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This page was
last updated:
April 24, 2008

GUIDANCE AND COUNSELING NEWSLETTER

Students who wish to take AP exams must sign up through their AP instructor March 3--7

All students who are enrolled in upper level honors or AP courses that prepare students for AP exams have been given a copy of the 2008 AP (Advanced Placement) exam bulletin. In early March, AP teachers will ask students to sign up for the AP exams that will take place from May 5-16. The cost for AP exams is $95 per test. This includes a slight surcharge above and beyond the test fee to pay for the proctors who will be supervising testing. The test fee will be collected by the classroom teacher around April 9. If a student orders a test now and cancels later this spring, he or she must pay a penalty fee of $15 because AP charges Saint Francis a penalty fee for each unused test. Students and parents should keep in mind that these tests are exceedingly difficult.

Please note that students in AP courses are not required to take the exams in May.

A student who chooses to take an AP exam should be performing very well in their honors or AP courses and be comfortable with standardized testing. Students should test their knowledge of AP material by practicing on sample test questions both inside and outside of class.

Since AP teachers cannot always cover every topic that may be on an AP exam, students who want to perform well on AP exams usually have to do additional work on their own. Information on AP courses and exams questions is available at www.collegeboard.com. Senior students should check with their prospective colleges about their AP credit policies. A link to college AP policies can also be found on the college profiles at www.collegeboard.com. For further information, students should see Mrs. Rigney or the AP instructor.

Girls Empowerment Group Will Be Held Beginning In March

The Girls Empowerment Group is back! Messages from the media, often repeated by peers, can set the stage for the belief that teenage girls should be more concerned with appearance and ability to win male approval than with their own interests and aspirations. Studies show the toll extracted by these messages on girls’ self-image and well-being: girls are 7-times more likely to be depressed and 3-times more likely to have a negative body image. However, by encouraging girls to have positive expectations for themselves, providing them with opportunities to develop competence and confidence in their abilities we can increase their power to make right decisions and avoid risky behaviors.

That is what the Girls Empowerment Group is all about. Through discussions and activities the group will aim to help girls make good life choices, feel good about themselves, and become confident in their talents and abilities. Some of the topics the group will focus on are: assertiveness skills, self-esteem, peer pressure, self-image, girls’ health issues, good decision making skills and stress management. In addition, the group will also address the impact of acculturation and media exposure on girls’ body image and eating behaviors.

The Girls Empowerment Groupwill start in early March and will meet once a week for 8 weeks. The group is open to girls of all grades.

Parents who would like to find out more information about the Girls Empowerment Group or any other groups should contact Angelika Rupp at extension 104.

Check Out the Guidance Department Weekly Bulletin

The Weekly Bulletin which is posted on the Guidance Webpage and in Junior and Senior Homerooms provides a wealth of information on upcoming college information programs, open house programs, career workshops, summer enrichment programs, and scholarships. A link to the Weekly Bulletin is in the sidebar menu or you can go to: http://www.sfhsnet.org/top/studentsvcs/guid-bulletins.htm.

College of DuPage offers Junior/Senior Information Night

The College of DuPage is hosting an information program this spring for interested juniors and seniors. Junior/Senior Night offers students the opportunity to tour facilities, observe demonstrations in different academic disciplines, meet with faculty, and ask additional questions about the opportunities available at the College of DuPage. This “Open House” program will be held on Wednesday, April 13, 6:00—8:00 PM in the SRC building, RM 2800.

Final call for FAFSA forms

It’s crunch time for seniors who are seeking financial aid for college. Any senior seeking financial aid for college must complete the FAFSA form as soon as possible. You need to to complete the FAFSA online at www.fafsa.ed.gov . Many colleges have a priority filing date of March 15 for completing the FAFSA. Get your FAFSA processed ASAP!

