Ponchatoula High School

1. Ponchatoula High School SENIOR PARENT MEETING Graduation ACT/SAT TOPS Financial Aid Scholarships Post-secondary Options

2. On the sheet of paper you were given, indicate on a scale of 1 - 5 how confident you are in your ability to navigate your or your child’s senior year. 1 – No clue what needs to be done. 2 3 – Some understanding of what needs to be done. 4 5 – I got it. I could do this presentation.

3. GraduationWednesday, May 21, 2014

4. Important Dates • October 10 Order graduation supplies during English classes • November 1 Last home football game-senior night recognition • November 4 Senior re-orders and payments during both lunches • November 6-8 Senior portraits from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. in auditorium *There will be a sign-up sheet in the main office to choose a time. You must take a picture for the yearbook at this time. No pictures from an outside source will be used in yearbook. • December 3 Senior re-orders and payments during both lunches • January 8-9 Senior portraits re-takes/make ups from 11-5 in auditorium • January 10 Senior re-orders and payments during both lunches • February 4 Senior re-orders and payments during both lunches • March 17 MANDATORY Big Senior Meeting-7:45-11:30 a.m. Information concerning remaining senior responsibilities will be discussed in detail., and senior supplies will be distributed. YOU MUST BE CLEARED FROM ALL CURRENT FINE LISTS TO RECEIVE YOUR ORDER.

5. Transcripts & TOPS Reports are being distributed to your child through Academic Period.

8. 2.5 minimum

10. http://www.lela.org/documents/2013-14_senior_checklist.pdf

11. ACTwww.actstudent.org

12. Avoid remedial/developmental classes • English subscore of 18 • Math subscore of 19 • 17 composite required to qualify for TOPS Tech • 20 composite required to qualify for TOPS Opportunity • April 30 deadline w/o penalty • June 30 deadline w/ loss of 1 semester of funding

13. SAThttp://sat.collegeboard.org/home • 2013 SAT Test Dates • October 5, 2013 • November 2, 2013 • December 7, 2013 • 2014 SAT Test Dates • January 25, 2014 • March 8, 2014 • May 3, 2014 • June 7, 2014 • 820 needed to qualify for TOPS Tech • 940 needed to qualify for TOPS

14. What is the difference between the ACT and SAT? • The ACT is an achievement test, measuring what a student has learned in school. The SAT is more of an aptitude test, testing reasoning and verbal abilities. • The ACT has up to 5 components: English, Mathematics, Reading, Science, and an optional Writing Test. The SAT has only 3 components: Critical Reasoning, Mathematics, and a required Writing Test. • The College Board introduced a new version of the SAT in 2005, with a mandatory writing test. ACT continues to offer its well-established test, plus an optional writing test. You take the ACT Writing Test only if required by the college(s) you're applying to. • The SAT has a correction for guessing. That is, they take off for wrong answers. The ACT is scored based on the number of correct answers with no penalty for guessing. • The ACT has an Interest Inventory that allows students to evaluate their interests in various career options. Source:http://www.actstudent.org/faq/actsat.html

15. TOPShttp://www.osfa.la.gov/index.jsp • TOPS (Taylor Opportunity Program for Students) is a program of state scholarships for Louisiana residents who attend either one of the  • Louisiana Public Colleges and Universities • Louisiana Community and Technical College System Schools • Louisiana approved Proprietary and Cosmetology Schools • Louisiana Association of Independent Colleges and Universities • The four different award components of the TOPS Program are:  • TOPS Opportunity Award • TOPS Performance Award • TOPS Honors Award • TOPS Tech Award

16. Completion of TOPS Core Curriculum for award level Qualifying ACT/SAT scores for award level Minimum 2.5 GPA in TOPS Core TOPS Core Curriculum Flyer http://www.osfa.la.gov/MainSitePDFs/Core_Curriculum_14.pdf TOPS Opportunity, Performance, Honors Award Flyer http://www.osfa.la.gov/MainSitePDFs/TOPS_OPH_brochure_8-11.pdf TOPS Tech Award http://www.osfa.la.gov/MainSitePDFs/TOPS_Tech_brochure_8-11.pdf TOPS Award Amounts http://www.osfa.la.gov/MainSitePDFs/TOPS_Tuition_Amounts.pdf Surfing the Web for Financial Aid http://www.osfa.la.gov/MainSitePDFs/surfin.pdf Surfing the Web for TOPS Tech Award http://www.osfa.la.gov/MainSitePDFs/surfinTT.pdf

17. Financial Aidhttp://www.fafsa.ed.gov/ It is necessary to submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)in order to be considered for most federal financial aid programs. Many state financial aid programs and various scholarships also require the submission of the FAFSA. The Department of Education processes the FAFSA and notifies applicant with the Student Aid Report (SAR). • FAFSA Presentation • Tuesday, January 14, 2014 @ 6 p.m. • College Goal Sunday

18. Scholarships • PHS Counselors’ Web Page • http://www.tangischools.org/Page/7324 • LELA • http://asklela.org • Louisiana Connect • https://www.louisianaconnect.org

21. Lela

24. Louisiana Connect

26. Post Secondary Options • Employment • Apprenticeship • Technical/Trade School • 2 year college • 4 year college • Military

27. Things to Consider • Admission Requirements • Degree Program • Scholarships

28. Board of Regents reminder • LOUISIANA BOARD OF REGENTS • MINIMUM ADMISSION STANDARDS for FIRST-TIME FRESHMEN • These are the minimum admission standards for regular Freshman admission to a Louisiana, public four-year university for Fall 2014. • Students should check with the specific institution for additional information about the university’s requirements and process for admission.* • 1. High School Curriculum = Core 4 Curriculum • Courses in the English, Math, Science, Social Studies, Foreign Language, and Arts categories listed in Bulletin 741 as Core 4. • 2. Overall HS GPA = 2.0 (minimum) • 3. Developmental Courses Needed = NONE • Demonstration of College Readiness: ACT English score = 18 (minimum) • ACT Math Score = 19 (minimum) • 4. Core GPA(courses listed above) →OR←ACT Composite(minimum) • 3.0 LSU A&M 25 • 2.5 LA Tech, UL Lafayette, UNO 23 • 2.0 Grambling, LSUA, LSUS, McNeese, 21 • Nicholls, Northwestern, Southeastern, • Southern A&M, SUNO, UL Monroe • *Community or Technical College Admission: • Open to High School Graduates.

