The “applying for college” rant

[Katsmeow]

Oh my. I think I admire any kid or parent who will go through that.

I have 2 kids starting college within the next year. They are, um, different.

The first to start college will be starting community college in January. He'll be living at home since he is 15. Obviously, he is a bright kid and one might think that he would be academically inclined and competitive and want to go to just that wonderful a school that was super hard to get into. One would be wrong. I suspect he will go to community college a few years (i.e. until he is 18...being smart does not alas make him mature enough to go away to college earlier) then likely transfer to a state university. This eternally B student says he will now start making A's. (I believe him...he puts huge effort into doing just enough work to make a B with an occasional A-).

My other is a more conventionally aged senior but again does not a conventional situation. He was adopted internationally and came to the US as an uneducated non-English speaking kid. It is a tribute to the fact that he is very bright that he is in fact graduating this year. He also has a hard head and doesn't learn from anything other than personal experience. That means that when he was a freshman in high school he totally refused to believe me when I told him that if he did no homework and didn't turn in assignments he was going to fail. He thought I was wrong. The first day of summer school in English the kind teacher went around and gently ask all those in the class what they struggled with in English. For some it was reading, others writing and so on. My son's answer? "Nothing." Not unreasonably she asked him why he was there. He told he didn't struggle with anything...he just didn't do his work. That year he failed 3 (!) courses.

He learned from experience and has actually done very well since then. Of course, this didn't help him overall average although amazingly he is somehow in the top quarter....

He is not academically inclined either but does realize he needs to go to college. He wants to start at community college (actually a residential junior college) and then transfer to a state university. Originally we were going to send him to a fairly easy to get into state university but the junior college is 1/3 the cost and everything fully transfers.

Seriously, I just can't get myself to believe that competitive undergraduate schools are worth it. I don't quarrel with those who feel otherwise but I went to an undistinguished state university for undergraduate and then a very good professional school and that is how I've steered my kids. They don't have any interest in the competitive schools (i.e. doing what you have to do to get into them) which is good in their case.

 

[Darryl]

We put together a “goals list”, a deadline, and a Labor-Day-weekend liberty lockdown plan. Motivation soared inversely in proportion to morale'

Nords, I once read that "fairness doesn't just happen it requires the right government policies" You and your wife are living proof of that.

LOL

Son is a HS freshmen four years and counting blaze me a trail.

 

[RunningBum]

Aaaw - I'm not sure you want to miss the drop-off experience! As a fiercely independent young person, it was suprisinly emotional to have my parents and best friend come with me.

She may feel a twinge of loneliness if she goes by herself while others are surrounded by doting parents...You'll have plenty of alone time while she is gone, but it is one experience you won't get back! She has four (or more) years of resettling herself on her own - but this is the only "first time"...plus she'll just have a LOT more stuff then luggage for a weekender, may need to make a few trips to the local tarjay etc to get the rest....and might even want her last dose of her exceptionally attentive parents...

I have to agree with that. I guess I don't know for sure, because for freshman move-in DD was able to get an early date because of marching band, and this year she has an off-campus dorm, so we didn't see the full rush of everyone checking into a high rise dorm. The downside to the marching band thing is that we only had about 3-4 hours to get everything moved and get her somewhat settled in before she had to go to practice, and I was sent away. But I did have time to make a Wallyworld run for her while she organized.

I only had an hour drive though, not a plane ride over the ocean.

 

[Nords]

Katsmeow-- I hear you. Our high school had a family whose two kids locked up the national science competitions starting sophomore year and had all their high-school credits by the end of junior year. But they were woefully immature. Not socialized or equipped to handle stress.

Aaaw - I'm not sure you want to miss the drop-off experience! As a fiercely independent young person, it was suprisinly emotional to have my parents and best friend come with me.
She may feel a twinge of loneliness if she goes by herself while others are surrounded by doting parents...You'll have plenty of alone time while she is gone, but it is one experience you won't get back! She has four (or more) years of resettling herself on her own - but this is the only "first time"...plus she'll just have a LOT more stuff then luggage for a weekender, may need to make a few trips to the local tarjay etc to get the rest....and might even want her last dose of her exceptionally attentive parents...

