college and career planning Archives - Page 3 of 7

Apr 13 2021

Helping Our High School Students Prepare for College

As we complete another year of primarily remote learning, our high school students continue to thrive. Many of our graduating seniors have been accepted to four-year colleges with a full year of early learning college credits. These students showcase their talents by participating in college and career events at the school as they interview with board members for future careers and college goals.

Celebrate Achievement

This celebration of achievements prepares our students for the essential skills and educational requirements they will need to complete their college and career goals. As we consider next steps with all of our middle and high school students, we are striving to fully engage them in student led parent-teacher conferences throughout their school years. [Read more…]

Yvette King-Berg, College Readiness

Yvette King-Berg, is the Executive Director of Youth Policy Institute’s Charter Schools. She was the former California Charter Schools Association Vice-President of School Development and Outreach-Southern California. Ms. King-Berg has over thirty years of experience working with teachers, students, parents, and organizations in a variety of positions including Director, Assistant Director, Curriculum Advisor, Bilingual, and Title 1 Coordinators, classroom teacher (K-12) in Pasadena and LAUSD. She has been married for twenty-three years, and is the proud mother of her son, EJ, who attends UC Berkeley.

Mar 09 2021

How We Help Our K-12 Children Manage Money

It is a new year with opportunities for growth and understanding for all. Many families redefine chore responsibilities with the start of each new year. Families also discuss the relevance of an allowance to help their children learn how to save for treasured purchases. Some families provide a weekly allowance for being a family member while others tie the allowance to a list of household chores. Many families also encourage their children to take on significant household responsibilities that may include weekly grocery shopping, yard work, painting, and housecleaning to earn extra money for specific needs they may include hobbies, sports camps, sporting equipment, school sponsored club trips, and clothing purchases. For example, some students start making crafts for crafts fairs or sell their products on online websites. [Read more…]

Mary Ann Burke, Digital Education Expert

Mary Ann Burke, Ed.D., Digital Education Expert, is a substitute distance learning teacher for Oak Grove School District in San Jose, California and the author of STUDENT-ENGAGED ASSESSMENT: Strategies to Empower All Learners (Rowman & Littlefield: 2020). Dr. Burke creates digital language arts and substitute teaching K – 12 activities for teachers and parents. She is the Cofounder of the Genparenting.com blog. Burke is the former Director II of Categorical & Special Projects for the Santa Clara County Office of Education that supports 31 school districts serving 272,321 students in Santa Clara County. She is also a previous Director – State & Federal Compliance for Oakland Unified School District, the former Director – Grantwriter for the Compton Unified School District, and was the initial VISTA Director for the Community Partnership Coalition in southern California. Much of her work focuses on creating innovative digital trainings and partnership programs for teachers and families to support students’ learning. These programs were featured as a best practice at a National Title I Conference, California’s Title I Conferences, AERA Conferences, an ASCD Conference, the NASSP Conference, and statewide educator conferences.

Jan 12 2021

Student Grading Considerations with COVID-19 School Modifications

COVID-19 pandemic surges continue to keep schools closed or programs modified. How will K-12 teachers support students, when they have limited time to work with them in class or through distance learning programs? What standardized testing programs have been altered or eliminated this year and how will it impact many college acceptances? [Read more…]

Mary Ann Burke, Digital Education Expert

Oct 27 2020

Online Social Activities for Teens

Students returned to school remotely in August. Since their return, our primary focus has been to ensure that all of our students are socially and emotionally ready to learn each day. Our elected student leaders meet afterschool to create creatively engaging activities for students throughout the school year. [Read more…]

Yvette King-Berg, College Readiness

Oct 06 2020

COVID-19 Challenges for High School Seniors

As high school seniors prepare their college applications in these next few weeks, teachers are adapting their online services to effectively support their students at this very stressful time. Our teachers have expanded their services to include the following:

Small group senior seminars provide students with guidance on financial aid, how to select appropriate colleges based on interests and achievement, how to integrate testing data into the college application, and how to integrate community services and leadership into the college application process and essays.
Students continue to participate in early college classes online that are offered directly from the high school campus. Through this process, college professors teach by using the high school’s online platform to better meet the needs of students.
Students are registered to take the SATs and ACTs to add to the rigor for college acceptance considerations. While test scores will be considered by some colleges, others will not use these as part of their college acceptance review.
In addition to meeting with students regularly for college counseling and planning, teachers provide college planning tips online to ensure that students complete each step of the college application process on time.
Students continue to learn effective social-emotional skills through a school club to overcome the social isolation felt by many students forced to learn online due to ongoing COVID-19 health challenges and racism.

[Read more…]

Yvette King-Berg, College Readiness