Riverside HS School Counseling
September 2020
About Our Department...
The Riverside School Counseling department is a team of 15 dedicated individuals working collaboratively to meet the needs of 1,856 students, including teachers and parents. We have an open-door policy, but at times we are needed at meetings or have scheduled appointments with other students and parents. To serve you more efficiently, we ask that you please email us to schedule an appointment.
We support Riverside High School by:
working with staff to address obstacles that interfere with students’ learning and success.
focusing on skill development through a variety of ways, such as small group or individual counseling sessions, classroom guidance, and consultation and coordination with parents, administrators, and teachers.
helping when students experience challenges. We focus on conflict resolution, transitions, study skills, test-taking skills, crisis intervention, bullying prevention, suicide prevention, and special needs of students.
preparing students with post-grad planning. College visits, career days, internships, scholarships, and job matching are just a few resources available to help our students succeed in life after high school.
RVHS School Counseling Office Hours
Hours: 8:00 am to 4:15 pm
Website: http://www.loudoun.k12.va.us/domain/17735
Follow us on twitter & instagram @RVHCounseling
Luke Mason, Director of School Counseling
Helen Randolph, Registrar
Kathy Jackson, School Counseling Assistant
Open, Career Center Assistant
Alexis Powell, School Counselor (A-Burc)
Stephanie Lemus-Ortiz, School Counselor (Burd - E)
Cassandra Asekhauno, School Counselor (F-Jer)
Kimberley Harris, School Counselor (Jes-Marn)
Susan Pangman, School Counselor (Maro-Pl)
Tyler Wagner, School Counselor (Po-Sm)
Tracy Wood, School Counselor (Sn-Z)
Noelia Garcia-Gettmann, School Psychologist
Frances Jester, Social Worker
Kim Hager, Student Assistance Specialist
Susan Sabloff, Parent Liaison
Support During COVID-19 Virtual School
For emergency mental health resources for your child(ren) or yourself, please go to the following link https://www.lcps.org/Page/220727
For Mental Health and Wellness Resources for LCPS Students and Families, please see the following page.
Upcoming Events
FAFSA Workshop
The 2020-2021 Free Application for Federal Student Aid will be available on October 1, 2020. Have questions on how to apply? Join our Saturday October 3rd FAFSA Workshop from 9-10 am online. To register click here.
Seal of Biliteracy
This year, the Office of World Languages and Cultures will change the process of how students will be tested to earn the Seal of Biliteracy by graduation. To limit the number of participants and secure the safety of students and staff, the following process will be followed.
- For the 2020-2021 school year, only Seniors will be assessed this November.
- LCPS will administer the ACTFL Assessment of Performance toward Proficiency in Languages® (AAPPL) at no cost to students. This online assessment is offered in Arabic, Chinese (Mandarin), French, German, Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, and Thai. The testing dates will be coordinated with the World Language Department Chairs.
- The CTT (Credit Through Testing) will only be offered in the languages not covered by AAPPL (Bengali, Farsi, Gujarati, Malayalam, Marathi, Punjabi, Tagalog, Tamil, Urdu and Vietnamese).
- Students will self-register for the CTT beginning on September 14th through the online link on the World Languages and Cultures district page.
- This year, the Governor declared Election Day, Tuesday November 3rd, a holiday. For those seniors needing to take the assessment in-person, the CTT exams will be scheduled over three days. It will be offered on Monday, November 2 at PVH; Wednesday, November 4 at JCH; and Thursday, November 5th at THS. All three events are scheduled after-school to avoid conflicts with distance learning.
- This information will be updated for the community on the World Languages and Cultures webpage and shared through multiple channels.
SENIORS --Class of 2021
You should have received an email from your counselor about filling in your senior survey. We use this information to craft your recommendation letters! Please complete this as soon as you can. It is possible that this email went to your spam folder. Please look for it!
Counselors are planning a presentation for seniors this Monday September 14th. There will also be a parent presentation on Thursday September 17th at 6:30 pm.
We are using permission click now for transcript requests for college applications! Here is the link! Please complete the request form at least 15 business days before application deadline!
Class of 2022 College Planning Resources
Juniors, your counselors have set up Advisory 11 in Schoology for the Class of 2022 and will post useful information and lessons there for you.
Two helpful sites to utilize include the college essay guy and collegexpress.com. Additionally, some enterprising students at Rock Ridge HS prepared this wonderful website for college search information in pandemic times.
Shout out to Mary Barnes at Rock Ridge HS! She met with Christopher Newport's Kelly Scallion to talk about tips for writing those application essays. You can view her discussion/guidance here. She also meet with Laika Tamny of JMU and you can view that discussion here.
Naviance Resources for Students and Parents
The “Introduction to Naviance Student – How Parents Can Assist Their Students with College and Career Readiness” presentation took place on October 21st. The session was recorded and will be posted at www.lcps.org/parentresourceservices. Once you are on the webpage, click on workshops and events, and then archived videos.
Additionally, we have a central Naviance classroom page with activities for grades 6-12 that parents and students can utilize.
Penn College of Technology
A virtual information session on October 15 at 6:00pm will provide an overview of Penn College.Students will learn how a hands on education can lead to a real world career.