I have to agree with that. I guess I don't know for sure, because for freshman move-in DD was able to get an early date because of marching band, and this year she has an off-campus dorm, so we didn't see the full rush of everyone checking into a high rise dorm.
I only had an hour drive though, not a plane ride over the ocean.

I don't particularly care either way, but I've read that some colleges are dealing with a certain number of Blackhawk parents to the point of making up "Welcome to college" programs for them on opening day. I feel as if we'd also be adding to the crowds and the general stress level.

She feels pretty strongly about asserting her independence, so we'd only come along if we were invited. And if not, then at least we'd make sure she packed all her left-behind possessions in numbered Rubbermaid containers so that she could send us an e-mail to ship her containers #1, 2, and 4... or whatever.

The flights are just part of the price of paradise. It's a lot easier to fly direct from Honolulu to Houston than to South Bend through O'Hare. They're 8-9 hours each way (don't really remember since I sleep most of it) but we'd pad the vacation with side trips and make 2-3 weeks out of it.

 

[Achiever51]

When I was applying for college -- back when the woolly mammoth walked the earth --, I was pretty much on my own as I was the first in my family to go to college. Got help on the SAT/ACT front from my junior yr. history teacher who used class time to give hints about the test process and help from my English teacher on the essays. Proud to say that I was accepted at all three of my choices...with scholarships from each!

Several years later, I couldn't believe it when my then boss said that he was taking a few days off to go to his son's college NOT to move him in, but to go with him as he registered for his classes...son was a senior in college at this time, and Dad went with him to register for his classes every single term since freshman year! (Later I met the son and wasn't surprised by how immature he was!)

 

[ERD50]

When I was applying for college -- back when the woolly mammoth walked the earth --, I was pretty much on my own as I was the first in my family to go to college. Got help on the SAT/ACT front from my junior yr. history teacher who used class time to give hints about the test process and help from my English teacher on the essays. Proud to say that I was accepted at all three of my choices...with scholarships from each!

It still goes on today. I just skimmed this thread, and I was going to post " Am I in the minority here?", because our two college kids got into the colleges of their choice (and accepted at several) with very little action on our part. We did some research on schools and majors, just to steer them towards something that we thought might fit, and planned out the tours a bit to fit our schedule, but they did the applications, the essays, studied for the ACTs and everything on their own. I remember reading the essays, which had been grammar checked and had some feedback from their English teachers, but that was it. I thought one essay was really good, the other just sort of 'adequate', but I figured, well, that is her work, it represents her, so it is what it is. She got accepted at some fine schools.

I'm pretty easy to drive into a rant, but this just wasn't a big issue for us.

-ERD50

 

[youbet]

I'm pretty easy to drive into a rant, but this just wasn't a big issue for us.

It seems that you're not exhibiting classic noodge behavior in the most Yiddish sense of the word.

 

[WhoDaresWins]

As I recall, my son was very closed mouth about his college applications. He refused to consider his parents' alma maters(NYU and Columbia) as he figured if we went there, there must be something wrong with them. He visited various schools with two boys in his class who were interested in the same major(road trip!). Fortunately for him, even though his grades were only so-so for his graduating class, he aced the SATs, and we were able to afford the tuition at his chosen school. He never indicated a first choice school on his applications telling me he preferred to keep an open mind.

 

[Brat]

My daughter took me to Powell's Bookstore. After reading through what they had on their shelves (she is cheap, why buy when you can take them to Annie's coffee shop and peruse), she developed her selection criteria: strong engineering program in as small a school as possible. She wanted to stay on the west coast. Cal Tech and Santa Clara made the list. I talked her out of Cal Tech as I didn't think they offered other majors that fit her skill set if she concluded that engineering really wasn't her passion. This is a gal who not only had all the advanced math and science but speech and rally squad. Santa Clara was her first choice, early admit.

