May 01, 2008
More counting down
It’s been two weeks since my last entry . . . which means there’s only a month of school left before I graduate and then just two months of summer before I leave for college. Have I mentioned it’s unbelievable? Increasingly, it feels as though my last days of high school are spent just tending to loose ends before leaving the last four years (mostly) behind. Still, there are plenty of things to finish and it isn’t over yet.
For starters, this Saturday is prom, which means a busy week. Not because of the time needed to color-coordinate my dress and shoes; rather, because the senior student council members are responsible for decorating Grand March. This means I’ll have very little, if any, free time available for the next several days. I’ve never regretted running for student council (although you might ask me when it’s time to plan the ten- or twenty-year reunion), but I would prefer if it were at a less important time.
With all the events coming up, I also need to keep up with my GPA. It would almost be an understatement to say most seniors have higher grades at the start of the year. However, I definitely do not want to risk the loss of any scholarships, and colleges notice the lack of commitment when a senior stops making an effort the last part of the year. My English grade is dropping and my yearbook grade needs a little more work before it’s an A. I’ll admit it — it’s hard to make myself care, especially when my Spanish grade is too late to be pulled up to an A, taking me out of the valedictorian race. Speaking of Spanish, there’s one good thing to note. Despite the test date, the class won’t end until about two weeks later, giving me more time to finish with a respectable B.
On the subject of tests . . . advanced class testing is next week. I’m not overly worried about English. I’ve prepared for it fairly well, so the only large concern will be the essays. On the other hand, calculus looks to be extremely challenging. I had hoped it would be easier since math isn’t as difficult a subject for me, but one look at the open questions was enough to know I was wrong. It shouldn’t come as a surprise: if I remember correctly, the math subscore was the lowest of my ACT scores. In any case, they will likely be the most difficult tests of the year at a time when test taking is not at the front of my mind.
The next several weeks may be the hardest so far, but afterward there’s much to look forward to. In about a month, I’ll let you know how well everything worked out.
April 15, 2008
Less than two months
At this time in the year, most seniors can claim a case of “senioritis” — not wanting to do anything because of how soon they will be entering college. I’m not extremely excited about college yet, but I am enjoying end-of-the-year activities, especially for seniors. For example, the senior trip this year (which I helped plan, I must add) will be three days in Chicago, making it the farthest I’ve been from home and the longest I’ve stayed in a large city. Also, Crittenden has a tradition where parents (including my own mother), with the help of student fundraising, plan a special activity after graduation. This year, that means overnight laser tag in Nashville. Maybe it’s a sign my priorities are off if I’m looking forward more to Six Flags and Chicago than actually leaving high school, but there will be plenty of time during the summer for the reality of moving out to sink in.
Luckily, as the school year comes to its last month, I have much less work to do. Seniors don’t have to take state tests, meaning plenty of free time while other grades are answering open-response questions. Advanced Spanish IV will end entirely after a test date in early May, and with portfolios over at the end of this week, Advanced English IV will begin easier studies. I’m grateful this will give me more time to enjoy activities with friends and family, whether prom and a graduation party, or just being with friends before we go our separate ways, even though many Crittenden students will be entering the same college.
On that note, I can say I’m almost done with preparing for college. The housing application is finally finished and mailed, I’m registered now as a marching band Racer, and the date for my summer orientation and class scheduling is set. Everything else, from financial aid to local scholarships, is a matter of waiting. My efforts have paid off. Not long ago, I received a revised award letter that helped me reach a few thousand dollars closer to my goal.
Meanwhile, this month has been mostly normal so far. Due to the extreme number of school days we missed because of ice and snow, students were required to come to school last Saturday. As a result, this week feels like the longest yet. I believe that could be the reason each week of the final stretch may seem longer than the last.
March 15, 2008
Waiting for spring
Spring vacation is coming up, and I hope it will mark the end of snow until I’m in college. Last week was the first week since early January that school wasn’t canceled for any days. Other than that, classes have been pretty normal. I missed most of Wednesday to listen to a speaker discuss leadership skills, and of course, on Friday I had to spend part of Calculus celebrating Pi Day.
Recently, a letter came in the mail listing the scholarships I’ve received from the college. Added together, they almost amount to basic tuition for next year (not including housing or meals). I was hoping for more, but this is certainly nothing to complain about. The only concern I have is that one scholarship is based on having Valedictorian status in my graduating class. Since Crittenden doesn’t weight college-level classes, this means I’ll have to pull up my grades a little in Yearbook and Spanish 4 if I want to earn that scholarship.
