
Counseling Corner
October Newsletter
Academics
Academics
- The first quarter ends today, 10/14. Please be sure to check your student's grades to get ahead of any concerns.
- Teacher support: students can sign up with their teacher for their Wednesday tutorials. These are available to students every Wednesday except the first one of the month when they have a lesson from the counseling team.
- Additional support: Brainfuse HelpNow is an on demand, anytime, anywhere eLearning platform available for all ages and levels. Last week, it was announced that every Californian can now access free online tutoring available 24/7 through a new initiative offering homework help in every K-12 subject and skill-building resources for K-12 and adult learners.
- Peer tutoring: Brighter Minds is a group of Beckman peers who offer tutoring across all subjects. Students can sign up here.
TIPS TO HELP YOUR CHILD GET TO SCHOOL ON TIME
Showing up for school has a huge impact on a student’s academic success. We realize some absences are unavoidable due to health problems or other circumstances. But, we also know that when students miss too much school— regardless of the reason – it can cause them to fall behind academically and absences can add up quickly. Please ensure that your child attends school every day and arrives on time.
To help support regular attendance:
- Make sure your child keeps a regular bedtime and establish a morning routine.
- Lay out clothes and pack backpacks the night before.
- Limit the use of electronics before bedtime and inaccessible during the night
- Ensure your child goes to school every day unless they are truly sick
- Avoid scheduling vacations or doctor’s appointments when school is in session.
- Talk to teachers or the counselor for advice if your child feels anxious about going to school.
- Develop back up plans for getting to school if something comes up. Call on a family member, neighbor, or another parent to take your child to school.
College and Career
College and Career
OCDE Virtual College & Career Discovery Fair
Tuesday, October 18th, 4 pm – 7 pm
Sign-up virtually to connect with colleges and universities. All students, families, and educators are welcome to attend this free event! During the Virtual College Fair, you will have the chance to hear from a variety of colleges and universities. You can choose which colleges you want to hear from by registering for their sessions. You and your family can also ask questions of the college representatives throughout the presentations! This program will also include college knowledge sessions on topics such as the recent changes in college admissions, studying abroad, and how to save on tuition expenses presented by college admission counselors.
Register at:
Check out the schedule, list of colleges, and register now:
Cash For College Nights at BHS: Seniors & Families
When: Oct 18 or Dec 6 from 6:00 - 7:30 PM
Where: Beckman room 131-132
During this general workshop geared for seniors and their families, you will be introduced to the FAFSA and CA Dream Act Application, how to get started on the applications, and the types of financial aid that students can qualify for. The goal is for students and families to have their financial aid application completed by the end of the evening!
Who: Seniors and family members
Recommended for families to bring:
- TUSD student laptop for best wireless connection
- 2021 Tax return for parent (and student if applicable)
- 2021 W-2 forms for both Parent 1 and Parent 2 (and student if applicable
- Date of marital status
- Social Security Numbers (if applicable) for both the parents and student; don’t need the cards, just the numbers!
For questions about Cash for College workshops, please email Ms. McDonald at mmcdonald@tustin.k12.ca.us
Register here.
College Rep Visits:
Students are invited to attend ongoing college rep visits and workshops held before school, at lunch, and after school. College rep visits are a great way for students to demonstrate interest in a college and learn more specific information about a particular college. Workshops are led by admissions officers and include topics such as learning about the Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE), a tuition savings program that makes attending out of state colleges and universities more affordable for students, reasons why students should consider going to college overseas, and ROTC Military Scholarships. Registration links for workshops are in the college rep visits link above.
Coastline Regional Occupation Program (ROP)
Registration for Spring semester ROP classes will open starting the week of November 14. ROP offers FREE career education classes and internship classes for high school students in TUSD. Classes are offered after school at different school sites. Students are allowed to have up to 7 classes on their Beckman schedule, including ROP classes. Many ROP classes are A-G UC/CSU aligned. ROP classes count toward high school credit and are listed on Beckman transcripts. Internship classes are for students who are 16 and older with transportation to their internship site. ROP offers many classes including: Baking & Pastry Fundamentals, Culinary Arts Internship, Auto Tech Internship, Medical Nursing Careers Internship, Certified Nurse Assistant (CNA) Pre-Certification Internship, Administration of Justice, Crime Scene Investigation, and Emergency Medical Responder (EMR) to name a few!
ROP/College and Career Specialist Ms. McDonald will be leading ROP info sessions for students starting in November. To learn more about ROP, please visit the Coastline ROP website.
