Senior Retreat Is Right Around the Corner

We are very excited about the upcoming senior retreat. We will be at a new location for the first time. The retreat will take place Nov. 1-4 at LOMC in Oregon, IL.

Some info about the retreat...

-- The retreat is four days in length and nearly 100% led by a group of five seniors.

-- This is the 35th retreat. Over 1,000 students have attended the retreat over the past eighteen years.

-- Since we are at a new retreat center, there is limited space for this first retreat. We will only be allowed to take 15 guys and 15 girls on the retreat.

-- If a student would like to attend but cannot afford the retreat ($90), there are some partial and full scholarships available if the student comes to see one of the counselors.

Please see one of the counselors for a registration sheet. The sheets are due by October 20th but space will fill up before that. See any Mr. Kosinski with questions. 

Questions to Ask While on a College Visit

One of the best ways to learn more about a college is to visit their campus. When you're visiting, it is to your advantage to slow down and ask several questions. While it is helpful to talk to the admission staff (individuals who are paid to talk up a school), it also very insightful to talk to students about what they like and don't like about their school (individuals who will give their honest opinion).

Here is a list of questions to ask while on a campus visit:

Juniors - PSAT Test Next Week - Sign up now

What: PSAT/NMSQT Test
Who: Open to any junior
When: October 13th

The PSAT/NMSQT is a great way to preview and practice for the SAT. It will test the same skills and knowledge as the SAT. When you get your test results, connect your College Board and Khan Academy® accounts to get free personalized SAT study recommendations.

In addition, when you take the PSAT/NMSQT, you’re automatically screened for the National Merit® Scholarship Program, an academic competition for recognition and scholarships.

There are only 35 spots available. You can sign up with Mrs. Placher in the counseling office. The test will cost $17.00. Checks can be made out to IVC. Payment must be received before test day. We will test on October 13th, 2023 at 8:00 am.

Important Information from UIUC

 The University of Illinois has just released information from all of the undergraduate colleges within the university. This is an important read for any student planning on attending UIUC.

Please click below for info...

Great Chance to Get Involved

We had our first meeting of IMPACT this morning. IMPACT is a club at the high school for students with a passion for making a difference.

The club is open to ALL students. 

Some activities we have done in the past...

• Trick or Treat for UNICEF
• Operation Christmas Child
• Gnomes for the Elderly
• Easter Seals Week
• Tie Blankets for residents at Evergreen

Click here or on picture for all the details

Illinois Colleges with NO Application Fee

Some colleges are offering no application fees. That means it will cost you $0 to apply to these colleges. You can't beat that deal!

Augustana College                        Aurora University

Bradley University                         Eastern Illinois University

Elmhurst University                       Illinois College                  

Illinois Wesleyan University           Lewis University             

Loyola University Chicago             McKendree University      

Monmouth College                        University of Illinois Springfield

ISAC Guide to Programs

This handy guide explains many of the available programs and grants available through ISAC (IL Student Assistance Commission). Explanation of the following programs includes:

• 
  MAP Grant
• IL Veteran Grant
• IL National Guard Grant
• Minority Teacher Scholarship
• Special Ed. Tuition Waiver
• IL Teacher Loan Forgiveness Program
• Nurse Educator Loan Forgiveness Program
• …and more.

Click here for more info

The College Tour App

The College Tour is a TV series brought to you by Emmy-nominated and multi-award-winning producers. The series tells the story of colleges and universities around the world.​

Each episode of The College Tour will focus on a single college or university.
​
From campus life, academics, housing, sports, activities, and much more… each student driven segment will give young people an inside look at what it’s truly like being a student at the featured college or university.

Download the app for a truly one-of-a-kind series featuring colleges and universities in a way they have never been seen before!


Area schools featured so far include:
-- University of Illinois-Champaign

-- University of Illinois-Chicago

-- University of Missouri
-- Iowa State University
-- Illinois State University
-- Illinois Wesleyan University

You may also click this link to explore schools.

Future Teachers - Check This Out!

The Golden Apple Scholars teacher preparation and tuition assistance program is now accepting applications for the Class of 2024!

