2005 — is needed to make the exam more representative of what students study in high school and the skills they need to succeed in college and afterward. The test should offer "worthy challenges, not artificial obstacles," said College Board President David Coleman at an event in Austin, Texas.

The new exam will be rolled out in 2016, so this year's ninth graders will be the first to take it, in their junior year. The new SAT will continue to test reading, writing and math skills, with an emphasis on analysis. Scoring will return to a 1,600-point scale last used in 2004, with a separate score for the optional essay.

Do ACT and SAT scores really matter? New study says they shouldn’t

Remember fretting about your ACT and SAT scores? A new study reveals that it really is only a number and not a reliable predictor for college success.

Teens across the U.S. are standing by their mailboxes, waiting anxiously for the envelopes that will seal their academic fate. It’s college admissions season and for many students a lot hinges on how well they performed in standardized testing.

But how much should exams like the SAT and ACT really matter?

A study published Tuesday that probed the success of “test-optional” admissions policies in 33 public and private universities calls into question the need for such testing.

Former Dean of Admissions for Bates College William Hiss led the study which tracked the grades and graduation rates of students who submitted their test results against those who did not over several years.

Hiss’ data showed that there was a negligible difference in college performance between the two groups. Only .05 percent of a GPA point set “submitters” and “non-submitters” apart, and the difference in their graduation rates was just .6 percent.

There are about 850 test-optional colleges in the U.S., and the trend is growing slowly.

What should college admissions officers look for instead? Hiss says GPA matters the most.

“The evidence of the study clearly shows that high school GPA matters. Four-year, long-term evidence of self-discipline, intellectual curiosity and hard work; that’s what matters the most. After that, I would say evidence that someone has interests that they have brought to a higher level, from a soccer goalie to a debater to a servant in a community to a linguist. We need to see evidence that the student can bring something to a high level of skill,” Hiss said.

Learn to Score College Scholarships on Campus

Ask your college’s financial aid office and academic departments about available student scholarships.

Across the nation, college students are returning from winter breaks and J-term sojourns and the second semester of the year is getting into full swing. If you're in college, you know how hectic this time of year can be. You're finding your way to new classrooms, your brain is occupied by new subjects and your wallet is a little lighter thanks to new textbooks.

In the midst of all of that, financial aid is probably the last thing you want to think about. Like it or not, though, the new year also means taking a new look at your money. Fortunately, there are only a few things that all college students need to do in order to find and maximize the scholarships they can find on campus. 

1. Don't forget your FAFSA: If you're a freshman, this year's Free Application for Federal Student Aid might be a little more complicated than last year's. Even if you're a rising senior, it will still require a few more calls and emails to your parents. 

Despite the extra effort, the FAFSA – which became available Jan. 1 for this year's applications – is still key to much of your financial aid and scholarship eligibility for next year. 

The form will determine your federal and state financial aid packages, and many colleges require it for need-based institutional scholarships. Check your school's deadlines carefully. Old Dominion University, for example, requires a FAFSA by Feb. 15 to be considered for need-based scholarships and students going to California State Polytechnic State University have until March 2. 

2. Make friends with the financial aid office: Even if you've only completed one semester of college, you probably know that the financial aid world can be confusing. Fortunately, there are trained experts on your campus who can help you find opportunities and figure out how scholarships can fit into your total financial aid package. 

Colleges Commit to Increasing Access for Low-Income Students

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More than 100 college presidents along with several directors of nonprofit organizations came to the White House on January 16 for the Expanding College Opportunity Summit. The academic leaders were addressed by Michelle Obama and President Obama.

Leaders of 119 institutions made commitments to increase financial aid programs for low-income students, boost outreach efforts to recruit students from low-income families, or take other measures to increase access to their institutions for students from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds. Several institutions committed to increasing their participation with the Posse Foundation or Questbridge, organizations that are focused on increasing educational opportunities for low-income students.

Here is a sample of commitments made by some high-ranking institutions at the summit:

Brown University has made plans to begin a new paid internship program for students receiving need-based financial aid.

Columbia University will fund an outreach program that will pay travel costs for current undergraduate students to return home to recruit low-income students.

Harvard College announced plans to increase outreach efforts to low-income students through social media.

Princeton University has hired a new admissions officer who is charged with increasing outreach to students from low-income families.

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill will double the size of its Chancellor’s Science Scholars Program that provides financial aid and support programs for low-income students in STEM fields.

