Advise & Counsel: Counselors Corner Blog

The Hispanic Heritage Foundation is conducting a nation-wide search for the best and brightest Hispanic/Latino leaders. Educational grants are offered in several categories to qualified Hispanic/Latino juniors. Students are also eligible to be selected as a national recipient and recieve a laptop computer and all-expense-paid trip to attend the National Youth Awards Ceremony.

Applicants must be current high-school juniors, plan to attend college in the 2013 Fall semester, be U.S. citizens or have permanent U.S. residency, be of Hispanic/Latino descent (one parent must be Hispanic/Latino), have a minimum 3.0 GPA on a 4.0 scale or a 7.5 GPA on a 10.0 scale. Applicants must also be willing to travel at their own cost to the regional awards ceremony.

Applications are available at www.HispanicHeritage.org. The application deadline is Juny 6, 2012.

The Hispanic Heritage Youth Awards offer educational grants in several categories to qualified Hispanic/Latino high school juniors. Students are also eligible to be selected as a national recipient and receive a laptop computer and alll-expense-paid trip to the National Youth Awards ceremony. The requirements for applicants are: you must be a current high school junior (not senior); you must plan to attend college in Fall 2013; you must have U.S. citizenship or permanent U.S. residency; you must be of Hispanic/Latino descent (one of your parents must be Hispanic); you must have a minimum G.P.A. of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale or 7.5 on a 10.0 scale; and you must be willing to pay your own travel costs to the regional awards ceremony. The application is available at www.HispanicHeritage.org. Application deadline is July 6.

Reynaldo Maestas from the University of New Mexico Combined BA/MD Degree Program will visit the SMHS Library on February 1, 12:15-12:55pm, to meet with interested students and parents. New Mexico high school students who are committed to serving New Mexico communities with the greates tneed are encouraged to apply to the BA/MD program. Visit http://hsc.edu/som/combinedbamd/.

Eastern New Mexico University's Junior Preview Day is Saturday, March 24, at the Campus Union Building Ballroom. Attendees will your Eastern and meet students, faculty, and staff. Registration deadline is Wednesday, March 21. Register online at www.enmu.edu/jrpreviewday.

TEST RESULTS: All juniors have received their PSAT results. All juniors have their access codes for My College Quick Start Program. Using this program, juniors can see their scores and their projected SAT scores, review questions they got wrong, prepare for the SAT with hundreds of practice questions, conduct and save college searches, and take a personality test to find majors and careers that suit them.

Parents/guardians of St. Mike's seniors who would like assistance filling out the Free Application for Student Aid (FAFSA) are invited to attend a workshop on February 2 at 6pm in the SMHS Library. Attendees should bring 2011 required personal and financial information:

• Social Security #
• Driver's License
• 2011 W-2s and other records of money earned
• Both spouses' 2011 Federal Income Tax Return
• Current business and investment mortgage information, busines and farm records, stock, bons and other investment records

Students need to bring:

• Parents' 2011 Federal Income Tax Return (if you are a dependent student)
• 2011 untaxed income records
• Current bank statements

For information click here.

Fastweb has introduced a new college search tool to give students one site to find their perfect scholarship and college. This exciting new tool allows students to search for a specific school as well as search for schools by location, interest, state, and major.

The search gives students results in a simple format and provides information on admissions, tuition, majors, and applicable scholarships, all in one place. Visit www.fastweb.com to seach for colleges and scholarships at the same time!

 Students: remember to visit out Links & Resources page for more great ideas to assist you in your college search.

September 19 - 20: Overnight Senior Retreat

September 30: Senior baby pictures and messages due to Ms. Duran-Eiker

September 29: Senior Ring Mass (Rings must be turned in to Ms. Gloria Trujillo by Sept. 27)

Week of April 23: Spring Senior Retreat

May 9: Senior Final Exams Periods 4 & 5

May 10: Senior Final Exams Periods 2 & 3

May 11: Senior Final Exams 1st Period
             GRADUATION PRACTICE after 1st period exam

May 13: Block M Awards

May 15: Senior Mass

May 16: Senior Awards

May 18: Graduation   

NOTE: THIS INFORMATION CAN BE FOUND IN COUNSELORS CORNER BY CLICKING ON ACADEMICS, AND THEN ON COUNSELORS CORNER

→The counseling staff will meet with all students during the first few weeks of school. Ms. Chacon meets with seventh and eighth-graders, Mr. Enloe meet with ninth and tenth-graders, and Ms. Sunseri meets with eleventh and twelfth-graders.

→ On Monday, August 29, 6-7 p.m. in the library, there will be a meeting for parents of ninth-graders, at which Mr. Enloe and Ms. Sunseri will provide information and answer questions about high school graduation requirements.

TEST DATES FOR 7TH, 8TH AND 9TH GRADERS
Studens in 7th, 8th. and 9th grades will take the Measure of Academic Progress Exams the week of September 12-16. Each exam lasts approximately one hour. On Monday, Sept. 12, students will take the Mathematics section during their regularly scheduled math class. On Tuesday, Sept. 13, they will take the English Reading section, and on Wednesday, Sept. 14, they will take the Language usage section, both during their regularly scheduled English class. They will take the Science section on Thursday, Sept. 15, during their regularly scheduled science class. Friday, Sept. 16 is make-up day.

STANDARDIZED TEST DATE FOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS: OCTOBER 12, 2011
Juniors will take the PSAT, and sophomores will take the PLAN. The exams will be held in the morning and students will have the afternoon off. 

Note: The ACRE test will not be given this fall. Instead the test will be given sometime in the spring. Sophomores and Juniors will still be testing. Juniors will take the PSAT in the morning and be in their classes in the afternoon. Sophomores will be in classes in the morning and take the PLAN in the afternoon. All other students will have regular classes on Oct. 12.