Junior students should attend spring college fairs and begin the college search process

Several spring college fairs will be held in the month of April providing a great opportunity for juniors to get a start on their college search. A regional college fair will be held at the Merner Fieldhouse at North Central College in Naperville on Monday, April 14, from 7 - 9 PM . Over 180 educational, military and technical institutions will be represented at this fair. A list of colleges attending the North Central College Fair can be obtained by going to http://www.northcentralcollege.edu/x11694.xml. In addition to the college fair at North Central College, Lewis University in Romeoville will host a college fair on March 5, 6:30—8:30 PM, DePaul University will host a fair on March 20, 6:00—8:00 PM, St. Charlies North HS on April 15, 7—9 PM, Harper Community College in Palatine on Tuesday, April 8, from 6—8:30 PM, and Lyons Township H.S. in LaGrange on Wednesday, April 9 from 6:00—8:30 PM. Note that some of the dates or locations on the main school calendar or on the Guidance Dates and Deadlines have been changed since those were published. The above dates and locations are the correct ones.

It is very important that juniors begin the college search now, starting by researching possible careers and college majors. Students need to determine their preferences in terms of size, location, setting, etc. Online, students can complete a college search through programs such as the Naviance Family Connection (login code given to juniors and sent by mail to sophomores, sophomore parents, and junior parents in December), College Board My Road/My College Quick Start, Princeton Review, College View, Wired Scholar, or Peterson’s. Students may access these and other sites by going to www.sfhsnet.org/top/studentsvcs/guid-websitesforcolleges.htm. They should also make an appointment to see Mrs. Rigney for additional suggestions. Finally, students should squeeze in some preliminary campus visits this spring or in early summer. College is a huge investment and it requires considerable research and planning. Start now!

Time to sign up for summer driver education programs

Freshmen, sophomore, and junior students who still need to enroll in driver education programs should contact their public high school districts to obtain information on summer driver education offerings.

The Glenbard High Schools typically do not offer any summer driver education programs but Willowbrook High School in Villa Park might accept a few Glenbard students if space is available in their summer program.

District 200 (Wheaton North High School and Wheaton Warrenville South High School) will begin registration for summer driver education in late March or early April. Call the high school to determine specific sign up dates. Available spots will fill up quickly. Students must register in person in the counseling office and bring two documents showing proof of residency, a copy of the student’s official transcript, and the $250 registration fee.

Students who cannot gain admittance to public school programs or who have summer schedules that require flexibility, should investigate private driver education programs such as Excel, Community Driving School, etc.

St. Francis High School will give credit for driver education programs taken through a public high school program provided the student presents us with an official transcript of the course and grade from the sponsoring high school. St. Francis does not issue credit for private driving school programs

Information on summer school courses offered through the College of DuPage Youth Education 2008 Summer School Program is now available in the Student Services office

Any student who failed a course and needs to make up the credit through summer school can now obtain information on the offerings of the College of DuPage High School Credit Program. Classes will be offered on the COD campus and at Glenbard North, Glenbard South, Glenbard East, Glenbard West, West Chicago, Waubonsie Valley and Neuqua Valley High Schools. Semester I runs from Monday, June 16 to Tuesday, July 8 and semester II runs from Wednesday, July 9 to Wednesday, July 30. Most courses cost $279 per semester. Students who wish to attend summer school must meet with a counselor to obtain approval for the make up course.

Information on summer school offerings through other local school districts will be available later this spring in April and May.

St. Francis Guidance and Counseling Department Policy on Hosting Military Recruiters

The St. Francis Guidance and Counseling Department is open to hosting representatives of the Armed Services who wish to make their opportunities known to our students. Recruiters from the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Illinois National Guard, ROTC, and Service Academies may visit St. Francis approximately once per semester. They will set up a display at a table in the cafeteria where students may stop by and pick up information, ask questions, or complete an information card. St. Francis does not condone recruiters who attempt to pressure or harrass students into enlistment.

For privacy reasons, the St. Francis Guidance and Counseling Department does NOT release directory information to military recruiters or to other third parties. If your son or daughter is being contacted directly by a military recruiter it is not because St. Francis has released contact information. It may be due to the following reasons:

• The student completed an information card for a recruiter here at school or at
  a college fair
• The student is registered on a website whose privacy agreement allows that information to be released to other parties, such as the Armed Forces.
• The student is a male, 18 years of age, and registered with Selective Service.