As for Spanish, I’ve been doing better in the class lately, and I’m starting to consider taking it, or at least another foreign language, in college. It’s not the language I dislike, but rather, the extremely fast pace expected of students in the class. I could easily add language study together with my interest in visiting other countries and turn it into a career. I think differently than a lot of students in my school. I’m not sure if it is the same in other small towns, but many of the students who go to a foreign country as part of a class or club in high school here tend to act as if it’s the only time they’ll be able to do so. It’s an idea that I’ve never been really able to understand. Then again, I guess I also never truly ruled out being an astronaut.
Regardless of my eventual career choice, my education still needs to be funded. Not long ago I applied for financial aid through the college. Since I filled out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) much earlier, I only had to fill out the college’s form. (By the way, if you haven’t filled out your FAFSA yet, be aware that several of the state deadlines are coming up or already passed.) I’m hoping for a Pell Grant, but I also selected that I was interested in loans if I don’t receive grants. Finally, I’m going to fill out the local scholarship forms. Even though none of them are large, I think a few essays and forms are worth a good chance at an otherwise free few hundred dollars.
No matter what, there are some costs; for example, summer orientation. The earliest scheduled one is next month, and I’ve already had a call asking if I’d registered yet. Class scheduling is done during summer orientation, so I plan on registering within the next few days. Once that’s done, I’m hoping it will be the last of the forms for a while. Well, except for the housing application.
Whenever I complain about the seemingly endless forms, the teacher I’m an aide for likes to remind me that certain colleges (like her favorite one) would practically guarantee a full scholarship to students with a certain ACT score (like mine). Still, even though it’s easy to say when all the funds remain to be decided, I’m confident in my decision.
March 05, 2008
Learning more
Only three months of high school left, and I guess graduating is not so unbelievable now. Or, rather, it’s impossible to ignore. It seems like every class makes some mention of “next year,” which then reminds me how I won’t be spending next year at the high school (not that that is or isn’t bad thing). Maybe the weather is playing its part, too. Today is the first day in a long time that feels like spring instead of the middle of winter. Ironically enough, due to the two weeks or so we missed because of snow this year, I won’t be graduating until the first week of June. It would have been very nice if the ice storms could’ve waited for the class of 2009, but I suppose that’s how it goes.
The storm did take its toll on my Governor’s Cup score—I was one place short of qualifying for the state competition. This is very frustrating, especially given that the same thing happened at district level last year, but in the end, my score was nothing to be ashamed of.
To finish off with the bad news, I didn’t receive the Presidential Scholarship. It’s disappointing, but not unexpected. There were only 10 scholarships and what looked like a few hundred students applying, some of whom I met from other states or the other side of Kentucky when I was at the college for the interview. I think the scholarship committee might have been looking for students with a more specific goal in mind, or perhaps a stricter work ethic. In any case, there’s not much point wondering about it. There are still many scholarships that haven’t been decided yet, and I have a list of local scholarships to start applying for.
Despite the result, I don’t regret applying and going for the scholarship interview. Besides the excellent meal (possibly the most formal I’ve been to—upon reaching the cheesecake I realized I had used the dessert fork for dinner!), I picked up a lot of useful information at several booths set up for students to visit before the interview. I gathered information on the study abroad program, the honors program, the band program, and just about any other program you can think of. This includes academics, too. When I approached some of the academic department booths and said I didn’t know what I wanted to study, and didn’t even have a preference between biology and physics or English and history, the college officials made suggestions or simply handed me a stack of pamphlets, brochures and papers. I’m not any closer to deciding what I want to study, but as soon as I do decide, at least I’ll know exactly who to contact to answer my questions.
You could say this visit also put some of my doubts to rest. I was slightly worried that after half a year or more without seeing the college, I would find out my opinion of the atmosphere had changed. As I first saw the campus from a distance, though, I decided that seeing this sight—for at least the next few years—is something I look forward to.
February 15, 2008
A return to normal
Not much has changed in the last few weeks, mainly because this week’s weather made everything slow to a standstill. An ice storm hit the area Monday afternoon and caused thousands of homes to lose electricity, in some cases for several days. Homes along my road in particular lost power early that night and didn’t gain it back until Friday morning. Luckily, my family was able to take refuge at my grandparents’ house, which includes a wood stove so we could get warm without electricity. For others, however, the elementary school was turned into an overnight community shelter on Wednesday. Simply because of the great number who still didn’t have electricity at different times, Crittenden students haven’t had school since Monday was cut short in preparation for the approaching storm.