My gut was right, DD wasn't happy with an 'individual contributor' career path. No issues at all academically. She changed her major to finance, is now a CFO.

My contribution to all of this is to help her see the big picture, as well as the pot holes, in the academic programs she considered.

My advise to Nords: encourage your daughter to look broadly at programs that fit her interests and talents. Find a situation where she can make a mid-course correction without major disruption.

 

[Nords]

My advise to Nords: encourage your daughter to look broadly at programs that fit her interests and talents. Find a situation where she can make a mid-course correction without major disruption.

Yep, and I think Rice or Notre Dame will give her those options. Even USNA.

NROTC is free of obligation for the first year. Plenty of time to make a good choice.

I fear, however, that no matter how miserable our daughter may be (and no matter how sympathetic & supportive we parents are) she'll get all stubborn & obstinate about completing the path she set out on. For this I blame her mother's genotype. I'm sure she didn't inherit that stuff from me...

 

[Nords]

Now that our kid thinks her college search is over, and after re-reading my original rant, I haven't changed my opinion of the system and its problems.

But to bring this thread back to a positive note, here's what we learned. Trombone Al, Htown Harry, Leonidas, and some others of you have seen more of the process than I have, so let me know what I'm missing...

This was our first FAFSA but if Trombone Al says it's shorter/simpler, that can only be a good thing. The biggest hassle was being given the impression that it has to be done ASAP in January-- and having to gather tax data to support that self-imposed deadline. Once we tracked down the numbers (from running an early approximation of our tax returns) the data entry wasn't bad. I don't think we'll get anything from the effort, but the school requires a FAFSA before they'll consider handing out their own loans & grants. Not that we expect to get anything there, either-- I think her NROTC scholarship will probably have a chilling effect even on the "merit" awards.

NROTC opened their website application in June and we pushed hard to get the application in by July because we expected an answer by Aug/Sep. The reality is that their board didn't meet until October (even for the "Immediate" Scholarship Reservation program) and they didn't start notifying recipients until November. We had also thought that she was required to apply for five NROTC colleges, but upon re-reading the application we now realize that's only a strong recommendation. Getting an early start and applying to several schools was still a good idea. Just like joining the military, some NROTC recruiters are more knowledgeable than others. Hers wasn't "bad" but she got better answers from the staff at the NROTC units. It's worth poking around the Web to read the NROTC FAQs at larger schools like Notre Dame and UVA.

The military's entrance physical was far easier/quicker than expected. Results were back in a few weeks. Followup was prompt and not too difficult. It was a good thing that Mom happened to go along for the physical because a teenager may be incapable of interpreting the test data and asking for something to be explained or repeated. Teens also tend to blurt out all sorts of scary things on the "Tell us your medical history and how you're feeling" form because they don't really remember the actual story. Teens don't appreciate that words like "asthma", "allergy", and "back injury" are show-stoppers.

I won't run on about NROTC and service academies but we've become experts on applying to them. PM or e-mail me if you want more info. If I don't know the answer then I know people in every service who can find out, and to my surprise that includes classmates on Congressional staffs. A lot of shipmates saw our teen's application and said "Hmmm, I wonder if that's Nords' daughter?"

Our high school counselor was, to put it politely, abysmal. Her interpretation of "10 business days" for mailings was actually 4-6 weeks, and she treats the students with disrespect/deceit. So maybe I didn't really learn anything here, but our kid became very aggressive at following up on the counselor's actions & deadlines and sending us parents straight to a vice principal if she wasn't happy. Visiting the VP once was enough to dramatically improve the quality of the service from "bad" to "poor". It certainly taught our kid a lot of negotiations skills at dealing with difficult people. If you start working on anything requiring school action during their summer vacation, it may be necessary to personally visit the staff to make sure the word gets to [-]the counselor[/-] people who don't check their e-mail/voicemail during the break. When the application tsunami begins in November, quality of service drops exponentially.