Spelman College pledged to raise $1 million to support its President’s Safety Net program which provides financial aid for junior and seniors who would not be able to complete their degrees without additional assistance.

Pomona College set a goal of increasing its percentage of students receiving federal Pell Grants from 17 percent to 20 percent.

Northeastern University pledged to provide 30 new full-tuition scholarships for low-income students from the Boston Public School system.

Download the complete list of all the commitments here.

6 Questions To Ask Your HS Counselor Before Graduation

High school and the college application process often send pre-collegiettes searching far and wide for information and advice, but many don't think to visit one unassuming place right on campus for help: the counselor’s office. Your high school guidance counselor is not just there to help you pick classes; she’ll also be able to give you a vast amount of information about topics ranging from local college fairs to scholarships.

"Beyond knowledge of schools, training and financial assistance, experienced school counselors have learned from the shared experiences of hundreds and thousands of graduates," says Tom Dezell, author of "Networking for the Novice, Nervous, or Naive Job Seeker." "They can probably answer just about any question."

Before you begin asking your counselor questions, however, Dezell suggests that you give the counselor some ideas about what you want to do after graduation. "This will give the counselor ideas on where to start," he says. "Experienced counselors can recommend courses of action for any situation, including uncertainty."

To make it easier to start a conversation with your counselor, check out these six useful questions that you should ask your counselor before you graduate!

1. How does our school compare to others in terms of test scores and reputation?

This is a question you should ask when trying to decide which colleges to apply to so you can gauge your chances of acceptance. Who better to ask than your counselor?

“The counselors will know how various schools perceive one's school based on how other grades have fared in applying,” Dezell says. Your counselor will be able to give you a good idea of how your school compares to others and explain how this plays into your college application process.

Choose Wisely: The Stress and Fear of Picking Colleges

December is a big month for high school seniors applying to college. More than 2.5 million Americans will apply to college this year. As a high school student, the multiple "early decision" deadlines have just passed and regular decision applications are due after the holidays. College is approaching fast-- and I'm still in 11th grade.

I am not alone. More than 40 percent of kids ages 18 to 24 were enrolled in a higher education program.

Securing the right college for me at this time is an odd thing to comprehend. Seeing friends, only one year older than me, be thrown into the college application process made me realize that in one short year I would be in the same position. Here I was, not a quarter of the way done with my third year of high school and already it felt like I needed to plan for life after graduation.

Initially, I felt like my time at school was ending. Based on how quickly high school was moving by, I felt like college would be here and gone in a minute. I realized that this thought process was a bit hasty. In reality, I was only a little more than half way done with high school and had plenty of time before I need to plan for post-graduation.

However, many of my friends expressed similar stresses. While some know what they are looking for in a college experience, many do not.

For the high school students who feel uncertain about what they want from college, an environment of stress over college applications can leave them feeling frazzled. The current system of college decision making, assumes that by the end of junior year, students know what they are looking for in the upcoming four years.

Land a summer job now over your winter break!!!

Here are a few proven approaches to get you on the right track in pursuit of your internship:

1. Plan for a marathon, not a sprint. Know that you may get 10 or 20 “no’s” before you get a yes.

Know that you’re going to have to get outside your comfort zone. Appreciate that what you’re attempting to do is difficult and take on a “I refuse to lose” mentality. You can get an internship, but you’re going to have to work hard to do it — and be pleasant and charming along the way to get someone to offer you a great opportunity.

2. Go to your school’s career center. Go early. Go often. In fact, go this week when you’re done with finals.

Ask them what opportunities are out there and what the process is to secure one of them. If you’re an underclassmen, you may find the options limited, but it is worth the trip. Also make sure they have your contact information and know that you’re willing to consider any opportunity so that you’d greatly appreciate them keeping you in mind when they hear of any.

Stopping by (or e-mailing) every week or two is persistence — and it will help make you top of mind when opportunities do pop up. Remember, you’re in “sales mode” here. Be your most charming and friendly self!

3. Plug your nose and network. Networking is a pretty unattractive concept for most students, but it’s the #1 way people get jobs, so it’s time to overcome your fear of it and put yourself out into the marketplace.

Don’t Count Out Medical School After One Bad Premed Semester

Getting into medical school is difficult, and applicants are frequently rejected because their grades are not high enough.