Living without electricity and running water was difficult at times, but manageable thanks to people working together. The most difficult part was being isolated; the roads were covered with ice, and most radio news don’t mention places as small as Marion specifically. Of course, no electricity meant no TV or Internet. In addition, although friends and family help you through such a crisis, it’s hard to get along with them when you spend days together in a small area. However, in the end, it’s the lost time that bothers me more than how I spent the days. This is a huge setback to Spanish, and a large one to Yearbook as well (I can only be glad I’m not one of the editors). It’s the same for the other classes — one less week to prepare for the upcoming band concert and the English IV test in May. On Monday, the math teacher was so determined not to lose time, he told the class he expected the homework done even if it was by candlelight.
I’ve also lost some study time for the next level of the Academic Team competition, which will be next Saturday. At the District level I placed three spots below what was needed to advance to Regionals for science, but I went far beyond my expectations in math, earning second place with a score perhaps 10 points higher than I was planning for. It’s a score that could get me to state if I match it next Saturday, but the next test will also have more difficult questions.
In the more immediate future, tomorrow is the interview day for two of the most important scholarships I’ve applied for. I’m fairly nervous. Besides an interview, the itinerary includes time for several seminars and an hour-long essay. I’m not extremely bad at on-demand essays, but they’re certainly my least favorite out of every possible type of academic testing. Still, I can be glad the electricity is back — at least I don’t have to face an important interview knowing I picked my clothes and did my makeup using a flashlight.
Wish me luck! Hopefully I can tell how it went in the next entry. Also, Happy Belated Valentine’s Day!
February 01, 2008
A chance to catch my breath
Snow! Both yesterday and today I didn’t have school. This was an eventful week early in the week, and the latter half would have been the same if it hadn’t been for the snow. Our girls’ basketball team was going to state and we had a pep band performance scheduled for a Friday game. I also had a yearbook deadline and last-minute studying for the Academic Team competition, the Governor’s Cup. Because I was so busy, I’ve enjoyed my unexpected free time from the snow days by relaxing, hanging out with friends or listening to music. Today I even went sledding in what little snow we had left.
Still, I’m a little nervous about tomorrow’s academic competition, not because of the actual tests, but because my senior year means it’s my last chance to reach the state level. Last year I did better in science than math. This year, I have an advanced math class but no science class. I’m wondering how that will affect my scores, but I can’t do much more than try my best.
I received my acceptance letter from Murray State University shortly after I wrote my last blog entry. I also received some information for incoming freshmen. As for scholarship applications, I think I’m almost done—all that’s left is to apply for some local ones and interview for two others. I’m not looking forward to the interview, but if I do well, it will certainly be worth more than one lost Saturday. The local scholarships are relatively small and not due for a few months, so I plan on waiting to find out how much I receive from scholarships from Murray before writing more essays for other scholarships.
For anyone else applying for scholarships, I’d recommend giving yourself plenty of time to make corrections or to send in papers you may have forgotten. Communicating with your high school counselor is also important, as certain applications will require a recommendation from him or her, and others require a transcript or other information. Most people around you—parents, teachers, employers, college officials, etc—will be more than happy to help you with your essay, write a letter of recommendation, or clarify what needs to be turned in. Just make sure you give them enough time to write the letters of recommendation.
I’ve also filled out my FAFSA. Surprisingly, it wasn’t nearly as confusing as I thought it would be. The online site has help sections for each step and describes where the information is likely to be found on your tax form. I was able to finish it in close to an hour, only needing to ask my parents the occasional question and getting my mom to “sign” it with her own PIN since I’m not 18 yet.
I’m happy to say I did fairly well with the Spanish conversation I was so nervous about a few weeks ago. If there’s one thing I learned at all from last semester, it’s that the worst mistake is being too afraid to try. With that idea in mind, my biggest goal for these important last few months is to push my limits and enjoy it all the way until graduation.
January 15, 2008
Off to a great year
The new year has made it apparent that college is coming ever closer. Today, a representative from Murray State University talked to perhaps a fifth of our seniors about college applications of all types. This was a great relief to me—she cleared up most of the confusion I had concerning applications for scholarships, financial aid, and housing, and what was specifically required for each. The housing application can be completed much later, and the one for financial aid should be done quickly, but it’s OK to wait until my parents prepare their tax return, which we need in order for the FAFSA to be accurate.