At one point the counselor announced to the entire senior class at an assembly "I don't know what's taking you seniors so long. Nords' daughter has already submitted her applications!" You can imagine how a teen girl feels about that sort of attention.

High schools frequently offer community-college credit for advanced courses. After the first semester's grade, the kid should check with the CC that they're in the database and that there's actually a grade report. Our kid started taking CC credits in her sophomore year but didn't check their records until she started filling out college applications, and she had to register with the CC all over again. Luckily it didn't affect the college's decision.

Some IT entrepreneur can make a lot of money adding more connectivity to the nation's high school & college computer networks with the College Board's network. It's already been done for the SAT and the Common Application but it needs to be standardized for transcripts and counselor/teacher recommendations. (Some second-millennium-era schools still require [*gasp*] paper letters sent through snail mail.) There are a million non-standard v1.0 applications floating around out there, and even when they work right they still require duplicate data entry plus faxing and Fedex. Heck, while you're at it, add in the FAFSA and the PROFILE applications to the common app too.

There's a fine line between "coaching" and "Blackhawk parenting", but it's a training opportunity. We had to allow extra time to work with her and to help her recover from her mistakes. Occasionally something would be "too important to fail". Teens aren't always capable of understanding some aspects of adult communication, and frequently they'll think that an e-mail or a letter is just marketing or a status report instead of a request for action. We parents managed to never talk with the colleges directly (and almost the same for the high school) but we had to ask our kid to info us on every letter and e-mail so that we could make sure she didn't overlook an action or a deadline. With 5-6 college applications (and transcripts, recommendations, & interviews), plus scholarships, the tracking requires a fairly big spreadsheet. The downside of this is that we parents pay the same price as our kids at having to stay up late the night before a deadline or having to deal with the "We need... " phone-call crises.

Rice notified our kid of their early-decision acceptance right on schedule. They said 15 December and they meant it-- by 9 AM Houston time she'd received their e-mail. (Even better, it came on her iPhone while she was hanging out with some older friends who were home on college break.) As seen on Facebook, other colleges did the same thing with our kid's other early-decision classmates. Colleges may still send snail mail but most of them notify by e-mail or website. If your teen doesn't hear from the college on the day that the college says they'll tell them, then there's probably a problem and it's worth calling them.

After the applications were all in we took a break, relaxed, and waited for the interviews. Bad mistake-- we should've started the scholarship search no later than the end of September. For some reason I thought corporate/charity/non-profit scholarship applications were linked to the FAFSA/PROFILE deadlines. Boy was I wrong-- most of the scholarship deadlines went by on 15 November and we never noticed. The next batch of applications is due in Jan-Feb. The "good" news is that many of them are annual so your kid can reapply next year. The "bad" news is that most of them are annual so your kid has to reapply every year. Another issue is that many of the scholarship applications require counselor's transcripts/recommendations and teacher/community recommendations. Save a few of those noble recommendation volunteers in reserve because they might not want to do recommendations both for colleges and for scholarships...

One college interviewer (a local guy who'd graduated from Rice) was either criminally lazy or diabolically clever. He sat down with our kid at Starbucks and said "OK, what do you want to talk about?" Luckily she'd come prepared with a printout of her application, her info sheet, and a bunch of questions.

A lot of this process, frankly, was the blind leading the blind. I really appreciate the help we got from the board members here, and particularly those of you around Rice who kept feeding me the latest news & gossip. If we had to do this again for other children, they would be mightily pissed off at their older sister for causing Mom & Dad to put them under a microscope on a very short leash. I'm also doing my best to never again have to speak to the high school's principals or VPs, let alone the counselor.

Speaking of "so over high school", our kid has decided that there's no reason for her to participate in her high-school graduation. We support her decision, which is more than I can say for her high school. Apparently a student's ranking is determined by more than just credits and GPA...

 

[Htown Harry]

 

[LOL!]

