Juniors, if you haven’t signed up for the ACT yet, you need to do so. If you sign up now you will be taking it in the summer. It’s better to get it done then wait till the fall date. Also for the juniors, the PARCC test will be in April. Every junior will be taking the English test and if you’re in Algebra 2 you’ll be taking both. Freshmen, sophomores, and juniors: you will be selecting your classes for next year soon, so start thinking about the classes you want to take. Lastly, scholarships are still available for the seniors. There are packets and packets to take on the wall by the study hall area. See Mrs. Wenzel if you have any questions.
0 Comments
Have you signed up for the ACT test yet? If you’re a junior considering a four-year university or any of a variety of college scholarships it’s time to do that!!! The state of Illinois has required juniors to take the ACT and has provided the test to school districts for the last few years. But this year, with its infinite wisdom and ongoing money problems and budget issues, suddenly the state is no longer requiring – or fully funding – the ACT experience for Illinois juniors. Colleges, universities, and scholarship boards still want an ACT score for entrance etc. – the test has not disappeared!!! What does that mean for each of our PHHS juniors? It means you’re on your own for this important step in college preparation. What should you do? Well, www.act.org has most of the information that will help you decide. That site will give you a list of fees – on time, late, with and without writing – and test sites – you will have choices, rather than just going where the school bus takes you – as well as other information.
To prepare for the test, much of the classwork offered here at PHHS helps directly with the ACT. The information from your PLAN and PSAT test scores would also be helpful. There are books available – Barnes & Noble, Amazon, etc. are all willing to sell you helpful information. Mrs. Wenzel says that she has some practice information as well. The ACT website will also direct you to available prep classes and information – most of these require a fee, rather than the free, school supplied preparation of earlier years – so be prepared! When you go to that website – you can sign in as a student, then go to Useful Information – Test Dates to find out about deadlines(March 4 , 2016 for the April test), ACT Fees to find out about cost etc. There is also information about times, test sites, picture ids that are acceptable, and calculators, pencils, and other necessities. You can also register on the same website, with a credit card for the fees, or you can register by mail. Whatever you do don’t wait too long to check it all out – March 4 is just around the corner!! Peoria Promise is a 100% donor-funded scholarship that provides out-of-pocket tuition opportunities for qualifying city of Peoria students to successfully complete coursework at Illinois Central College. Although there has been rumors about the students of Peoria Heights being a part of this organization, that is not entirely true. Students that had lived in Peoria for at least three years and then moved to Peoria Heights still qualify for 50% tuition from the Peoria Promise. The application window opens February 1st. If you have any questions, please see Mrs. Wenzel.
When looking around for colleges close to home, Eureka College is a great one to keep in mind. Even though it is most famously known for being the college that President Ronald Reagan attended, Eureka has a lot to offer outside of his legacy. It is a small school with many majors. Eureka also attracts many students due to the low tuition costs, something often seen in small colleges. Eureka’s most famous majors are in the areas of liberal arts and science, but it also has many other majors from social studies to business. One quality about Eureka that attracts many students is the class size, which is 13 students to every teacher. This is a class size that is very reminiscent of classes here at Peoria Heights. Eureka has more than forty sports and clubs, and it is a NCAA Division III school. So, when thinking of colleges around home, keep Eureka in mind!
Paying for college can be a scary thought. Thousands of dollars in debt and to have it pile up for four years scares many people. Thankfully, there are many different programs that exist to help lessen that debt. One of the biggest programs of this kind is FAFSA. FAFSA, also known as the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, offers thousands of dollars in public assistance to college students, but it is on a first-come first-serve basis. Because of that, if you haven’t already started your FAFSA, it would be wise to do so now because money is quickly running out. There are a few items you will need to have with you though before you start the application. First, you will need to create a FAFSA ID through the website. This will be a login for you, but it also will serve as your ID while on FAFSA because it will be checked and verified by Social Security. Along with your ID, you will want to make sure you know your social security number and have your parents’ taxes on hand. The FAFSA asks many questions about your income and about your taxes, so it is essential you have your taxes done to complete the FAFSA. If you have not done 2015’s taxes yet, fear not. Instead, you can use 2014’s taxes and there will be an option for you to go back in later and update your tax information once your parents have filed. The FAFSA can be scary at times, but remember that we are talking about potentially receiving several thousand dollars of aid, so make sure it fill it out.