According to the Association of American Medical Colleges, the average GPA of an applicant who matriculated at a medical school was 3.68 in 2012, close to an A-minus average. This puts a lot of pressure on medical school hopefuls because it is a challenge to do that well every semester. 

So what if you have a bad semester or two? Are your chances at getting into medical school gone? If you are, have been or could be in this situation, there are some things you should consider before you decide to switch majors. 

1. Why did you do poorly? First, determine why you underperformed. Were you lazy? Did you simply have difficulty understanding the material? Are you a bad test-taker? Do you genuinely dislike what you are learning? 

Evaluate where you went wrong and decide whether it is fixable. If it is laziness, you can change that. 

On the other hand, if you realize you hate science and you dread studying anything science-related, maybe medicine is not for you. You must be willing to be honest with yourself. 

2. Are you overreacting to the situation? There is often a big difference between a premed student's idea of a "bad" semester and everyone else's definitions. Many premeds think that anything below a 3.6 GPA is not sufficient. Many students would likely be happy with a 3.5 GPA. 

Black students lagging in admissions to University of California

Black students have been admitted to the University of California at starkly lower rates since racial consideration was banned in public college admissions in the state, especially at the most prestigious campuses, a report showed on Thursday.

The report, by the education policy group Campaign for College Opportunity, also showed that African-American students were less likely than students from other ethnic groups to graduate from the state's public colleges and universities, and took longer to complete their degrees. (Report: http://r.reuters.com/mub35v)

The study comes amid an ongoing debate in the United States over affirmative action, the practice of giving an advantage in hiring or college admissions to some minority applicants to boost opportunities for under-represented populations.

"The persistent disparities between black students and their counterparts should sound an alarm for Californians and our elected leaders to make a concerted effort to systematically narrow and close these gaps," Michele Siqueiros, the group's president, wrote in the report. "To do otherwise is to accept a society of 'haves and have nots.'"

Amid a heated public campaign, California voters opted to end affirmative action programs in the most populous U.S. state in 1996, and the issue of racial preferences has been a frequent subject of legal battles across the country.

The U.S. Supreme Court is currently considering the constitutionality of an affirmative action ban in Michigan, and earlier this year instructed a lower court to ask hard questions of a program at the University of Texas.

The MAC Scholars Program

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The MAC Scholars Program
The Minority Achievement Committee, known informally as the MAC Scholars Program, is a student-led program aimed at improving the academic achievement of African-American males at Shaker Heights High School.


Widely emulated by schools all over the United States, the program was initiated by high-achieving African-American students in 1990 and continues to be led by high-achieving juniors and seniors. Key elements of the program include goal setting, mentoring, help with study skills, use of the academic support resources available at the High School, and public recognition of academic improvement.

SAT / ACT Test Taking Timeline

While most of your standardized test taking will happen during your junior year, there are many things you can do to start preparing early. College may not be the first thing on your mind as you start high school, but by thinking ahead you can give yourself an edge on college applications. Here’s what to think about during your freshman year. You’ll thank yourself later!

9^th Grade:

·         It’s not too soon to enroll in SAT & ACT prep classes. The earlier you start, the better prepared you’ll be.

·         Start thinking about SAT Subject Tests*. Not all colleges require these, but if your goal is to attend a highly competitive college, you should start considering what high school classes to take in preparation. For example, the foreign language Subject Tests require at least 3 years of coursework, but the listening tests can be taken each November by anyone that is fluent.

10^th Grade:

·         We’re getting redundant, but start your ACT and SAT prep classes! Even just once a week will help you start learning the types of questions you’ll see and leave you much more relaxed come test time.

·         Two SAT Subject Tests* to consider taking at the end of this year are the World History and Chemistry tests. As they are quite challenging, these tests are only appropriate if you are currently in their respective AP level classes.

·         Take the PLAN test to prepare for the ACT, if it is offered at your high school. The results do not count for college, but are a great way to see where your strengths and weaknesses lie. PLAN scores can predict how you will do on the ACT and help you know where to focus your preparation efforts.

11^th Grade:

·         Crunch time! Test Prep should ideally begin no later than the summer before junior year,so you are ready for fall testing. The PSAT will be taken in October and then the SAT and ACT can be taken as early as December and February, respectively.