For lots of different takes on applying for college there is the NYTimes blog "The Choice"
:College Admissions Advice - The Choice Blog - NYTimes.com which is easily accessible. The articles come from admission officers, parents, students. For example, here is article about not letting everyone know about your college admission on Facebook: Accepted, Rejected or Deferred? Keep the Answer Off Facebook - The Choice Blog - NYTimes.com

Fear not folks! Nords' personality exudes out of your computer display which is why we like him, but normally the college application process is not so dramatic. Nordally, I guess it is though.

Here's another take on the college app process: Daughter fills out online app on deadline day Dec 15th. Acceptance letter arrives in the mail on Dec 18th. (Of course, SAT scores + HS transcript already sent to university earlier in the season.) No drama. Parent involvement: "You had better go online and apply. Isn't the due date today?"

Congrats to your daughter! Rice is a great university and I'm sure she will do very well there. Since you won't be at Rice, Nords, who will give us updates on her progress?

 

[Leonidas]

Good update Nords! Except for the NROTC stuff, it all sounds so chillingly familiar. Round two for us is getting cranked up here, but we're still in first gear at the moment.

Son #2 is mostly clueless (he can spell college, and he has narrowed down his choices to: "some kind of engineer", physician, or attack helicopter pilot), but he is starting to realize there is a lot more to this than he imagined. Plus, we just received his PSAT score for the NMSQT and he is in the 96th percentile - not good enough for semi-finalist, but within range of "commended". We're celebrating at the same time that we realize that our little universe of schools to consider may be widening quite a bit.

If he narrows the choices down to flying an AH-1Z while shooting Hellfires at Al Qaeda, we may have to consult with you on the topic of NROTC.

Your comments regarding the HS staff were oh-so-familiar. When the youngest started HS I was forearmed from my experience with his older brother, and I was all over our counselor from the first week of school. He knew my name, phone number, email address and general plans for my little frosh. Regular updates and touching of base followed thereafter - not to be a pest but just to develop the relationship so we wouldn't have to develop one a few years down the road. Junior learned early on that spending a little quality time with the counselor wouldn't hurt him at all. "Go see Mr. Liu" was the expected response to most questions involving scheduling and course selection. After a couple of years he figured it out and discussions about such things started with "I think I'll go see Mr. Liu tomorrow".

Public schools being bureaucratic wastelands, the system tried to screw us over by reassigning "your counselor for the entire four year high school experience" to a different section of the alphabet at the start of sophomore year. We just ignored that and continued to use our bestest buddy in the world. If he has ever wondered why he has a "K" last named student in with all his "M-N-O-P" kids he has never told us about it.

I'm curious about your thoughts on letters of recommendation. More specifically, what strategy did you and the little Nordette employ to identify and develop "noble volunteers". With first son it was not a real issue, he had really bonded with the heads of the science and English departments so he didn't have a problem. Considering #2 son's test scores may put him in range of some of the more selective schools, I'm thinking that such things as letters of recommendation may play a more important role. Any advice you can offer on that would be greatly appreciated. His school is a more academically challenging place and even with his abilities he probably won't graduate in the top 25% (it's a major geek-a-thon there with 40 National Merit finalists and another 40+ commended each year). He doesn't stand out academically like he might at a more "normal" HS.

 

[scrinch]

More specifically, what strategy did you and the little Nordette employ to identify and develop "noble volunteers".

The "scrinchettes" found it useful to provide resumes to the LOR volunteers. The head of the english department previously had no idea that DD had a girl scout gold award, was an all-league soccer player, and regularly volunteered at the local animal rescue shelter. With DD's resume in hand, however, the letter of recommendation touched on each of these items and was much more compelling than it would have been had it only referred to DD's performance in a couple of classes.

 

[Bestwifeever]

Unbeknown to us, our DD asked the below-average-grades two-years-younger student whom DD tutored in algebra to write one of her LORs her schools required. I don't know why--I don't think it was a calculated choice on DD's part.

DD got in everywhere, so it didn't hurt her.

 

[Brat]

Regarding attending graduation festivities: buy the cap & gown and sign her up for the graduation party. It is only January, she may change her mind.