Of course that leaves the application for scholarships, due in less than three weeks. My main concern is the essay, which should be 250 words about a current event. The war in Iraq immediately comes to mind, but I’m hoping to think of a unique topic that involves more of my personal thoughts or experiences. I’ve asked the guidance counselor for a letter of recommendation and to send my high school transcript to Murray. (I’m not sure of the policy of other colleges, but Murray requires a copy be sent to admissions and one to the scholarship department.) Unfortunately, the counselor will be gone for the next two days, and I’d like to check my GPA before filling out forms. For the most part I’ve earned A’s, but I received an 87 for last semester in yearbook, and I doubt I’ll ever forgive the biology teacher who gave me an 89 one semester of sophomore year. At the beginning of the year, the school required seniors to list all their high school activities, and so for the resume part of the application I’ll only have to remember my work as a senior.
Unfortunately, I was slightly late to the college presentation because I was taking yearbook pictures. The school load hasn’t slacked off any with the new semester; deadlines for the aforementioned yearbook remain more or less steady until late in the year. Although marching band is long over, as well as our holiday concert, I still have to attend several of the home basketball games as part of pep band. Between yearbook and band, I’ve been to more school sports events this year than all the rest of my years put together.
Spanish might be giving me the most stress right now—the entire class is playing catch-up at this point. My first long conversation with the teacher will be coming up soon, and there’s not a doubt in my mind that I would rather repeat biology many times instead. I once wanted to study several foreign languages in college. Hopefully, this experience will make that easier, rather than make me dread those courses instead.
Most people will tell you it’s important to make the most of your senior year by attending any events your high school offers. Last year was the first year I even knew what Grand March was (it’s the procession of couples before prom), and this year, as part of student council, I’m helping design it. By joining many more clubs, running for office, and making several new friends, maybe I took the advice a little too much to heart. Still, that’s not what bothers me. It’s that I didn’t do these things earlier in high school.
I’m also waiting. Murray’s admissions response should come any day. Although I’m mostly confident in what the answer will be, time will tell.
January 01, 2008
Making this the best year yet
The start of the year may be a momentous occasion for some. To me, it mostly means I’ll date my papers incorrectly for the next three months. Jan. 1, sadly, also marks the last day of Christmas break.
Although I spent most of my free time simply relaxing at home, something I haven’t done much of this school year, I was able to relieve some of my college concerns. Except for sending my high school transcript, I don’t have to worry about entrance applications anymore. I decided not to apply to Vanderbilt. I only applied to Murray State University. This may seem like an odd decision, but in the end, it was for simple reasons. I prefer normal classes to advanced classes, and I appreciate meeting people with other beliefs or cultures. Even if Vanderbilt is possibly the most prestigious college in this part of the country, it’s not a good fit for me in those aspects. It’s important to always have a backup, and in case I have a last minute change of heart or am not accepted at Murray, I can apply for the engineering program through the community college in early March.
I’ve also looked through a large number of scholarships. Something I didn’t expect was the large number based on certain majors—for example, many scholarships were only for students intending to work in dentistry, journalism, nursing, etc. I’m glad I didn’t plan a major because I would hate to find out I disliked my chosen field after working towards a degree for any length of time. But you could say it’s annoying to see I don’t qualify for so many scholarships. I can still apply for scholarships and financial aid through the college itself, though, and I plan on doing that as soon as I can fill out the FAFSA.
I was able to find my results on the December ACT test online about a week after I took it. I was able to raise my composite score and writing score by two points! I believe the only subject test score that went down was Science, and I think that was because I made a mistake when figuring out how much time was left near the end of the test. I don’t believe there’s any real way to avoid easy mistakes like that, but at least I used my last five minutes well because the proctor called out how much time we had left. In particular, I’m happy that my Reading score went up three points. I’m also happy to report that some of my friends who took the test the same day did well—one made more than the 30 that’s required for some scholarships, and another made 21, which is needed to enter the education program to become a teacher.
To wrap up last year, all of the holiday activities went well (although the Christmas parade was a bit colder than I would’ve liked, and I’m still hoping for snow). Today is the start of the new year, and I want to make the most of it.
December 01, 2007
Getting by until the break
December already? Unbelievable. I’ve come to terms with the fact that I’m a senior, although that may be of little use since the year is almost halfway done. Also, my little sister is having a party for her 10th birthday today, and her age seems as incredible to me as my own. I’m glad for any opportunity to eat cake and ice cream, but I would be happy if neither of us were growing up quite so quickly.
