GNHS College and Career Center News
March/April 2022
'Staying Connected'
This newsletter is designed for all grade levels although, at times, there may be specific information directed to a particular class. It's ok - read it all!
GENERAL IDEAS AND THOUGHTS
- Do some thinking on what your interests are. Ask yourself - What are my goals and how can I achieve them? Am I a people person? Do I prefer to work alone? Do I like physical work? Do I want to get a job first and see where that takes me? Those are ideas just to get you started!
- Tutorials for Naviance:
- HERE is a quick tutorial on navigating the College tab in Naviance.
- HERE is a tutorial with a brief overview of features.
- HERE is a tutorial introducing the various ways to navigate in Naviance.
- Grade level assessments in Naviance. Each grade level has an assessment opportunity available to them! This may give you the gentle nudge you need to find a direction.
- Freshman - Learning Styles Inventory
- Sophomore - MI Advantage. Intelligence profile
- Junior - Do What You Are. Allows you to complete a survey which will give you career suggestions and your personality type
- All grade levels - Strength Explorer and Career Interest Profiler
- All Seniors. Don't let this happen to you... Ever hear of 'senioritis'? It's a disease that affects mostly high school seniors. Symptoms may include laziness, lack of motivation, excessive absences, putting off assignments until the very last minute, stress, more stress, tired all the time, crabby and more!
The only cure for this is to graduate! 'When you reach the end of your rope, tie a knot in it and hang on.' Remember, YOU GOT THIS and no matter what, you will end up right where you're supposed to be.
COLLEGE-BOUND INFORMATION
Seniors
We have officially entered the scholarship season and wrapping up those loose ends for the college applications! Pay close attention to deadlines!
UNDERSTANDING YOUR FINANCIAL AID OFFER
As your financial aid award letters begin coming in from your colleges, it is very important to understand what exactly you're looking at and what you are receiving/being offered. Click HERE for an awesome video walkthrough of a financial aid offer. This is just an example as each college will vary on how they set it up but the information is generally the same!
SCHOLARSHIPS/FINANCIAL AID
#2 - Investigate scholarships that are given from the colleges in your list.
#3 - Check out the Local/State Scholarship packet - it's filling in quick now! And check often, it changes all the time! Take a look at all of them, see what you are qualified for, and fill them out! Many are in a format that you will be able to fill out right online but others will be a PDF for you to download and complete. Instructions are there to assist you with the delivery process, whether it's to mail, email or anything else.
EARLY GRADS - You will still qualify for the Local Scholarships so be sure to visit the GNHS Senior Resource page (linked below) for that information as well as any other important things!
Following are some VERY important resources for college-bound seniors! Please be sure to take a look at these - they may answer questions you didn't even know you had:
Juniors
Here is a very helpful, and basic, 'College-bound Junior Timeline'. There are also some printed ones in the College and Career Resource if you'd like to grab one!
Things you can be doing:
- Narrow your options regarding the TYPE of college you'd like to attend: Small, medium or large? Close to home or farther away? State school or private school? Cost? And be sure your options have the Major you'd like to pursue.
- Build your college list. Remember to include a 'foundation school', which is a college where you are assured admission and that is a strong fit for you.
- Use Naviance - College Super Match - to filter your requirements and see what schools fit your criteria.
- If interested, click HERE for a listing of spring college fairs you may be able to attend.
- You should plan to visit your college choices in the spring and summer so you are able to be right on schedule for applying at the beginning of your senior year.
- Be sure you are still on track by taking all of your necessary core classes and prepare for senior year.
Helpful links:
In Case You Missed It - document with college representative contact information and links (those who have scheduled with GNHS).
FINDING YOUR FIT
There are SO MANY options for 'life after GNHS' and it's nearly impossible to touch on all of them BUT we will certainly give you information on what we can!
OPTIONS, OPTIONS, AND MORE OPTIONS...
Community College
Community colleges also offer professional certificates. Obtaining professional certification from a community college can be a great way to change careers or increase your earning potential. Another benefit is that community colleges will often customize their professional certifications programs to fit the needs of businesses in the local economy!
Our community college is the College of Lake County and they offer all of the above! Click HERE for their degree programs and certificates, which are broken down in fields of interest (career clusters).
