GCAC Newsletter
January 1st - February 28th
College and Career Motivation Week: February 13th - 16th
College and Career Motivation Week was held February 13th-16th in Atlanta Public Schools. The College Access Team at Benjamin E. Mays High School planned daily events to get the students excited about their post-secondary plans.
Mays High School College and Career Week Highlights
Monday 2/13/17: “Ask Me About My College Day” was a major hit! Teachers and staff received a colorful badge by their door that listed their degree and the name of their undergraduate college. Later that night the College Advisers hosted a FAFSA workshop where parents met in the library to receive additional assistance with FAFSA and the Achieve Atlanta Scholarship.
Tuesday 2/14: "G.P.A. Reloaded (Getting Past Adversity) Day" showed the students that they’re capable and can still receive acceptances from accredited and reputable schools. It was a day specifically catered to those with 2.5 and below GPAs. Schools in attendance included Paine College, Georgia Gwinnett, Columbus State, Georgia Military, and more. Representatives from the National Guard and the Marines were also present to speak to the students.
Wednesday 2/15: "College and Career Day" showcased over 70 professionals with a range of career choices that inspired students to dream big. Students and professionals enjoyed the event. Many of the professionals agreed to come back next year.
Thursday 2/16: "College Fair Day" was attended by several schools including: Oglethorpe, Georgia Southern, and Georgia State University. Numerous students were able to submit applications onsite with fees waived.
Overall, the College Advisers at Mays, Jayme Allen, Randie Chapman, and Glenda Dowdy, are proud of their College and Career Motivation Week and are happy to say that faculty, staff, students, and parents are still raving about the event.
APS District-Wide FAFSA Nights Sponsored by Achieve Atlanta
The ladies of Coretta Scott King Young Women's Leadership Academy took a college tour of Kennesaw State University and Georgia State University during College and Career Motivation Week. A big THANK YOU to The Speak Life Foundation for leading the tour and to Achieve Atlanta for sponsoring the trip.
Ms. Simpson-Haley's Student Highlight of the Month: Dakayla Watkins
At Cedar Shoals High School, I try to teach my students that self-advocacy is one of the most important skills they must learn, and the sooner they learn how to advocate for themselves, the better. Dakayla Watkins, learned a valuable lesson on self-advocacy this month. Dakayla's top school choice is Armstrong State University. She applied and had the GPA but her test scores were just a bit below the minimums for acceptance. When she checked the application portal, she discovered that she had been denied admission. After the initial disappointment, she mustered up the courage to call the school and find out why she had been denied. An admissions rep said her test scores were too low. Dakayla then began to advocate for herself explaining that she is dually enrolled at Athens Tech where she is taking college level courses and that her work ethic demonstrates that she would make a great student at Armstrong. After hearing Dakayla's story, the admissions representative encouraged her to appeal the decision and informed her she would personally go to the appeals committee to speak on Dakayla's behalf. After further consideration, Dakayla was admitted to Armstrong State University where she will attend this fall.
GCAC's Newest Adviser: Glenda Dowdy
Welcome, Ms. Dowdy!
Glenda, our newest adviser, graduated from the University of Georgia with a degree in public relations. She is currently serving as an Adviser at Mays High School in Atlanta.
“This is only my third week, so I’m still figuring things out. However, college and career week was a success. We had a lot of great college reps and professionals come out and speak to the kids. The teachers also enjoyed wearing their college apparel all week long. I think my biggest success happened when I got a student to go from not even wanting to apply to college, to applying to KSU, Columbus State, and West Georgia all in one day. He has a great GPA and good test scores, but just did not care to continue his education. So we sat down and discussed the benefits of going to college and we weighed the options. He’s still not 100% sure about college, but applying was a big step for him.”
- Application deadline for the 2017-18 school year is March 7 at 11:59 pm eastern time.
- Interviews will take place March through April.
*If you are interested in becoming a College Adviser, please click the "Interested in becoming an Adviser" link above to access our live application.*
Your GCAC Newsletter Team
Randie Chapman - Editor
Johnnae Roberts - Assistant Editor
Alexandra Thomas - Media Content Specialist
Kesharia Woods - Media Content Specialist
Contact Us
Email: gcacnewsteam@gmail.com
Website: http://ihe.uga.edu/outreach/georgia-college-advising-corps/
Location: Meigs Hall, Athens, GA, United States
Phone: 706 - 542-0579
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GeorgiaCollegeAdvisingCorps
Twitter: @GeorgiaCAC