Golden Apple Scholars Receive:

-- Up to $23,000 in total financial assistance for college
-- Extensive classroom teaching experience
-- Academic and social-emotional support
-- Job placement assistance
-- Mentoring from our award-winning teaching faculty

Click this link for the application and more information.

SHAPE YOUR FUTURE WEEK is coming!!

Starting on September 25th, schools will start visiting IVC to meet with prospective students. Juniors and seniors are encouraged to sign up for these visits. If a freshman or sophomore would like to attend, he or she needs to ask the counselors. Form MUST be filled out by the students, although we definitely encourage the parents to nudge the students to sign up. Click on picture below if you would like to see which schools are visiting.

More schools will be added as they sign up for a visit.

Methodist College Announces Open House Dates

 Methodist College will be hosting a fall Open House on Monday, October 9th and Saturday, November 18th at 9:00 AM for any prospective students and guests. They currently offer the following degrees:

Undergraduate Degree
· Bachelor of Science in Nursing
· Bachelor of Science in Health Science
· Bachelor of Social Work
· Bachelor of Science in Healthcare Management

Certificate
· Nursing Assistant Certificate (CNA)
· Medical Assistant Certificate
· Gerontology Certificate

Graduate Degree
· Master of Science in Nursing

Click here to register for either of these great events!

Connecting Common App and Naviance

If you are a senior using the Common App, you will need to link your account to Naviance for us to send all Counselor Documents as well as Teacher Recommendations. Below are the steps to link the two:

1. Log onto your Naviance account. If you do not know the password, you can log in using Clever.
2. Click on COLLEGES I'M APPLYING TO.
3. Click on MATCH ACCOUNTS.
4. Enter your Common App Email address and click on MATCH ACCOUNTS.
5. You are done :)

Check out the video below for help if you are having any issues or stop by the Guidance office.

12 Reasons To Stay in Illinois

This document is an admissions guide for the state universities in Illinois. It provides current information about each state university, while the accompanying chart presents comparative admission, cost, curricula, and other relevant information.

FAFSA NEWS

All senior parents should check out the new FAFSA Update.  If you have any questions, please let us know. We will have a FAFSA workshop in January for any parents who struggled with the FAFSA. The word we are getting from ISAC is that the process will be much easier than in the past.

Freshman Class Meeting

The counselors met with the freshmen today during homeroom to give them a brief overall of how the department works.

Things that were covered include:
-- who the counselors are,
-- the different reasons a freshman may want to chat with us,
-- where our office are located,
-- how to go about requesting to see us,
-- confidentiality,
-- living up to their awesomeness,
-- getting involved,
-- and who their class advisors are.

CLICK HERE FOR PRESENTATION

Small Groups Starting Today

We are excited to announce that we have started our small groups for the 2023-24 school year.  Guys Group and Girls Group.  The two groups meet once a week during 3rd, 4th or 5th period. A student will not miss a class more than once per month. There are a variety of topics covered at small group: academics, self-confidence, overcoming loss, friendship, bumps in the road, etc.  The goal of small group is to give the students an opportunity to explore and talk.

- Guys Group has over 30 guys split into three groups. Led by Mr. Kosinski
- Girls Group has over 20 girls split into two groups. Led my Mrs. Davis and Mrs. Williams

Please let the counselors know if you would like to see your son or daughter in small group.  Although the group started today, we have the opportunity to add students. All students who have signed up for group will be bringing home a permission slip to be signed by parent/guardian.

Shape Your Future Week - Juniors and Seniors

 

Senior Meeting - Off to College and more...

 The counselors met with the senior class to cover options after high school. The bulk of the meeting was about the college selection process but time was also spent discussing the military, trade schools, and specialty schooling.  Students are encouraged to use the Off to College Guide that they were given at the meeting.  That guide, along with a PDF copy of the presentation, will give parents and students an idea of what was discussed. 

Please let the counselors know if you have any questions.

College Board's BigFuture College Search

Struggling to find a college that is right for you?

College Board's College Search can help! On here, you can narrow down choices based on size of school, location, majors offered, 2 year or 4 year, campus life, and much more! This is a great starting spot for any student who is at a loss for where to begin. Click below to start searching!

