Senior September Newsletter
Hello, Seniors!
School has been back in session for about two weeks now. You all have done an excellent job getting back into the rhythm after summertime. I know it was not easy, but your determination and hard work will pay off! It is going to be a great year!
Newsletters like this will be sent out every month this school year. The length of these newsletters will vary. September’s Newsletter is generally the longest as we cover a lot of the foundational information that you will need throughout your senior year. However, every newsletter contains important information. Please take the time to read them so you feel comfortable working through this year as well as planning for the future.
Senior Graduation Planning Meeting
During the “Back to School Kickoff” on August 15th, there was a “Senior Graduation Planning Meeting.” The overarching purpose of the meeting was to review graduation requirements for students and families. In case you were not able to attend the meeting, it was recorded and you can view it here.
While we recommend watching the recording, let’s do a quick summary. We are a community: you, your family, and BCHS share the responsibility to help you graduate. Review the courses you need to pass this year to graduate. Next, cross-reference the courses you think you need to graduate with the list of courses I emailed you (and your parent/guardian) on August 15th. Then, ensure that you are registered for those courses somewhere (at BCHS, Career Center, through College Credit Plus, etc).
College/Future Search
There are a ton of college and technical schools in the United States. You have preferences as to what you are looking for in a college/technical school: e.g. major, price, on-campus housing, etc. Trying to match all of your preferences to a college may feel daunting. Using college-matching websites can help ease the overwhelming feeling by making the computer do a lot of the work for you. BigFuture is one college matching website to give a try.
Similar to the college search, Roadtrip Nation can help match your interests with careers. Additionally, Roadtrip Nation maps a plan to obtain that career. Check it out!
Common Application (CA)
Many seniors apply to college utilizing the Common Application. CA allows you to fill out one electronic application to apply to multiple colleges. Check to see whether or not the college you are thinking about going to accepts CA, as it can be a big time saver!
Whether you are a senior at Bloom-Carroll taking classes at the high school, the career center, or at a college, you will need to invite Mr. Kelley as your school counselor within CA. Mr. Kelley’s email is [email protected]. If you would like instructions on how to invite me (and other recommenders), click here for a helpful video.
Click here for CA’s step by step guide to getting started with CA.
Requesting Transcripts
If you need a transcript for personal records or one sent to a college, you can do that electronically by visiting Bloom-Carroll's website and clicking on "Forms" (or click here). Then, under "High School", you will see "Transcript Request-Current Students Only." You will need to complete the transcript request every time you want a transcript sent to a college. BCHS processes transcripts in one to two business days.
Note: You will most likely need a copy of your transcript in front of you when applying to college as many of the questions relate back to records that you will find on your transcript (GPA,Class Rank, etc). You can request a personal copy of your transcript through the same link mentioned above.
Common App Transcript Request Exception: As long as you invite Mr. Kelley to your CA, then you do NOT need to complete a transcript request (for any school listed within your CA). However, it is still recommended that you complete a transcript request for CA because if something goes wrong (email address is spelled wrong within CA, etc), then the invite will end up lost electronically and the counseling office will not know about it. In short, completing the transcript request form AND sending an invite through CA is the best practice to ensure your CA is completed appropriately.
College Application Types/Deadlines
Whether you plan to apply to college directly through the college you want to attend or through a website like Common App, it is important to know the difference in application types. Application types generally include: early action, early decision, regular decision, and rolling admission. At the very least, you need to know that early decision is binding; meaning, “You are obligated to enroll if you are accepted”. Read about the different types here.
Scholarships
Scholarships can help you pay for college. Scholarship searching can feel endless. To aid you in the scholarship search, BC has created a scholarship resource list. This scholarship resource list contains scholarship search engines as well as local and national scholarships. Scholarships will consistently be added to this list; new scholarships will always be added directly below the previous listed scholarship. The scholarship resource list is in google sheets format and can be downloaded in excel allowing you to sort the scholarships as you see fit; e.g. sort by deadline, dollar amount, etc.
BCHS Scholarship Resource
Letter of Recommendation (LOR)
If you need a letter of recommendation written for a college, scholarship, or some other reason, it is important you go about asking the recommender (teacher, coach, counselor, etc) appropriately. Make sure you give the recommender plenty of time to complete your LOR. The more time you give them, generally, the better outcome you will receive since they will have more time to think about it. It is a good idea to give the recommender about two weeks advance notice before it is due.
Here is a quick breakdown of the steps on how to ask someone to write a letter of recommendation for you:
1. Fill out the LOR Information Sheet (click here for an electronic copy or stop down to the counseling office to pick up a hard copy).
2. Make copies of the LOR Information sheet in case you need to ask multiple recommenders to write a letter for you.
3. Politely ask the recommender if they would be willing to write a letter for you (make sure to include when you would need it by).
4. If they say “yes,” thank them, and then hand them the LOR Information sheet.
5. Lastly, let them know where/how to send the LOR (Common App Upload, Emailed, etc).
ACT/SAT Retake?
College entrance exams like the ACT and SAT can help your chances of getting into college if your scores are high, just as they can hurt your chances if your scores are low. However, many colleges and universities have transitioned to a “test-optional” application. I would recommend checking with the specific college to see what their testing policy is.
If you would like to take/retake the ACT/SAT, it is best to do that sooner rather than later. Remember, after you take the test, there will still be some processing time by the testing organization before you get your scores back. You would need scores back if you are looking to have them included in your college application.
Click here to schedule to take the ACT.
Click here to schedule to take the SAT.
Sending ACT Scores
If you are applying to a college and would like the college to receive your ACT score(s), you can officially send your scores to them through your MyACT account. Bloom-Carroll High School does NOT and can NOT officially send your scores to the college. For more instruction on how to send your ACT scores, here is ACT’s Sending Your Scores.
College Representatives
Bloom-Carroll High School is working with college representatives with the plan that they are able to visit BCHS during the school day to meet with students interested in that college. If that college permits travel and the availability aligns with BCHS, we will schedule them for a lunch visit. During periods five, six, and seven, look for colleges to be set up at a table. Interact with them, ask questions, compare them to other colleges, take advantage of the opportunity.
College Visits
Up to two college visits will be excused each year when the proper paperwork is completed. Of course, you can visit as many as you want when you are not scheduled to be in class. In order to be approved for the college visit, you will need to complete the college visit form before your absence. You can acquire the form by visiting the counseling office or by clicking here.
College Fair
The notorious “Fairfield County College Fair” is back and scheduled for Thursday, October 3rd, from 6:00pm to 8:00pm at Ohio University Lancaster! High school students and their parents are invited to visit approximately 100 different colleges as well as attend a financial aid presentation at 6:00 or 6:30 in the auditorium.
Registration is required. Students can register through www.StriveFair.com. When registering, make sure to check the "Text me my Barcode" box. With the received barcode, during the college fair, students can have colleges they are interested in scan their barcode. The day after the fair, students will receive a report with information on the colleges that were scanned."
Graduation
Graduation will be held on Friday, May 23rd, 2025 (this school year). It will be here before you know it! We are going to have a good year!