Attention AP students: Exam registration will start on Monday, October 11th, and end on Monday, November 8th. Instructions will be posted on the homepage of the Counseling Center website soon.

Remember to check out the College Planning Resources section of the UHS School Counseling website. In addition to the college visits happening at UHS, there are lots of college events happening on college campuses and virtually. Be sure to check out the List of College Events & Updates!

High school students - are you searching for your next adventure after graduation? Join the 2021 Chester County Virtual College Fair on October 19th, and meet with over 100 colleges and institutions to learn about the postsecondary options that best fit your goals. Admission is FREE and you will have the chance to hear from many different colleges in just one day! You can choose which colleges you want to hear from by registering for their sessions. You and your family can ask questions of the college representatives throughout the presentations as well!

Attending the fair provides career readiness opportunities for students by ensuring that they have access to career exploration and preparation activities that are standards-aligned and evidence-based. This includes the development of career plans and portfolios that help students identify pathways and opportunities for postsecondary success. Student registration will open on September 30, 2021.

This year's fair is powered and hosted by StriveScan! As demonstrated this past year, StriveScan’s 6x6 Virtual College Fair format exposes students to a wide range of colleges in a lively and safe environment.

StriveScan has hosted virtual college fairs and other virtual college admission programs nationwide, with over 500,000 students and 2,000 colleges and universities participating. StriveScan creates additional opportunities for national and regional college representatives, as well as for students and families in Chester County and surrounding areas.

Learn more about the college fair by visiting: cciu.org/college-fair

Neumann University is offering FAFSA COMPLETION events for your students and their families/supporters on our campus on October 20 and November 16. At these events, students will have the opportunity to complete their FAFSA at a computer with our Financial Assistance staff available to assist! There are limited appointments, so please encourage students to register in advance.

This month's topic for Longhorn Lessons by Lenny is all about Active Listening! Here is a great article provided by Dale Carnegie Philadelphia with some very important tips!

As technology continues to improve and evolve, the speed with which we get information increases as well. That creates noise and it shortens our attention span – and although you can listen to a podcast at 2x speed, you can’t listen to a person that fast, so you must be mindful in your approach to listening.

Listening is a skill. When performed correctly, it allows you to build trusted relationships. It also increases the likelihood that the communicator and the listener are on the same page, or at least understand each other (agreeing to disagree is ok).

• Maintain Eye Contact – Put that phone down, turn it over, better yet put it in your pocket or bag. Give the individual talking your entire focus.
• Non-Verbal Cues – Be sensitive to what is not being said. Observe body language for incongruent messages.
• Practice Patience – Do not interrupt, finish the speaker’s sentence, or change the subject. Let the person talk and conclude their thought.
• Listen with empathy & to understand – Act as if there will be a quiz at the end.

• Clarify – Get confirmation on your understanding by rephrasing what you heard and asking if it sounds right to the speaker.
• Practice pure listening – What did we say about that phone? Put it away and keep it away. Be mindful in your focus on the individual. Remove all distractions.
• Attitude – Keep an open and accepting attitude by not jumping to conclusions or making assumptions. Let the person talk and finish their thought. Seek to understand.
• Empathize – Try to turn your mind off. Be with the speaker and work to see things from their point of view.

Source: Dale Carnegie Philadelphia

The Voice of Democracy Program sponsored by Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), is open to students in grades 9-12 (Oct. 31 deadline), who are enrolled in a public, private or parochial high school or home study program in the United States and its territories. We want to reach as many patriotic students as possible to compete for the National grand prize: $30,000 paid directly to the American college, university or vocational/technical school of their choice!

The Rules and Eligibility/Enrollment Forms for your review and to share.

• 2021-2022 Theme: “America: Where do we go from here?”
• Student Entry Deadline: October 31, 2021 (must be submitted by midnight to VFW Post 5467 in Kennett Square, PA)

• Drop off Address: 704 W. Baltimore Pike Kennett Square, PA 19348

• Mailing Address: P.O. Box 126 Kennett Square, PA 19348