College Board College Search

Party in the Park - Volunteers Needed!

 

Help is needed to direct traffic, supervise the inflatables and more! Click this link to sign up!!

Future Teacher Conference Coming Up

The Counseling Department will be taking a dozen interested students to the Future Teacher Conference at ISU.  We went last year and it was absolutely fantastic!! 

When - November 3, 2023
Where - Illinois State University
Cost - Free
Who should attend - Any junior or senior interested in the teaching field

Students will be given the opportunity to choose from over 25 different breakout sessions.

Interested students should sign up in the Counseling Office. Only 12 spots available.

Registration is open through October 13th, as space permits. All students should register individually. It is very important for each student to complete their own registration form so they can select their individual sessions. IVC Students should not register for the 2:00 session.

Important Dates for Senior Parents

Below is a list of important dates this year with a short description of each. We encourage seniors and parents to attend as many of these programs as possible. For more info on any of them, please call (309) 274-5481 x2.

Off to College Breakfast
Friday, Sept 8th
8:00-9:00 a.m. - Chillicothe Library

This is our 13th year offering an Off to College Breakfast at the Chilli library. The breakfast will cover the application process, some of the ins and outs of college, tips

Off to College Guide

All seniors will be receiving this year's Off to College Guide at the senior meeting next Tuesday (Aug 29th.) The guide is packed information such as: timelines, factors to consider, college open houses, keys to the process, important website links, and steps to writing a great essay.

The guide can be accessed by CLICKING HERE

ICC's Ag, Diesel, and Horticulture Showcase

Save your spot!!

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

A Great Way to Earn College Credit

 Welcome to CLEP!!

College Level Examination Program - You can receive college credit for what you already know and avoid sitting through college courses that you don’t need. There are CLEP Tests in over 30 subject areas.

Who is eligible? - Any student at least 13 yrs old
Where do I test? - IVC H.S. is an official CLEP Test site now
How do I get more info? - Stop by the counseling office or CLICK HERE for a step by step guide to taking the test.

Calling All Parents - Career Fair

The planning has begun for this school year's Career and College Fair. Over 650 students will spend the day investigating colleges and careers. We are always looking for presenters to spend a part of their day sharing with interested students. 

Deadline for October ACT and SAT approaching

The deadline for the October ACT and SAT is coming up.  Any senior who plans to retake either test should sign up ASAP. 

To register, students should go to.... 

SAT - www.collegeboard.org

ACT - actstudent.org 

The test is not given at IVC but there are nearby testing centers.

Side note: All juniors will be taking the test in April. The school takes care of that registration.

SENIORS: What is Parchment?

 Parchment is the electronic transcript site that makes sending transcripts simple. It is completely free for all students currently in high school. The best part...it takes about 2 minutes to go on the site and request a transcript. The counselors then click an approve button and the colleges have the transcript. It is the only way that transcripts will be sent to colleges, universities, NCAA, etc.

Reminder to seniors: You must register using the email that was sent to your school email from Parchment. Registration takes about 5-10 minutes but will only need to be done once. After you are registered, ordering transcripts couldn't be simpler.

Note to Parents: The student must sign up for Parchment using the link to his/her school email address. Any accounts using other email addresses will not work because the account will not be properly linked to our school. Please encourage the students to set up the account as soon as possible. It is the only way transcripts will be sent.

Do you know what IVC has to offer?

Getting Involved At IVC

IVC has dozens of sports, clubs, groups, and activities for students of all ages and interests. Check out the list to see many of the great options IVC has to offer!

If you have questions about any sport, club or activity, contact a counselor. We can point you in the right direction.

Welcome to the new school year!!

We are so glad to get back to school. There will definitely be a blend of in-person and virtual events hosted by the counseling department throughout the year. We look forward to staying in touch with all parents and students.

Please reach out to any of the counselors with any questions you may have:

Mr. Mark Kosinski (students last name A-K) -mkosinski@ivcschools.com
Mrs. Laura Davis (students last name L-Z) - ldavis@ivcschools.com
Mrs. Rachel Williams (students with IEPs) - rwilliams@ivcschools.com