A re-check of deadlines showed that all of the colleges I’m applying to have dates of early January or later for admission applications and early February for financial aid. Because of this, I’ve decided to wait until Christmas break, when I don’t have school work or extracurricular activities to worry about, to finish applications.
At the moment, school and activities are taking up most of my time anyway. Of course, Spanish IV is taking up a lot of time. In English IV we’ve been preparing for senior portfolios and the end-of-year test. I’ve been doing that homework on the day it’s assigned, though admittedly only because I prefer one language over the other. For Academic Team, I’ve started studying for the Governor’s Cup, an academic competition held around February (specifically, I’m studying for the infamous math test).
In addition, the start of December means that many clubs are preparing for different holiday events. There will be a small Yearbook Christmas party tomorrow; the band is playing in the Christmas Concert and Christmas Parade next weekend; Beta (a service club) is helping with the preschool toy drive; and several student groups are contributing to Community Christmas, a program in which area families in need write down what gifts their children wish for, and people donate money or the gifts themselves. It puts everything into perspective when a child wants shoes instead of the latest Guitar Hero. Incidentally, I’m also helping with the blood drive next Friday (maybe to ease the guilt I have from half-hoping, with my dislike of needles, that I’ll be like my mother and grandmother in their youth and not meet the weight or blood-iron requirements when it’s my turn to donate).
The Christmas Parade next weekend is only a few hours after the December ACT date. I remember most of what I learned last year, so lately I’ve been doing practice tests in whatever spare time I have to find out what specific things I need to work on. Unfortunately, the largest problem might be the way I use my time; I tend to rush through a test and miss two or three questions simply because of incorrect reading. It won’t make a large difference, but reading more carefully might help me score one or two points higher. My plan during this last week before the test is to study abstract algebra and circular geometry in particular, read more carefully in general, and try to improve my reading comprehension. Luckily, or maybe just as a result of too much spare time and Sudoku puzzles in previous years, I seem to have a logical mind that gives me relatively little trouble with the Science portion.
Christmas break is in two weeks, so the next time I write will be in early January. Until then, Happy Holidays!
November 15, 2007
Choices and More Challenges
The first half of November has been fun, but also difficult and full of decisions. Advanced Spanish IV is an ever-present source of work; for a short time, I considered dropping it at the semester. To be honest, passing that class, much less getting an A, might be the most difficult thing I’ve ever done—if I manage it. Doing the work is definitely a test of character. Still, I wonder if it’s a test I want to take when I’m not sure if the class’s benefits outweigh the immense amount of time, effort, and stress required. In the end, however, it’s hard for me not to accept a challenge.
While I only have half a month left to write my Common Application essay for Vanderbilt, my Murray State application should be complete after I have my December ACT scores sent (or last year’s scores, if I don’t improve). And I also need to ask my guidance counselor to send my high school transcript.
The week before last another college option presented itself. A speaker from a local community college visited the high school to talk about the possibility of taking courses for a University of Kentucky engineering degree through the community college. In other words, the chance to have a UK degree without driving an hour away from home, and costing much less money. It’s truly a great opportunity—scholarships would be far easier to find (to give you an idea, I was the only one out of almost 200 seniors and juniors who liked math and science enough to listen to the speaker). And female engineers are in such a high demand than many high-paying job opportunities would be easily available. On the other hand, I’d miss the four-year university experience, and would have to commit to a major before taking the variety of classes I had planned on taking. In any case, it’s something to think about.
It’s November 15 and that means the December ACT test date is not far off. I’ve been studying on my own, and hopefully I can use the period when I’m a teacher’s aide to take a practice test, or at least one section of the practice test. I’m hoping I can improve my score slightly. Several students were talking about their October test today, and a few had lower scores, while one friend had an increase of four points. It appears now that fewer people will want my help preparing for the ACT, which I’m actually slightly relieved about, since I don’t think I’m that good of a teacher. Most of the advice I could give can be found in any study book, and practice tests may not work for everyone like they do for me. I do have one complaint, though. Too many students give up on getting a good score.
I was given something else to think about during English today. The teacher asked, “Do you think today’s high school students are prepared for college or jobs?” I know there’s still a great deal of things I want to learn from high school before I find myself in a college dorm, or commuting between here and the closest large city. And I’m looking forward to the future. I would just prefer if it wasn’t rushing to meet me quite so fast.