29. Louisiana Public Universities Grambling State University www.gram.edu/ Louisiana State University – Alexandria www.lsua.edu/ Louisiana State University – Baton Rouge www.lsu.edu/ Louisiana State University – Eunice www.lsue.edu/ Louisiana State University – Health Science Center New Orleans www.lsuhsc.edu Louisiana State University – Health Science Center Shreveport ww.sh.lsuhsc.edu/index.html Louisiana State University – Shreveport www.lsus.edu/ Louisiana Tech University www.latech.edu/ McNeese State University www.mcneese.edu/ Nicholls State University www.nicholls.edu Northwestern State University www.nsula.edu Southeastern Louisiana University www.selu.edu Southern University – Baton Rouge www.subr.edu/ Southern University – New Orleans www.suno.edu/ Southern University – Shreveport www.susla.edu/ University of New Orleans www.uno.edu/ University of Louisiana at Lafayette www.ull.edu/ University of Louisiana at Monroe www.ulm.edu/

30. Louisiana Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (LAICU) Centenary College www.centenary.edu/ Dillard University www.dillard.edu/ Louisiana College www.lacollege.edu/ Loyola University www.loyno.edu/ New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary www.nobts.edu Our Lady of Holy Cross College www.olhcc.edu Our Lady of the Lake College www.ololcollege.edu/ St. Joseph Seminary College www.sjasc.edu Tulane University www.tulane.edu Xavier University www.xula.edu

31. Louisiana Community and Technical College System Community Colleges www.lctcs.edu Baton Rouge Community College www.mybrcc.edu Bossier Parish Community College www.bpcc.edu Delgado Community College www.dcc.edu Louisiana Delta Community College www.ladelta.edu Nunez Community College www.nunez.edu River Parishes Community College www.rpcc.edu South Louisiana Community College www.southlouisiana.edu

32. Technical Community Colleges www.ltc.edu L.E. Fletcher Technical Community College www.fletcher.edu/ Sowela Technical Community College www.sowela.edu Louisiana Technical College www.ltc.edu

33. Louisiana Proprietary Schools American School of Business http://www.americanschoolofbusiness.com/ Aveda Institute http://www.avedainstitutes.com/ Ayers Career College http://www.ayers.edu Career Technical College http://www.careertc.com/ Crescent City School of Gaming & Bartending http://www.crescentschools.com/ Delta School of Business & Technology http://www.deltatech.edu/ Diesel Driving Academy http://dda.edu Fortis College http://www.FortisCollege.edu ITI Technical College http://iticollege.edu/ Louisiana Culinary Institute http://www.louisianaculinary.com Remington College http://www.remingtoncollege.edu/ South Louisiana Beauty College http://www.slbc-houma.com/

35. Decisions, DecisionsHow to Pick the Best College for You • Rankings • Location • Available Concentrations & Departments • Your Potential Major • Costs and Financial Aid • Faculty

36. Comparing Colleges • http://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/education/higher-education/college-score-card • http://whichcollege4u.org/ • http://www.aft.org/pdfs/highered/JUSTASK_042711.pdf • https://www.louisianaconnect.org • http://www.nextstepu.com/tools/college-match/ • https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/

37. 2012-2013 Guide to College Costhttp://www.lela.org/documents/2012-2013%20Guide%20to%20College%20Cost.pdf

38. Transfer Degreehttp://www.latransferdegree.org/whatistdg.html

39. ACT Score = 17, 20, 23, 27 TOPS GPA = 2.5, 3.0 Overall GPA Deadlines – Priority, Application, Housing Scholarships Tours -- 10/5, 10/9 Complete Application Process Register with NCAA Clearinghouse http://web1.ncaa.org/ECWR2/NCAA_EMS/NCAA.jsp

40. Northshore College & Career Fair Tonight 6 p.m. – 8 p.m. SLU’s Pennington’s Center Baton Rouge National College FairBaton Rouge River CenterWednesday, October 2 9:00am - 12:00pm, 6:00pm - 8:00pm New Orleans National College FairErnest N. Morial Convention CenterTuesday, October 1 9:00am - 12:00pm, 6:00pm - 8:00pm

41. Useful Websites • http://www.bls.gov/ooh/a-z-index.htm • http://www.laworks.net/Stars/default.aspx • http://www.self-directed-search.com/

42. Additional Info • Request for a letter of recommendation should be submitted at least one week in advance. • Dual enrollment students – request transcripts • SLU • http://www.southeastern.edu/admin/rec_reg/transcript_request/ • Louisiana Technical College • Do not pay for form completions or scholarship searches.

43. Counselors • A-D Denise Latour • E-K OrlisaDePhillips • L-Q Katharine Meadors • R-Z Tommie Robertson

44. On the sheet of paper you were given, indicate on a scale of 1 - 5 how confident you are in your ability to navigate your or your child’s senior year. 1 – No clue what needs to be done. 2 3 – Some understanding of what needs to be done. 4 5 – I got it. I could do this presentation.