While the St. Francis Guidance and Counseling Department supports those students who wish to serve their country through military service, we realize that not all students are ready for that type of commitment at this time. Therefore, we work in conjunction with parents to help students meet their goals for college and career. If you as parents do not want your son or daughter to be contacted by a military recruiter, you should instruct your child not to meet directly with the recruiters who come to our school or to local college fairs. If a student is being unduly pressured or harrassed by a recruiter, the student or parent should contact Trudy Rigney, Director of Guidance. Mrs. Rigney will contact the recruiter to discuss the situtation and determine if that person may continue to visit our school.

Juniors Should Start Registering for Spring ACT and SAT Dates

The dates for the 2007-2008 ACT and SAT tests are listed on the last page of the St. Francis High School Calendar. This same information is also on the Student Services page of the school web-site. Use these sources as future reference for upcoming test dates and registration deadlines. Juniors should plan to take the ACT or SAT at least two times from January of 2008 through June of 2008.

When registering for ACT and SAT tests, students may use two different methods. They may go online to www.act.org for the ACT or to www.collegeboard.com for the SAT test. To register with the paper copy, students may pick up a registration packet from the large metal bookshelves in the Students Services hallway. St. Francis administers the ACT on the April test date only . If a student wants to test at St. Francis, he or she must register in advance of the regular registration deadline and select St. Francis as the first choice for test centers. Students are not guaranteed their test center choices. Places are assigned on a first come, first served basis. When re-registering for a second test, students may do so by phone for a small charge or online for free. It is very important that the student include the St. Francis six digit high school code on their registration. Our high school code number is 144-383. We strongly recommend that a student plan to take both the ACT and the SAT and take each test more than once. This ensures that the student will be likely to earn a score that best reflects his or her true ability. Colleges will use the higher score when making admissions decisions.

Students should also be aware more and more colleges, including several Big Ten Schools, are requiring the new ACT Writing Assessment. Not all colleges require that students take the Writing Asssessment; however, if even one college that the student will apply to requires the writing assessment, then the student will need to take it. Therefore, the Guidance and Counseling Department strongly recommends that all juniors take the Writing Assessment along with the ACT exam every time the student takes the test. The revised SAT includes a mandatory writing assessment. For details on these new writing assessments and preparation materials, students should go to www.act.org or www.collegeboard.com.

REMINDER: THE ST. FRANCIS HIGH SCHOOL CODE FOR ACT AND SAT TESTING IS: 144-383 

What students and parents need to know about qualifying for non-standard ACT and SAT testing

• Before you begin this process, be sure we have current and/or
  complete documentation on file in our office

In order for a student to qualify for extended time or other accommodations, s/he needs to be using these in the classroom on a regular basis. Juniors should not assume that they will qualify and wait to request accommodations in junior year. There is at least a 4-6 week wait time, sometimes longer, before we hear from ACT or SAT. Requests should be made early in the student’s high school career. It is best to start in semester two of freshman year or early in sophomore year. Both ACT and SAT are very particular about requiring accurate and updated information or requests will not be granted.

• ACT TESTS

When a student qualifies for ACT Assessment SPECIAL testing, the student will test here at St. Francis with Ms. Sullivan.

• Special testing involves:

• the student normally requiring more than time-and-a-half for tests in school or using extra time only on Writing tests OR
• the student needing to use a tape recorder to listen to the text while reading OR
• the student requiring testing over multiple days, due to the nature of the disability.

• When a student qualifies for ACT Assessment EXTENDED TIME National testing, the student will test at an individual test center on the National Test Date.

• Extended time testing involves:
• the student normally requiring up to time-and-one-half for tests in school AND
• the student can use a regular-type (10-point) or large-type (18-point) test booklet

Check the ACT website for complete information: www.act.org/aap/disab/index.html or contact Mary Kay Sullivan at extension 108.