October 31, 2007
Applications, admissions, and more preparation
In the past two weeks, not much has changed regarding the college search—or should I say, the filling out of applications. The Vanderbilt application is easily accessible online anytime during the next several months, and the Murray application is sitting in my room. It appears as if the hardest part will be having information transferred. For example, two of my classes last year counted for college credit, credit I don’t want omitted, and unless I want to apply after I receive my ACT results this December, I need to have last year’s results sent. Looking back, I probably should have taken the time to at least select Murray when having the scores sent the first time. The first four schools you select when you register are sent your ACT scores for free, and it would have only taken a minute online to find Murray’s college code and request that scores be sent.
I’ve given it some thought, and unless I have a spur of the moment change in decision, I think applying to two universities will be enough. None of the many others I’ve visited or researched have fit as well in terms of almost everything: location, size, student body, courses, extracurricular activities, and general atmosphere. And, although two would be enough, I might also apply to the University of Kentucky as a backup. My parents have been encouraging me to try for its engineering program, and the college is sufficiently different from the other two if I decide I don’t want a midsize campus or one close to home.
All of this has made me look forward to college all the more. Throughout high school, I have taken advanced classes and participated in community projects at least in part to further my chances of admission and financial aid (my family’s financial situation is such that I’m relying almost entirely on scholarships, grants and loans). Hopefully, college itself will seem less like a preparation for my later career as high school seems to be like a preparation for college. Of course, that may be because of my situation; I wouldn’t be struggling with Advanced Spanish IV if I had known I would want to go to Murray, or that I would do so well on the ACT.
On a lighter note, a club that was previously thought to have left the school this year is now returning. The club, Educational Talent Search, has been responsible for my visits to campuses like Austin Peay State University, Berea College, the University of Richmond, and several other notable ones within a day’s travel. Luckily, the club also offers an ACT study class in early December. Besides that, club meetings have given me practice in filling out college applications and class schedules. When I remember the support from this club, and the faith my family and peers have in me, maybe the entire college process isn’t as scary as it seems at first. The trick is taking it one step at a time—as long as you don’t miss the deadlines.
October 14, 2007
Joining a fall tradition
Although I hate to admit it, this school year is flying by. It’s already the start of fall break and the end of the first nine weeks (Crittenden school years are divided into four quarters). Of course, this also reminds me that now is about the time to begin preparing for college applications, and this week will present the most free time to do research.
For example, I may know what my two favorite colleges are (Vanderbilt and Murray), but should I apply to others as a backup? I believe Vanderbilt has a high admission rejection rate, and although I’m almost certain to be admitted to Murray, that doesn’t leave many options. How much money am I willing to spend on sending applications to colleges that I doubt I’ll attend? And what parts of the applications are important? Should I be losing sleep trying to think of a good essay topic when Murray considers GPA or extracurricular activities to be far more important? Some of these issues I’ll have to decide or find out on my own, but a trip to the guidance counselor after school one day may be helpful.
I’ve had a few chances to check out the websites of my favorite colleges. Apparently, Vanderbilt has an excellent music program, although I made a note that for good or bad it’s also the smallest college on campus. The number of students, in particular the student-to-teacher ratio, is something that needs to be considered when making college decisions.
The same goes for location. The temperatures at the band regional competition reminded me how much of a summer person I am. Many of the more prestigious schools are in New England, but it would take forever to become used to the cold. If I didn’t think I’d become homesick easily, my favorite college would likely be in Hawaii instead.
Lately, our school has been doing more to encourage seniors to attend college. Lying on a shelf in my room are several brochures about KEES money (grants unique to Kentucky) and filling out the FAFSA that were passed out at some point during the last few weeks. My fifth-period class has made several trips to the computer lab in order to do Individual Learning Plans online, which have timelines for preparing for college and interest inventories to determine which careers suit each student best. As for my results, I hadn’t considered being a food scientist, and I’m not sure I would make a good brew master.
Returning to the subject of fall break, it isn’t much of a break at all. As of now it looks to be more of a catch-up period for homework in advanced classes. I’ve decided I definitely need to take it easier my freshman year of college, no matter which college I attend. My first few years in high school were too heavy in academics, and this year, in clubs, so hopefully I can strike the right balance the next chance I get.
September 30, 2007
The deadline is fast approaching
As you may have noticed, it’s been an entire month since my last entry, and there aren’t quite enough words to describe all that has happened. From the top, I can’t explain how glad I am that homecoming is over. Our team (I have to say “surprisingly” with regret) won. The dance lasted until midnight and yesterday’s marching band events lasted from 6 a.m. until 11 p.m. The Rocket Regiment, our band, did well enough to make it into regionals, but the competition was stressful. The homecoming float I was in charge of may not have won first place in the parade, but it looked fairly good, and now I don’t have to worry about student council for a while.
