MHS School Counseling Newsletter
December Edition
Happy Holidays!
As a reminder, our first semester ends on Jan. 21st with midterm exams running from Jan 18th-21st.
Post-Secondary Planning
Financial Aid
Financial aid priority deadlines are also approaching soon and this is the time to get your FAFSA completed. MEFA offers plenty of financial aid resources and webinars to watch if you need help with this process. Here are some newer resources they have shared -
- Financial Aid Q&As and Additional Q&As
- How to Maximize Financial Aid
- Understanding your EFC (Estimated Family Contribution)
Scholarships
Please check out our Scholarship Resource List. This document has a ton of information about where to start when applying for scholarships. The local Maynard scholarship application will be available sometime in February and we will be going into senior classrooms at that point to talk to students about it.
UMass Amherst Decisions
For all students who applied to UMass Amherst early action, you will likely hear back about your admission decision soon if you have not already. UMass is NOT releasing all of the decisions at once and is instead releasing decisions in waves from Dec. 6th through Jan. 2022. If you have not heard back yet, this is why.
Alumni Return Day
We will be holding the alumni return day tomorrow Dec. 23rd during F and G block for our juniors and seniors! Students from the class of 2021 will be returning to speak to our upperclassmen to share their insights about college.
Disability Services Presentation
Westfield State University is holding two virtual discussions on preparing students(9th-12th!) with disabilities for college. They will be sharing with you what they expect of college students and the differences between high school and college for students with disabilities. They hope to have disability/accessibility services staff from our sister Massachusetts State Universities and Westfield State University admissions staff present for these sessions, too. Bring your questions with you!
Dates are:
- Jan. 13th at 12:30pm
- Jan. 18th at 3:30pm
PSAT Scores Available!
Students can use these scores to help them prep for the SAT. The College Board has partnered with Khan Academy to set up personalized study guides for each student using their PSAT scores. Check out this video to see how you can link your College Board and Khan Academy accounts.
If you have any questions about accessing your PSAT scores or about your scores in general, please contact your school counselor.
Mental Health Resources
Earlier this month, we began our suicide prevention Signs of Suicide curriculum with both our freshman and sophomore class. It can be hard to tell the difference between normal adolescent turmoil and what might be a mental health concern.
Our goals for this program include teaching students:
- that depression is treatable so they are encouraged to seek help
- how to identify serious depression and potential suicide risk in themselves or a friend
- to ACT (Acknowledge, Care and Tell a trusted adult) if concerned about themselves or a friend
- who they can turn to at school for help, if they need it
Mindwise has a curriculum for staff and for families. We trained staff on this curriculum as they are the trusted adults for many students. We also held our counselor education night for families focusing on the parent curriculum for SOS on Dec. 2nd. Everyone can help play a role in suicide prevention and understanding warning signs. Thank you to all who were able to join us! If you have any questions about this important and challenging topic, please reach out to your student's school counselor.
Suicide Prevention Hotlines
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-TALK (8255)
Crisis Text Line: Text ACT to 741741
theTrevorProject.org 1-866-488-7386
Trans Lifeline 1-877-565-8860
Advocates Local Mobile Crisis - (800) 540-5806
Additional Resource
A new family friendly website launched from The Office of the Child Advocate and the MA Dept. of Mental Health.
There is a new website available for families to help guide you in caring for your child's mental health and emotional well-being. This site can help you identify is my kid just being a kid?, or is their behavior something I should worry about. There are resources and tips and tools on what you can do. Please check it out: https://handholdma.org/
Habitat for Humanity Critical Home Repair Program
Habitat for Humanity of North Central Massachusetts launched a new Critical Home Repair Program in 2015. This is a home preservation program that provides needed interior and exterior repairs for low-income homeowners, so that they may maintain a safe, decent, and affordable place to live.
This program focuses on safety, security, accessibility, weatherization, and keeping houses up to city codes. Through project management oversight which typically includes volunteer labor, Habitat will assist families with completing home repairs.
The Critical Home Repair Program is designed to provide a hand up, not a hand out, to homeowners who are in need such that they may feel proud and dignified about the place they call home.
Please see the attached flyer for additional information.
MHS School Counseling
Dana MacPhee (978) 897-8891 ext. 3105 dmacphee@maynard.k12.ma.us
Amy Petroskey (978) 897-8891 ext. 3210 apetroskey@maynard.k12.ma.us
Soteria Zouzas szouzas@maynard.k12.ma.us