One benefit of taking the tests in the winter months is to avoid testing with high-level seniors, since many of their college application deadlines will have already passed. Removing these scores typically  gives the winter tests a more generous curve.  In addition, if you aren’t happy with your scores in the winter you will have plenty of time to retake the tests in the spring. The only exception to this early-testing rule is for the ACT. For most students, you will want to wait until the April ACT date to give yourself more math preparation time.

·         The SAT Subject Tests* should be taken in May and/or June of your junior year. They aren’t required for all college applications, so be sure to check with the schools you’re interested in. And be careful with your timing – you can’t take the Subject Tests the same day as the regular SAT!

courtesy of http://www.kdcollegeprep.com/120910_testtimeline/

Standardized Tests - When Should Students Begin Taking Them?

Most students will plod along through school, trusting their counselors to tell them when to do things. That includes when students should begin taking standardized tests such as the SAT and ACT. Most counselors go by the guidelines of the testing services, and that's fine, but there are some advantages to doing it a bit earlier than suggested. Taking those into consideration, many students will find that they want to begin testing as early as during the middle school years.

The purpose of standardized tests like the SAT and ACT is to provide colleges with a level playing field from which to compare applicants. That does not mean that the tests actually prove intelligence or book "smarts," but rather a student's ability to perform well on this type of test using the knowledge base that they have. Some students will do better than others on these tests just because they tend to perform better on tests in general.

One of the reasons for this is that many students get nervous when it comes time to take a test. That holds true for standardized tests, too. SAT and ACT tests are set up to have timed sections and wordy directions, and students facing them can quickly become overwhelmed. That is, of course, unless they have gotten used to the testing process and familiar with the "feel" of taking SAT and ACT tests early on. That's where the question comes in about when to have a student begin getting familiar with standardized tests.

Howard University's First Students Were White And Other Little Known Facts About HBCU's

There are over 100 historically black colleges and universities in the United States.

According to the Higher Education Act of 1965, an HBCU is defined as an institution established and accredited before 1964, whose principal mission was to educate black Americans.

HBCUs were established in response to the increase in the number of escaped slaves, who were considered a contraband of war during the Civil War if they managed to reach union lines, followed by the eventual passing of The Emancipation Proclamation. Public universities in the South were not integrated at the time.

These schools are rich in history. For example, many of the colleges and universities are known to have been at the forefront of civil rights activism. But, there are a few little nuggets of history that are not as well known (like most of them are named after white men, with a few exceptions).

We pulled a few of the most interesting little known facts about HBCU's in the list below:

• 1
  This is the founder of Howard University
  Associated Press
  General Oliver O. Howard, a noted Civil War hero, is the founder of the university and was at the time the president of the "Freedman's Bureau." He along with the First Congregational Society banded together to create an institution to teach theology to African-American clergymen and it expanded into Liberal Arts and Medicine.  Although the intent was to "uplift African-Americans, especially those recently freed from slavery" the school was open to all races and both sexes. On May 1st, 1867, Howard University opened with five white female students, daughters of two of the founders.
  

Who Should Go To College?

Education departments around the country are rolling back graduation requirements in a bid to aid students who aren't headed to university. But they risk marginalizing minorities.

Just seven years ago, the Texas Legislature mandated that all high schoolers pass two algebra courses and geometry to graduate. This summer, the state reversed course, easing its strict math, science, and social-studies requirements to free up class time for job training.

Texas legislators want to create a more flexible system that helps students who aren’t headed to four-year colleges enter the workforce. And it’s not just Texas. State legislatures nationwide are enacting laws to promote career and technical education and workforce training in high school.

But that approach carries risks. While it’s true that not all students will go on to college, pulling back on college preparatory coursework has to be handled carefully in a state like Texas, with its hundreds of thousands of low-income and minority students. They’re the students who would benefit from college the most—and who need the most help getting there.

New laws in Texas, as well as in Florida, de-emphasize Algebra 2, the math class required for admission to four-year colleges and placement into college-level math at two-year institutions. Knowledge of Algebra 2 is considered an indicator of college readiness under the Common Core standards, which have been adopted by 45 states, including Florida.

More than half of public-school students in both states are nonwhite. Fifty percent of Texas students and 56 percent of Florida students qualify for federally subsidized lunches. It’s particularly important that low-income, Hispanic, and African-American students leave high school qualified to further their education—even if they don’t plan on doing so right away. A college degree is the most important driver of social mobility. By 2020, 65 percent of all jobs will require some kind of postsecondary education, according to the Georgetown Center on Education and the Workforce.