Following are some of the benefits of choosing a community college:
- Lower Tuition & Fees
- Opportunity to Improve Your Transcript
- Lower Living Costs
- Greater Flexibility
- Easier to work while attending school
- More Support
- High-Quality Professors
Click HERE for more details on the pros and cons of community college!
Remember, it's about what works for YOU - no one else!
The Mixed Bag
Here are a few practical ideas:
- Self-paced free and paid resources - Certain careers don't require any formal education. You can find both free and paid self-paced resources for illustration and animation, coding, video production, design, and other similar types of jobs. You may have an uphill battle when competing for some jobs but if you can build a portfolio and prove your worth, employers will notice!
- Entrepreneurship - If you have a business idea or if you're interested in turning a hobby into a career, you might be at the beginning of your entrepreneurial journey! By putting your skills to use creating and providing products or services to others, you can become your own boss.
- Work your way up - Consider making the most of your current job or find a position at a company that values employees. Look for employers that offer training, education and advancement opportunities to employees. By working for the right organization, you can focus on building your skills and working your way up the company! Also make networking a priority. Building connections with your colleagues and others in your industry can help you build your career. Sure, it may take a bit of time but in the end, all of your hard work will pay off.
Click HERE for more alternative ideas!
THE MORE YOU KNOW
- SCHOOLOGY - each grade level has a Schoology 'CCRC of 20...' course listed under 'my courses'. It is a GOOD idea to check that often, no matter what you grade level. And if you click on the 'materials' tab, on the left, you will see folders that contain A LOT of valuable information. ***Parents, did you realize that you also have access to Schoology and your students' courses? You would have received an email in mid to late August with your access codes! Be sure to login! If you don't have this information, please contact Rachel Burnette at rburnette@d127.org
- EMAIL - each student has a D127 email address that should be checked daily. The administration, teachers and clubs send important information for students but another reason for checking daily would be to instill these habits for your professional life in the future!
- NAVIANCE - All students have access to this great online tool to help align strengths and interests to post-secondary goals! Click HERE to sign in with the single sign on option. HERE is our Naviance brochure with great tips on where to go and what to do!
- COLLEGE AND CAREER CENTER WEBSITE - This has just as much, if not more information than Schoology.
* Click HERE to go to the main page.
* THIS is a great link for all grade levels as it contains many things all in one place, such as a Naviance tutorial, community college links, Cum Laude link, test information/prep links, college information and so much more!
* Are you more interested in exploring Career, Technical and/or specialty schools? Go HERE! Or how about watching some career videos to get a taste of 'a day in the life' of a variety of careers listed!
- ONE STOP KNIGHT SHOP - Have you visited the One Stop Knight Shop on the North website!? There is SO MUCH helpful information all in one place - right at your fingertips!
Anything from Attendance and Schedule to the Cum Laude Program to Knights Activities/Clubs to Academic Help - and everything in between! If you have a question about anything, GO THERE FIRST!
ALWAYS HERE TO HELP!
We hope this has given you some sort of direction to think about! The next, and final newsletter of the year will be out in early May!
- Schoology
- CCRC Website
- Naviance (only students have a login)
**There are Naviance YouTube tutorials in Schoology and on the CCRC website!
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Any questions, please don't hesitate to let us know!
Grayslake North Counseling Department
Mr. Patrick O'Connell, Department Chair,
- Caseload: A - O with IEPs, poconnell@d127.org
Ms. Veronica Lujano,
- Caseload: All Students with 504 Plans and P - Z with IEP's, vlujano@d127.org
Mr. Kevin Ball,
- Caseload: Last Names A -E, kball@d127.org
Ms. Jamie McKenna,
- Caseload: Last Names F - Lar, jmckenna@d127.org
Mr. Tim Sheehan,
- Caseload: Last Names Las - Q, tsheehan@d127.org
Ms. Megan Stenberg,
- Caseload: Last Names R - Z , mstenberg@d127.org
Ms. Linda Feeney
-Counseling Department Secretary, lfeeney@d127.org
Ms. Chrissy Applehans
-College & Career Resource Center Coordinator/Student Svs. Secretary, capplehans@d127.org
Have a great day!
Grayslake North High School College and Career Resource Center
Email: capplehans@d127.org
Website: https://www.d127.org/north/guidance/college-and-career-center
Location: 1925 North Route 83, Grayslake, IL, USA
Phone: 847-986-3100
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lifeafterGNHS