ACT/SAT PREP SEMINAR: SEPTEMBER 18, 2011
ZAPS Education Seminars will host a PSAT/SAT seminar to prepare students for those exams. The seminar runs from 12:30 - 6 p.m. and the cost is $89. Register at www.zaps.com or call (877) 927-8378.

COLLEGE FAIRS & COLLEGE REPRESENTATIVE VISITS
SMHS will host a college fair with representatives from colleges and universities in New Mexico and the Southwest on September 29, 1:30 - 2:30 p.m. during 4th period. The annual college fair held at Santa Fe Community College is the evening of October 18. College representatives from many schools visit SMHS throughout the college-search season. Check the College Rep Visit page often for visit schedules.

Congratulations to the class of 2011!

On Friday, May 20, commencement ceremonies were held at St. Francis Cathedral. Ninety-nine percent of our new alumni are going to college—that’s 124 out of 125 students. (One student has secured a position with Santa Fe County.) Seventy-one percent will attend colleges and universities in New Mexico, and 29 percent will attend out of state schools.

Left to right: Emily Toczek (Fort Lewis College); Liana Coppola (University of San Francisco);
SMHS Salutatorian Nicole Neidhardt (University of Victoria or University of Calgary);
SMHS Salutatorian Caitlin Smith (Santa Clara University); Sally Feldewert (Benedictine College);
Griffin Cullen (St. Mary’s College of California)

Alumni from the class of 2011 will attend the following colleges and universities:
Arizona State University                                                 
Universal Technical Institute, Phoenix
St. Mary’s College of California
California State University, Chico
Santa Clara University
University of California, San Diego
University of San Francisco
San Diego City College
Santa Monica City College
Santa Rosa Junior College
Regis University
Fort Lewis College
DePaul University
University of Notre Dame
Benedictine College
Bethany College
Tulane University
McNeese State University
United States Naval Academy
Boston University
Kalamazoo College
Montana State University
Eastern New Mexico University
New Mexico Highlands University
New Mexico State University
University of New Mexico
Central New Mexico Community College
Dona Ana Community College
Santa Fe Community College
Marymount Manhattan College
New York University
Syracuse University
Miami University of Ohio
Linn Benton College
Southern Methodist University
Trinity University
Marquette University
University of Victoria/University of Calgary

 
Left to right: Xachary Branch (Santa Monica City College); Kevin Valdez (University of New Mexico);
Zac Apodaca (University of New Mexico); Cameron Montoya (Santa Monica City College);
Estevan Chavez (University of New Mexico); Christian Andres Mendez (University of New Mexico)

• The University of New Mexico will host its Spring 2011 Open House on Saturday, Feb. 5, 12:30 - 4 p.m. Students and parents can get information about academic programs, student services, admissions and financial aid, and a tour of campus and residence halls. RSVP at www.unm.edu/admissions/openhouse or (505) 277-8503. 
• Eastern New Mexico University Junior Preview Day is Saturday, March 12. Give-aways include T-shirts, iPods, scholarships, lunch and prizes. Register at www.enmu.edu or call (800) FOR-ENMU.

If you have questions about the college search process, come to our College Connection Night to find the answers: Wednesday, November 3 / 6 - 7:30 p.m. in the Library. This event is open to all St. Michael's students and parents.

• Reuben Reyes of the New Mexico Educational Assistance Foundation will discuss the financial aid process and types of resources available to pay for college, including grants, loans, and scholarships.
• Mr. Enloe and Mr. Sunseri will be available to answer questions about college counseling at St. Mike's.

For more information, call Ms. Sunseri at 983-7353.

7^th and 8^th Grade Counselor: Mrs. Chacon has met will all of the new seventh and eighth graders to learn their names and get to know them. She went to the seventh and eighth grade religion classes to talk with the students about bullying, their behavior, and hygiene. Mrs. Chacon encouraged students to think about their character and how they would like others to think about what kind of people they are and how they would like to be treated. On October 13, SMHS Standardized Testing Day, seventh graders will take the ITBS and eighth graders will take the EXPLORE, which is a program designed to help eighth and ninth graders explore a broad range of options for their future. Students taking EXPLORE have received student guides. EXPLORE prepares students for their high school coursework, as well as for their post-high school choices.   

9^th and 10^th Grade Counselor: Mr. Enloe is meeting with all of the sophomores this week in their World History classes to talk with them about college and career choices. The sophomores will take the PLAN on October 13. As a pre-ACT test, PLAN is a powerful predictor of success on the ACT. At the same time, PLAN focuses on both career preparation and improving academic achievement. Students taking the PLAN have received student guides. Mr. Enloe will meet with all of the ninth graders and their parents to go over their high school course plans. Ninth grade students will take EXPLORE on October 13. 

11^th and 12^th Grade Counselor: Ms. Sunseri has met with all of the juniors and seniors. At the seniors meetings, Ms. Sunseri talked with students about what they need to do to accomplish the goals and plans they have for after they graduate from SMHS. At the junior meetings, Ms. Sunseri discussed the importance of the junior year and what eleventh graders should do this year in preparation for senior year. Juniors will take the PSAT on October 13. They all received the PSAT Official Student Guide containing a full length practice test and answers. The PSAT (Preliminary SAT) is a standardized test that provides firsthand practice for the SAT and gives students access to college and career planning tools. 

This Friday, October 8: College representatives from several colleges will be in the Tipton from 1:30– 2:30 p.m. to provide information and answer questions. Parents are welcome to attend. Several college representatives will be in our library during the senior high lunch October 11–12. Check the College Rep Visits page of the SMHS website for a complete list of college representative visits.  

October 12 is College Night at Santa Fe Community College Representatives from over 80 colleges across the country will be available to answer questions and provide information from 6–8 p.m.