SANTA MONICA HIGH SCHOOL PTSA
ASSOCIATION MEETING OCTOBER 11, 2005
SAMOHI CAFETERIA

1. Reminders
   School will be closed on October 13, 2005 for Admission Day.
   Grades are being posted on Pinnacle. The first six week grading period closes the third week of October.
   Students need to dress for physical education. Failure to dress will result in detention and a poor grade.
2. Campus Beautification
   Dr. Straus is working with the district on making repairs on the school campus. Campus beautification is a priority this year. The superintendent has promised that Santa Monica High School will be able to hire a plant manager to oversee maintenance and repairs. She is unhappy about the schools cleanliness, repair needs and safety issues.
   Kids need to be more responsible about picking up trash.
3. Teacher and Staff Additions
   42 new teachers have been hired for this school year. Administration is very pleased with new staffŐs enthusiasm and energy.
   All houses will be hiring intervention specialists. These positions should be filled by the end of the month.
4. House Activity
   Each house will have a Spanish speaking person in its administrative office.
   
   All houses are working on student intervention plans.
5. College Fair/ Counselors
   The college fair will be held on Tuesday October 18th in the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. The city has provided tremendous support for this event by providing the facility and free parking.
   The Future center has been renamed as the College and Career Center. Two new college counselors were hired. Ms. Stacey Harvey will be responsible for the S,A,M houses and Ms. Lihn Le-Cassidy for the O,H,I houses. Ms. Estela Flores will be the departmentŐs assistant.
   Dr. Straus introduced Ms. Harvey and Le-Cassidy.

College CounselorsŐ Report

• College Center is open daily from 7:30 to 4:00.
• The College counselors will be meeting with all seniors in their English classes this month.
• The College Center provides many services. It has a library of college DVDs, CDs, test preparation books, college catalogues, and college brochures.
• The College Center can certify college application fee waivers for students that qualify for free or reduced fee lunches.
• Delians registration will be handled in the College Center. Registration is going on right now. All qualified students need to complete an application and pay $ 10 to enroll.
• Colleges are actively coming to campus. The college visitation schedule is posted on the web site and available in the blue-bulletin.
• If you are interested in hosting a college visit, e-mail Ms. Flores at flores@smmusd.org.
• A senior newsletter is being published. This newsletter has timely information on the college application process. Newsletters will be issued monthly.
• An information session on Ň How to Finance Your ChildŐs College EducationÓ will be offered at Santa Monica High School on October 25, 2005 at 7pm.
• The 2006 California State (Cal State) and University of California (UC) applications are available on their web sites. Cal state applications can be filed anytime between now and November 30th. UC applications can be filed between November1 and November 30th. Do not wait until the last minute.
• Brag Sheets and Counselor Recommendation forms for students applying to schools as Early Decision or Early Admission are due to the College Center by October 15th.
• Brag Sheets and Counselor recommendation forms for students applying to private or out of state colleges are due by November 1, 2005.

The College Counselors introduced a panel of Santa Monica High School parents and a former student to talk about the college application process. Joyce Smith introduced Karen Dickenson, Sara Benjamin, Barry Snell, and Consuelo Perez.

Recommendations of the Panelists:
Joyce Smith
Testing- timing is important. All different schools want different tests and have different requirements.

If a student has taken an honor or AP class in 10th or 11th grade they should plan to take the SAT Subject test in that subject right after they complete the course.

Required Material- Most schools require four types of material for admission:
      Test scores- from testing agencies
      Student completed application (can be done and submitted on-line)
      Secondary Report-Transcripts- from College Center
      Teacher Recommendations

It is the responsibility of the student to track the submission of information to each college. Joyce recommends that a post card be included with the teacherŐs recommendation and school report so that the college can acknowledge receipt of the information. Make sure that a copy of everything submitted is retained.

Students should register on-line with all colleges that they are potentially interested in as soon as possible. Once you register on-line with the admission office you will receive all types of information about admission.

Students should not stress about extra-circular activities. Having a part time job or participating in theater, band, or a sport is great. Schools are aware of the time commitments participating in theater, band or athletics require. Schools are looking for students that are committed and passionate about one thing. They are no longer looking for well-rounded students but are still looking for a well-rounded freshman class.

If a student is potentially interested in participating in Division 1,2,3 sports they should register with the NCAA. Once they begin college it is too late if students want to play as a freshman.

College applications will request a list of activities, honors and awards from ninth grade forward. Students should keep a list of achievements as they are received so that they are not forgotten.

Sara Benjamin

Students should keep an open mind. They should explore many options and not rule any school out. Schools look for geographic diversity so you should look at schools outside of California as well as in California. Start the application early and establish goals and deadlines.

Call or e-mail the colleges that you are most interested in. Many schools track your calls and want to make sure that you are sincerely interested in their school and that it is not a back-up.

Barry Snell

If your student is an athlete that plans to compete in college, they should register with the NCAA in 11th grade. This allows coaches to contact them and ensure that they are taking the right course curriculum for admission.

Consuelo Perez

Scholarships and loans can help finance education. Do not rule any school out because there are tremendous opportunities out there. With work-study programs and financial aid, college is available to everyone. There is a lot of assistance available but kids need to look for it. Make sure that you file for FAFSA and Cal-Grants and look into interest free loans.

Kids need lots of support through the application process. Makes sure you talk to them.

Karen Dickerson

Students must participate in application process

She recommends that each student put together a spreadsheet with 10 college choices and record pertinent information and deadlines.

Visit colleges if you have the opportunity to.

Artistic students (dancers, artist, etc) have to go though a different process when applying. While they need to meet the schoolŐs academic program, they also need to be accepted into the arts program.

Amy Van Pelt (Delivered by Joyce Smith)

If your child is interested in a college with a good music program or a conservancy, the student can audition in person or send a tape. It is absolutely necessary that if the student plans to send a tape that it be of the best quality possible.

If anyone has any questions about a musician applying to college feel free to contact Amy at 310 451 3211.

Meeting moved to a question and answer session.

The meeting was adjourned at 8:47.


Sincerely,

Lori Horn
Recording Secretary