As one who just attended her 50 year HS reunion the friendships made in high school are often the strongest. She and her classmates will scatter across the globe for the next 30 years. IMHO she should celebrate with them this life benchmark.

It is important that the graduation party be alcohol free and well supervised, if not host one for her friends yourself.

 

[Nords]

I'm curious about your thoughts on letters of recommendation. More specifically, what strategy did you and the little Nordette employ to identify and develop "noble volunteers". With first son it was not a real issue, he had really bonded with the heads of the science and English departments so he didn't have a problem. Considering #2 son's test scores may put him in range of some of the more selective schools, I'm thinking that such things as letters of recommendation may play a more important role. Any advice you can offer on that would be greatly appreciated. His school is a more academically challenging place and even with his abilities he probably won't graduate in the top 25% (it's a major geek-a-thon there with 40 National Merit finalists and another 40+ commended each year). He doesn't stand out academically like he might at a more "normal" HS.

Our kid wasn't even close on the PSATs. (It took her until the third SAT to start applying those prep-course test-taking strategies and guess aggressively.) Heck, I don't think Hawaii has 40 NMSQT finalists in the entire state.

Some colleges will require LORs from the English & math teachers, no options. Almost every college requires a student summary/counselor recommendation from the... counselor. No options.

Other colleges are more interested in the "whole person" concept and will take LORs from anyone. (Her taekwondo instructor was flattered & pleased to be asked, and she had two more available at the dojang.) Her boss at the Kumon center was very happy to write a letter. She had two drafting teachers (civil engineering) and two community college profs (from the high school's AP courses) lined up. After that we were willing to fill in the cracks from neighbors. When I applied to USNA I got a letter from our church's pastor, which was apparently unusual in the 1970s.

Notre Dame told us that one applicant supplied 84 letters. They wouldn't say whether or not he was admitted but they said that he made an overwhelmingly negative impression with that tactic.

The "scrinchettes" found it useful to provide resumes to the LOR volunteers. The head of the english department previously had no idea that DD had a girl scout gold award, was an all-league soccer player, and regularly volunteered at the local animal rescue shelter. With DD's resume in hand, however, the letter of recommendation touched on each of these items and was much more compelling than it would have been had it only referred to DD's performance in a couple of classes.

What Scrinch said. Our high school uses a "student report" form for the counselor's letter, and it's a fill-in-the-blank résumé format. Our kid provided a copy of that to the LOR writers, along with stamped envelopes or e-mail addresses and all the other tools. Her taekwondo instructor sidled up to me one night and asked "What should I write?" so I gave him some bullets.

She colored outside the lines a little. She had ended up on video for a Kumon award and was interviewed for the local public-access cable channel. She got a courtesy copy of the footage and burned a bunch of DVDs. I bought DVD label paper from an office-supply store and made up personalized labels on the laser printer. She sent a DVD with every application and gave one to every interviewer. I don't know if it worked on the applications staffs (nobody complained) but it made her feel as if she was giving herself an edge.

Starting sophomore year we also attended all those "preparing for college" evening seminars hosted by local banks. It helped her take things more seriously, and they served free cookies...

Regarding attending graduation festivities: buy the cap & gown and sign her up for the graduation party. It is only January, she may change her mind.
As one who just attended her 50 year HS reunion the friendships made in high school are often the strongest. She and her classmates will scatter across the globe for the next 30 years. IMHO she should celebrate with them this life benchmark.
It is important that the graduation party be alcohol free and well supervised, if not host one for her friends yourself.

Her choice; admittedly an unusual one. Graduation is a big deal around here because a lot of kids drop out, let alone go to college, and it's not unusual to see 20-30 family members show up for each senior. She's been on the graduation committee and she worked the two previous class' ceremonies from backstage, so she feels that she's seen enough. (I get the feeling that she saw too much of the principal and the school board.) We're glad that she doesn't want to go to the ceremony because frankly we weren't looking forward to the whole thing ourselves. Just give her the freakin' diploma and let her get on with her life.