The Spring 2023 Registration Interest List Form is available for students to fill out and receive an email from ROP once registration is open.
Irvine Valley College Application Workshop
IVC will have an application workshop at BHS in the Career Center on Thursday, November 10 at lunch. Students will meet with an admissions representative from IVC who will walk students through the first part of the application process. To prepare for the workshop, students should bring:
- Social Security Number (if applicable). Card not required, just know the numbers
- VISA Information (if applicable)
- Parent/Family Income information
To be eligible for IVC's Promise Program (free tuition), students must complete a financial aid form (FAFSA or CA Dream Act) AND complete the steps to become an IVC student by first attending this workshop. On the FAFSA, please select IVC code 025395. The Promise Program is available on a first come, first served basis!
Students may register for the workshop here: Registration: IVC Senior Application Workshop: November 10 at Lunch (google.com).
For more information about IVC application process, please contact IVC Matriculation Specialist Rick Chan at rchan@ivc.edu.
Undocumented Student Action Week (USAW), October 17-21, 2022
The 6th Annual Undocumented Student Action Week at Santiago Canyon College in partnership with Santa Ana College will engage in a week of advocacy and activities to support and build awareness about undocumented students.
The theme for this year’s action week, Juntos Podemos (Together, We Can): Collaborative Ecosystems that Support Undocumented Students, which recognizes that we must be intentional about integrating undocumented student success throughout our equity initiatives by breaking down silos, creating welcoming campus environments, and advocating for policy solutions that allow undocumented students to achieve economic mobility.
For more information about the workshops and to register for the workshops, please visit their Student Services webpage for registration details. All of the virtual events are free and open to the public. Registration
Social/Emotional Well-being
Social/Emotional Well-being
Parent Patriots, October is Mental Health Screening Month. Mental health is health; mental wellness checkups are important as much as annual physicals. In honor of our mental health and wellbeing, we would like to share helpful tools that help provide regular mental health screenings. (Keep in mind that a screening is not a diagnosis, but a helpful tool to start a conversation with a mental health professional or loved one about mental health.)
Feel free to look through the following links to access no-cost mental health screenings:
Children's Mental Health Access Collaborative of Orange County
Click here to learn more about National Depression Screening Day.
Parent Workshops: Orange County Department of Education and other groups are offering free TUSD district-wide online parent workshops for all high school parents starting in October. There's a variety of topics provided, including "Screen Time and Mental Health" and "Positive Parenting." We encourage you to look through workshops you would like to attend and use the QR code on the flyer to register! Workshops provided in both English and Spanish. T
October is Bullying Prevention Month
October is National Bullying Prevention Month, a time to raise awareness on bullying. Bullying is unwanted aggressive behavior. The behavior is repeated, one sided and on purpose. Bullying includes actions such as making threats, spreading rumors, attacking someone physically or verbally, and excluding someone from a group on purpose. Bullying can also take place through technology, which is called cyberbullying. Examples of cyberbullying include mean text messages or emails, rumors sent by email or posted on social networking sites, and embarrassing pictures, videos, websites, or fake profiles. This is a significant problem nationwide. It can cause school absenteeism, mental and physical stress, poor school performance, poor self-esteem, and occasionally, school violence. Students who experience bullying are at increased risk for depression, anxiety, sleep difficulties, lower academic achievement, and dropping out of school. Recognize, Report, Refuse!
Grade Level Information
Senior Scene
CSU & UC Application Tips
Cal States
- If your child is working on their CSU application and has questions, the Cal State Apply Freshman Guide 2022-23 is a great place to get their questions answered.
- Take a look at the Top Freshman Application Do's and Don'ts before completing the app.
- If your family has had a significant change in income you may qualify for an application fee waiver appeal. Fee waiver appeals are handled by the individual CSU campuses. Your students would need to contact each campus(es) they are interested in applying to. Contact information for campuses can be found at: https://www2.calstate.edu/apply/Pages/contact-a-campus.aspx
University of California
The UCs tips when completing their application
- Apply to multiple UCs. Remember that the fee waiver allows students to apply to up to four UCs for free.
- Select “No Selection” when asked for citizenship status if they are undocumented, including those with DACA and AB540 status.
- Research majors at the different campuses, as programs vary, and consider selecting an alternate major.
- Work from unofficial transcripts when completing the Academic History to ensure the accuracy of courses, credits, and grades. If a student has a repeated course, both the original grade and the repeated grade must be included in the application.