• SAT TESTS

When a student qualifies for SAT Assessment SPECIAL testing, the student will test here at St. Francis with Ms. Sullivan.

• School testing involves:
• the student normally requiring more greater than 50% up to 100% or more time for school-based tests that require reading OR written language expression OR mathematical calculations OR listening OR speaking.
• the student needing to use a tape recorder to listen to the text while reading

• National Test Center testing involves:
• the student requiring up to and including 50% in the above categories AND
• the student requiring no other accommodations.

Check the SAT website for complete information: www.collegeboard.com/testing and click “students with disabilities” or contact Mary Kay Sullivan at extension 108.

How to get in touch with faculty and staff

Are you concerned about your child’s progress report or quarter grades but don’t know how to get in touch with the teacher? Have you tried contacting a teacher but keep playing phone tag? How can you make the parent-teacher contact process less cumbersome? First of all, if you haven’t already checked it, contact information for all faculty and staff can be found on the faculty page of the St. Francis website. Just go to http://sfhsnet.org/left/contact/cont-faculty.htm and you will find phone extensions and email addresses. When you leave a message for a teacher, also let the teacher know when would be the best time to contact you. Teachers often initially try to get back to parents during after school hours; however, if the teacher has to leave a message on your home voice mail, that message may mysteriously get erased before you have a chance to hear it! If you can accept calls or confidential messages at work and the teacher is more likely to be able to contact you there, please leave the teacher a message on his or her voice mail with your work contact information. Finally, don’t hesitate to send the teacher an email. By corresponding by email, you can avoid the problems of playing phone tag and can often get the information you need more quickly. However, because of the large amount of spam we receive, we have tightened up our spam filter. This may result in a personal email being blocked, especially if it is from an email provider such as verizon, aol, hotmail, or yahoo. If you do not receive a response to your email or if your email bounces back to you, please contact the staff member by phone. Also, have the staff member forward your email address to our tech support department so it can be whitelisted.

Are your child’s study skills what they need to be?

Good study habits help your child use study time in the most effective way to ensure maximum learning, retention, and good grades. After the flurry of Semester One Exams, students tend to launch into “slump time” and study habits fall by the wayside. Take a few minutes to review the following study factors that are associated with students who maintain A and B averages in school. Pass them along!

1. SET GOALS: Motives determine the amount of effort a child puts into a task and are among the strongest influences on performance. Putting a goal in writing will help your child to focus on it on a daily basis.

2. KEEP REGULAR STUDY HOURS: Once certain hours are set aside just for studying, your child will find this decision saves time. There will be no need to spend time deciding when to study or what to do first. The hours right after class are the best hours for learning.

3.REVIEW NOTES ON A DAILY BASIS: Reviewing is homework, too! Reviewing often will reduce cramming for tests. It will also help store information in the long term memory making it easier to study for tests at a later date.

4. ELIMINATE DISTRACTIONS: Insist that your child study in a quiet space without television, telephone or instant messaging. Set a specific time for friends to connect with one another or tape a show to watch on Saturday.

5. BUILD IN REST PERIOD TIMES: If your child is working on a set task, encourage him or her to take only 5 to 10 minute breaks so that the momentum won’t be lost.

6. CHART PROGRESS: Regularly obtain information about progress. Encourage your child to communicate with teachers to clarify information and to keep a record of test and quiz grades inside notebooks. Measuring progress is highly motivational and keeps interest up and goals in sight. It also allows your child to take charge of his or her own education.

7. TAKE NOTES ANDMAKE NOTES: Encourage your child to always re-read (or write out or say aloud) notes taken in class the same day they are taken, while they are still fresh in memory. The second part of this effort is to make sense out of the notes by adding missing details from the text, filling in abbreviations before they are forgotten or writing questions in the margins to ask in class the next day. By doing this, notes will be complete when studying them at a later date AND the likelihood of this information making its way into long term memory is much higher!