The cap & gown by themselves are over $75, despite the fact that last year's class won't be using theirs that night. She has a loaner from a friend just in case. Some kids spent over $200 for tassels, "Class of 2010" charms, and other tchotchkes. Lifetouch Studios is charging hundreds more for video/photos of the ceremony.

The school has a three-page handout of ceremony rules all the way down to what type of hosiery the (female) seniors are allowed to wear. The principal, to put it politely, is an anal-retentive control freak who lacks leadership/delegation skills and is terrified that individuals will express their... individuality... at the ceremony. They muster them in the school parking lot for personnel inspection. They load them on school buses for the 20-mile trip down to the UH stadium. She has to sit in alphabetical order with people she doesn't care for and 500 names takes a long time to read over the PA system. No applause until the ceremony's over. No demonstrations from the seniors or family members during the ceremony (or they'll be ejected). No meeting with family/friends until after the ceremony's over. A bunch of rules about what can be brought into the stadium and when photos are allowed.

28 years ago we had fewer rules, less fuss, and less security for USNA's graduation/commissioning ceremony.

She submitted a request letter to work backstage again this year, and the principal won't even formally answer her request-- just told the graduation committee teacher that seniors have to be in cap & gown on the stadium field, or in the audience. So she'll be in the audience, mainly so that she can be ready to board the party bus afterward.

The parents do "Project Grad" each year, so after the ceremony the seniors (her included) will be whisked way to a secure undisclosed location where they'll party their booties off in an alcohol-free environment until sunrise. There'll be a lot of bonding going on there, and I'm pretty sure the stories will continue to be told for many years... After the party ends the kids will be bused back to the high school to stagger on home.

Spouse and I are thinking about spending the night down in Waikiki. We haven't done that in years.

 

[LOL!]

Our high school requires the kids to submit a "student brag sheet" to the counselor. Parents are required to submit "parent's bragg sheet" on their kid as well. I believe these are available to any teacher asked to write a LOR. I have seen similar sheets used to lobby for tenure, endowed chairs, and Nobel prizes, so I think they are good idea.

 

[Brat]

Graduation... yea, it sounds like the Principal has issues. Glad to hear she will attend the party.

Story: son graduated from a Catholic HS. The Principal got angry at a student in the waining days of school and banned him from graduation activities, the other students thought his actions unjust. As a result the substantial residual $$$$ from the class association was given to a charity of THEIR choice, not the school (they already had plans for that money). He heard that the Principal wasn't there next year.

 

[deserat]

I was asked by a dear friend to write an LOR for his USAFA application. She is so organized - she sent me a resume, the address for the letter and asked that I also send it to her for compilation and forwarding. She already knew I could write a good LOR, though.

Sort of off-topic - I nominated a colleague of mine for an award - she won it and when I went to the conference where she received it, I was told that her application was the best they had seen. Well written and followed the directions Some people even asked if I would nominate them next year - uhhhh, don't think so. Heck, I even wrote the LOR from her boss! Had an issue, though, in that I didn't want her boss's LOR to be better than my nomination letter.....

Again, congrats Nords - I remember I was afraid to apply to all of the different colleges due to the app fees. Plus, parental guidance was nothing like your BlackHawk approach. However, I must say the guidance counselors and teachers that I had were muc more diligent than those you mentioned. My guidance counselor had gone to Cornell and when I mentioned I was interested in that, she got excited. We had close to a 500 person graduating class as well.

 

[Gumby]

As the spouse of a high school teacher who has written more than a few college letters of recommendation, I can attest that it is a good idea to give your chosen recommender some ammunition for the letter. They always come out better if you do.

 

[Brat]

My SIL is a HS teacher and was busy with student college rejection notices before Christmas.. he had to make sure the college received accurate info. EVERY ONE he shepherded resulted in admission. Gosh he was sweating, he knew that moment was a life changing situation for the student.

Go Tino!!