- Use the Additional Information section in Academic History to explain any key academic changes, including gaps in education or unique changes in grading systems. UC understands that students have experienced changes in course delivery and grading options during the pandemic. Students can use the additional comments section to explain these academic changes.
- Start working on the Personal Insight Questions (PIQs) early and make sure it’s their own, original work. If students would like to share how they or their families have been impacted directly by the COVID-19 pandemic, UC recommends that they use the “Additional Information” sections on the application rather than the PIQs.
- Consider activities and awards from a broad perspective. Work experience, family responsibilities, online activities, and individual activities will help readers get to know the student. Students should focus on their role, time commitment, and responsibility for activities, and should include information about the selection process for all awards and honors. While students can enter up to 20 items, quality is more important than quantity!
- Apply for all scholarships for which they meet the criteria. There is no limit to the number of scholarships students may select.
Financial Aid Application is OPEN
The FAFSA and Dream Act applications are open and are both due March 2, 2023. We encourage students to complete their FAFSA before the deadline not only to see if they qualify for Federal Financial Aid but also for Cal Grant and Merit-Based Scholarships. The counseling department will be hosting a series of Cash for Colleges workshops and Financial Aid Fridays. Check out these helpful resources to help guide parents/students through the application process.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_iS7gmQd9o&feature=emb_rel_pause
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pn4OECMTh5w&feature=youtu.be
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LK0bbu0y5AM&feature=youtu.be
https://www.csac.ca.gov/pod/financial-aid-checklist
https://studentaid.gov/understand-aid/types/grants
Important Information for Seniors Regarding their mytusd.org email
As students start working on their college applications, they must be using a personal email address when completing applications and not use their mytusd.org email. Once students graduate, the Tustin Unified email address will no longer be available. Using a personal email address when applying will allow students to continue to receive communication once they have graduated.
Junior Junction
- B Prepared for Post-Secondary Success Night for 10th and 11th grades was an asynchronous virtual presentation this year to assist your family in preparing for life after high school. Here is a link to the video. It is also available on the grade level counseling page on the BHS website.
- Junior year is an excellent time to explore colleges that offer the majors students are considering. Most colleges have opened up their campuses again for in-person visits but most also now offer virtual tours. Here are some sites that offer virtual tours: https://www.youvisit.com/collegesearch/ or https://campustours.com/
- College fairs are another great way for juniors to explore potential colleges. See the College and Career section above for the link to the OCDE Virtual Fair. When attending a fair, consider the attached guidelines to maximize the event.
- Next month's counseling CCR lesson for juniors will include Naviance's Career Interest Profiler and exploring colleges that are the right fit. This will help them work towards their post-secondary plans.
Sophomore Stop
- B Prepared for Post-Secondary Success Night for 10th and 11th grades was an asynchronous virtual presentation this year to assist your family in preparing for life after high school. Here is a link to the video. It is also available on the grade level counseling page on the BHS website.
Have you ever been in a situation where you have experienced or witnessed bullying and wished you knew what to say or how to help? The website below has wonderful information on various ways to seek help. Students who know what bullying is can better identify it. They can talk about bullying if it happens to them or others. Kids need to know ways to safely stand up to bullying and how to get help. Speak to a trusted adult if you are bullied or see others being bullied. The adult can give comfort, support, and advice, even if they can’t solve the problem directly. Please report bullying if it happens. Please visit the websites below for extra advice and support.
- If your student is having issues with their grades, as in they are not where they would like them to be, their first recourse is to speak with their teacher about what they think is happening. Don’t let their grades slip to a level where it will be very difficult to remedy. Our teachers are more than willing to work with students. Reach out for help if your student is struggling. If you don’t know how to contact the teachers, contact your counselor and they can help guide you to a solution.
Freshman Forum
- During the months of October and November, freshmen will receive a counselor-led lesson on elective pathways, high school graduation requirements, and A-G requirements. After the lesson, freshman will enter their four-year academic plan in Aeries. They will continue to revise this four-year plan each year. The four-year plan is viewable to parents in Aeries under "classes" and "academic plan".
- Parent tip: Be sure to attend Report Card Night on Oct. 19th. This is a great opportunity to meet your freshman's teachers and get feedback regarding classroom performance.
- Help your student stay organized! Beckman planners are here and can be purchased for $7 at the student store. In addition to keeping a planner, here is a short video on more student planning and organization tips.
- On September 1st, Avid 9 students received a lesson on graduation and a-g requirements, colleges, and transcript review. Here is the pre/post data showing what students learned.