As for my concerns of last month, ad sales for the yearbook are almost complete, so the most tedious work is done. Article writing and the senior portfolio work I’ve started may help me prepare for the English and Reading Tests on the ACT, especially on the subject/verb tense agreement I had some trouble with last time. Unfortunately, I already know how to answer the calculus questions in the math portion (I need to work on algebra and geometry), so my math class is only slightly helping me.
Which reminds me, this coming December, I should probably use more of the school’s resources. The math teacher has several test prep books and advice, and the English teacher last year actually taught an ACT class for one or two days after school. Unfortunately, I was unable to attend due to an Academic Team match. This year, I’ll make certain of the time, and check to see if anything similar is going on elsewhere in the area.
For example, it seems as if I’ll be in charge of an ACT study group. Although I plan on taking the ACT in December when marching band no longer takes up the majority of my schedule, several friends and family have asked me to help them prepare for the October test. They want to raise their scores. I need to be organizing that, and maybe checking to make sure they’ve registered. Before I took the test last December, I spent two and a half hours filling in interest inventory bubbles just to miss the mailing deadline. Luckily, I was able to register a day or two later online without having to pay the $19 late fee.
I was mistaken in thinking one of my favorite colleges would make an appearance at our school at the end of last month. In actuality, they’re coming at the end of this month. I’ve still made slight progress in my college search, however. After seeing Murray’s marching band in action, I’ve decided that the type of music programs and classes Vanderbilt offers are more important to me than I’d previously thought. Extracurricular activities can almost be as vital when looking at colleges as the majors they provide.
September 01, 2007
New challenges in an old place
¡Hola! It’s now the beginning of September, and I don’t quite dread anymore thinking about all my clubs and classes this year. In particular, Advanced Spanish IV is less worrisome. The entrance exam, which I was sure I would fail (at the end, I started making up fake words—in hindsight not something I would recommend) was apparently not as hard as I thought. The teacher said I did excellently and she only had a few suggestions of things to work on. The fact that the class is online through Kentucky Virtual High Schools is not being as much as a problem as I thought, and the teacher seems as nice as possible.
Stretching the topic of foreign languages, my assigned job for the yearbook’s student life section is the foreign exchange page, and I’ve been trying to spend extra time with our school’s two students—one from Vietnam and one from Thailand. It’s been interesting, to say the least. Despite disliking my Spanish class, I love learning about different cultures, so I’ve made a note to take a second look at the study overseas programs in my favorite colleges.
At this moment, I’m regretting that I did less work over the summer. For example, I’m behind everyone else in calculus because I’m the only student who hasn’t worked on lessons at home. Yearbook advertisement sales are the largest issue, though; it’s amazingly hard to find time to visit businesses. Many close before the end of band practice, close before the end of school on Wednesday, and close on Fridays while I’m playing the fight song at football games. But this Saturday is one of the few when there isn’t a marching band competition planned, so I hope to make calls on some businesses. Today I visited a few places, and hopefully someday this week I can learn to use a fax machine for the businesses farther away.
While I’m dealing with the workload now, more will be added on. Academic Team (which I’m still trying to explain to the foreign exchange students) will start soon, and it’s probably the extracurricular activity I feel the most loyalty toward. Unfortunately, it’s also the one with the fewest members and the worst track record…. Plus, I actually won the student council race. It would only be a slight exaggeration to say I felt like Pedro from Napoleon Dynamite. Not really expecting to win, I admit I didn’t think too hard about the responsibilities involved, so at the moment I’m a little overwhelmed at the expectations of the people who voted for me as president. I’ve always considered myself a person who was only “responsible” when absolutely necessary, but now that I’ve done some campaigning to be elected, backing out is not an option.
At the last possible moment, I switched classes to become an aide rather than take Advanced Biology III. I may not earn the college credit but it will give me some time to breathe, and maybe do some Advanced English IV homework. To be honest the best thing about it is that I can eat lunch about an hour and a half early. As always, I have a feeble excuse for my laziness—a booth for my top college choice will be set up during lunch later in the month, so I’ll have a full 20 minutes to talk to representatives without worrying about missing out on the school’s chicken nuggets. Opportunities can come from the least expected places, if you look for them.