This link can be used by students to register for the session: East Coast Information Session
College Visits in a Virtual World
LCPS Connect U
https://sites.google.com/lcps.org/lcps-connect-u/home
JMU
https://www.jmu.edu/choices/virtual/index.shtml
Virginia Tech
https://vt.edu/admissions/frequently-asked-questions/covid-19.html
https://vtnews.vt.edu/articles/2020/04/admissions-testing-2025.html
Auburn
Student Panel Sign Up:
https://apply.auburn.edu/portal/campustours
Information Session Sign-Up:
https://apply.auburn.edu/portal/campustours
Virtual Campus Tour:
http://auburn.edu/admissions/visit/index.php#
Penn State
https://admissions.psu.edu/experience/
UVA
University of California events
systemwide events for students and families. The *UC for You* events are
intended to help students and families, who will be applying this fall, get
to know the nine undergraduate campuses. The *UC for Everyone: UC wants
You!* events are for students and their families who are considering UC in
future years.
All events are free, and many feature admission staff, current students
and parents, UC faculty and UC alumni.
For information on each of the six events and to
register, see: https://ucforyou.universityofcalifornia.edu/. Please email
any questions to ucforyou@ucop.edu.
Gap Year Planning
Navigating the New College Landscape
Join Don McMillan, CEO of McMillan Education, Katherine Stievater, Founder of Gap Year Solutions, Elizabeth Pyle, Founder of College Success Plan, and Moira McCullough, Founder of College Scoops as they discuss how students can:
- stand out during the college search and application process
- master virtual college tours and get the inside scoop on schools
- benefit from a Gap Year during COVID and beyond
- maximize academic success during college
Students, parents and counselors can register here.
What is the Academic Common Market?
Basically, the ACM allows a student to major in a specialized field of study at an out-of-state college, while paying in-state tuition. This is only applicable if you are interested in a degree program that is not offered in Virginia. There are a lot of rumors surrounding this program, get the facts at this website that explain exactly what the Academic Common Market really is: https://www.sreb.org/academic-common-market
Helpful Links
National College Attainment (formerly Access) Network: Roundup of COVID-19 Resources: https://www.ncan.org/news/news.asp?id=493855 Includes: Links to SAT and ACT testing updates, resources for virtual advising, and more.
National Association for College Admission Counseling: College Admission Status Update: https://www.nacacnet.org/college-admission-status-coronavirus Includes: Up-to-date enrollment and deposit changes for IHE’s across the country.
Federal Student Aid: Coronavirus and Forbearance Info for Students, Borrowers, and Parents: https://studentaid.gov/announcements-events/coronavirus Includes: FAQ’s on the impact of the coronavirus on financial aid for current students and federal student loans for borrowers in repayment.
Student Aid Pandemic: https://www.studentaidpandemic.org/ Includes: Up-to-the-minute student guidance on student loans and financial aid during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic.
The Hope Center: COVID-19 Response Resources: https://hope4college.com/ Includes: A Guide for Students: https://hope4college.com/surviving-covid-19-a-realcollege-guide-for-students/
Standardized Testing Update
Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) will offer current seniors additional opportunities to take the College Board’s SAT test on Wednesday, September 23 and Tuesday, October 27, which are both school days. The SAT test will be offered on September 23, and the SAT test with Essay will be offered on October 27. SAT tests will be offered at each high school and students may register via this link now. (this link should be used only for the tests on September 23 and October 27 given at each individual high school)
After completing registration, students will be directed to the LCPS payment portal. The cost is $52.00 for the SAT and $68.00 for the SAT with Essay. Both the registration and payment portals will close at 5:00 p.m. on September 11. Each school’s test administration will be capped at 250 students, per test date. Bus transportation will be provided for students who indicate the need within the registration system.
If you qualify for free or reduced lunch please see the reduced fees for the SAT’s held at Riverside only listed below.
- The SAT test is $8.00 for students utilizing their free/reduced lunch eligibility
- The SAT with Essay test is $15.00 for students utilizing their free/reduced lunch eligibility
LCPS will offer current juniors the opportunity to take the College Board’s PSAT NMSQT test on October 14 and October 29 at each high school. There is no fee for the test and registration information will be provided by each school by the first week of October. Test administration will be capped at 250 students per site, per test date and transportation will be provided for students who indicate the need. Students who wish to be considered for the National Merit Scholarship Competition, but who do not wish to take the PSAT NMSQT may find application information here.
As a reminder, LCPS will also offer the following SAT and ACT on the following weekend dates and high school location listed below. These dates and offerings below must be registered through College Board or ACT (not the link above which is only used for the two special administrations on Sept 23 and Oct 27)
SAT
- September 26 - Broad Run and Dominion High Schools
- October 3 - Freedom, Independence and Woodgrove High Schools
- November 7 - Dominion, John Champe, Potomac Falls and Tuscarora High Schools
- December 5 - Independence, Loudoun County and Potomac Falls High Schools
- March 13 - Briar Woods, Dominion, Independence, John Champe and Woodgrove High Schools
- May 8 - Broad Run and John Champe High Schools
- June 5 - Broad Run and Park View High Schools
ACT
- September 12 - Broad Run High School
- December 12 - Briar Woods, Dominion and John Champe High Schools
- February 6 - Briar Woods, Dominion and John Champe High Schools
Wondering which colleges are "test optional?" Check out fairtest.org