Besides FAFSA, there is another place many get money for college from and that is through scholarships. Scholarships are really easy to do because for most all you have is an essay to write. The school has some scholarships as well and they will be going up by the end of January. Besides the school scholarships, there are many other places to find scholarships, so make sure to look around. Paying for college can be scary, but it doesn’t have to be. If you are willing to put in the work, you can earn enough money to pay for college. If you have any questions or need any help, come talk to Mrs. Wenzel or to the financial aid advisor, Ms. Gray, when she comes in every other Monday during lunch and advisor. High school opens up a lot of opportunities for your future. Some of the opportunities being a job, a spouse, and one of the most important, college. There is an endless amount of colleges throughout the world you can possibly attend. Some might want to go out of the state, some might like to stay close to home. Some colleges to consider are Western Illinois University, Monmouth, Bradley University, University of Missouri, Saint Louis University, and the University of Michigan. All of the colleges are ones to consider, even if you want to stay close to home. If you need help on deciding what college to attend contact Mrs.Wenzel to learn about your choices and future possibilities. Keep reading the Town Crier for more updates about your school and colleges.
Financial Aid night for the seniors was Tuesday, December 8th. A representative from came to talk to the seniors and their parents about financial aid and other ways to pay for school. One of the topics she went over was how to fill out your FAFSA forms. It’s very important to start filling out your form the day it’s available, which is January 1st. Then for your next year of college you will start filling out on October 1st. Mrs. Wenzel will be talking to the juniors soon about the ACT. Just a reminder that you do need to sign up and pay for it on your own. If you get free lunch you’re eligible for a waiver. The waiver covers the ACT fee. If you’re planning on taking the test in April the deadline to sign up is March 4th. It’s important to start studying now. Before you know it it’ll be the day of the test.
The Peoria Heights High School held their annual FAFSA night for the college-bound students on the 8th of December. The school’s financial aid advisor came and spoke to all of the curious students in the High School’s library. She dropped some knowledge on how to obtain the most federal aid/grant funds out of your FAFSA application. She provided multiple reference sources to the students and parents from packets to folders full of informative sheets. Filling out the FAFSA is a very important step for students that plan on attending college next fall, and we’re very thankful for Mrs. Wenzel and the speakers she brings in to help us with the process. If you did not attend, I highly suggest speaking to someone that did and obtaining whatever information that you missed out on. Also, make sure you’re ready to fill out your FAFSA as soon as possible! The earliest date you can start working on the application is January 1st and they give out federal aid/grants on a first come first serve basis. The Town Crier Weekly Reviewers wish all the students who are going off to college next year luck with all of their endeavors.
Have you looked at colleges and degrees and decided that that is not the path for you? Are you more of a person who wants to work with their hands and have a heavy labor job? Well, good news, there are still many non-college options you can do. One of the most popular options is to go to a trade school. You can go to trade school for many things like cosmetology, welding, electrician, and construction, just to name a few. If you are interested in doing that then you should look into ICC, Midwest Technical Institute, Midstate College, or one of the many cosmetology schools in the area. These all have many options available for education and experience in your field. You will be able to graduate with a certificate and go straight to the job. Another option would be to join the military, which will offer a great amount of experience in your chosen field. The last option is you can get a job right out of high school without having to go to college for it.
College visits and researching colleges is a very important part of senior year. One of the best parts is getting out of school to go look at prospective colleges. One place I went to was Western Illinois University. I went to the Macomb campus, and it was a very beautiful place! The campus was very large, so during the college visit there was a lot of walking. Western Illinois has many great offers for students, like a locked in tuition fee, where most colleges tuition raises each semester for the student. There cost guarantee is not the only thing that appealed to most students, but also there wide variety of majors. Along with that, out of all the colleges I have had the time to visit, WIU has the best dorms and food choices. Some other great colleges to take into consideration of visiting would include Monmouth, Illinois State University, and Bradley University. Senior year can be a scary time, but have fun exploring colleges and looking for somewhere to spend your next four years.
|