August 21, 2007
Getting a good start
So, it’s a few weeks later, and I’ve been busier than I expected. Marching band rehearsal for two and a half hours a day for three days a week, and something planned almost every Saturday. (Last weekend, we played at a St. Louis Cardinal baseball game—the mascot even borrowed my flute and pretended to play it!) I have a feeling that sooner or later yearbook will start taking up more than a class period, and student council elections will be held at the end of next week. Come to think of it, there’s an FCCLA (Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America) meeting tomorrow morning. Plus, two cousins of mine have transferred to Crittenden, and I’ve been trying to make them feel at home on top of everything else.
It’ll be some time before I become used to regular classes. The first two periods, calculus and advanced Spanish, are actually independent study, and it feels strange to go to a class and immediately start working for the rest of the period. Sixth and seventh periods are based on extracurricular activities, and it’s a new experience for me. A few things have also changed in my schedule since previous years, like lunch with nothing but juniors and other seniors (last year, the shifts were divided so I had the lunch with seventh graders) and fourth period as basically study time. Fourth period is somewhat nice because the entire class of ’08, a whopping one hundred or so students, was randomly divided into four. I haven’t seen some of the students since eighth grade when classes were chosen for us.
My advanced biology class in particular has been strange because of its size, almost thirty students. I’ve been in “large” classes before, but I believe thirty is unprecedented in a college credit class. Advanced English, when considered with first and second period, has caused me to consider switching to being a student aide or to a comparably easy class like multimedia. I could still earn Kentucky’s highest diploma, the Commonwealth Diploma, but I would lose a chance at three hours of college credit for only the cost of a test. This is the last week for schedule changes, so I’ll have to decide sooner rather than later.
It’s still early in the school year, but maybe I should be thinking about college more. Just the other day, a school survey asked if students had asked teachers for recommendations yet, a thought that hadn’t even crossed my mind. And a few friends have already asked me about helping them better their ACT scores. Maybe I should be doing more to prepare for actual deadlines, not just a indefinite thought of “this will help me in the future. . . .”
People often say high school is the best time of their lives, although admittedly they are usually the ones that didn’t do well after. I’ve spent the majority of my high school life preparing for college, and I suppose this year I’m trying to focus more on the present than the future. Time will tell if that’s the right decision.
August 13, 2007
Trying to keep pace with the present
Err, hello there. The obligatory bio: My name is Mary Ann, and I’m a senior at Crittenden County High School in Marion, Kentucky. I like to think that I live in the true middle of nowhere; my home is 20 minutes away from a town of less than 4,000, and western Kentucky (and Kentucky itself, for that matter) isn’t well known for its large cities. Part of the reason why I’m looking forward to college is so I can have more than five restaurants to choose from without driving for 30 minutes, and the nearest bookstore won’t be an hour away. I moved here from eastern Kentucky when I was only four, so beyond vague memories it’s all I’ve known.
Back to the subject. Early last month I turned 17. It’s hard to believe. I know I don’t act my age, and I’m mistaken for a sophomore or even a freshman fairly often. Maybe the large number of extracurricular activities I’m in this year will act as a sort of wake-up call. In previous years I didn’t do much outside of school—practically nothing my freshman year, and only FCCLA (Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America) and Academic Team as a sophomore and junior. This year, I’ll be captain of the Academic Team, FCCLA vice president of public relations, and involved in Beta (a service club), yearbook, and the most time-consuming of them all, marching band. Besides that, I’m taking the heaviest class load offered at Crittenden and plan on running for Student Council.
Those classes will hopefully prepare me for anything. As of now, I have no idea what I want to do as a full adult except for a slight inclination toward science and any form of writing. It’s actually more common for incoming college freshman to have an undeclared major, but it makes choosing a college slightly more difficult. My current favorites are Murray (in Kentucky) and Vanderbilt (in Tennessee); the choice between them will likely come down to the amount of financial aid I receive.
That’s where extracurricular activities and the ACT come in. The ACT in particular plays a large part when applying to in-state colleges. Last December, I took the ACT for the first time and earned a 32. I’m happy with this, as it can get me into any university but a small handful, but I plan on taking it again around this winter because there’s still room for improvement. Mostly, I want to improve my writing score, only a six out of twelve. The score from the optional Writing Test doesn’t factor into the composite score, but some colleges specifically ask for it.
Taking a second look, all of this may come to make my senior year seem the shortest yet. In a few weeks, after school has started, I'll let you know if I was ready for it.
