Counseling Department Newsletter

• Scheduling Process for 2021-2022 School Year
• Counseling Block Presentations: Now WEDNESDAYS!
• Save the Date-- Parents/Guardians of Juniors presentation
• Meet our new BRYT Clinician!
• Wachusett Wellness Newsletter
• Virtual College Fairs throughout January-May!
• National School Counseling Week
• Diversity Newsletter
• College Guidance Network
• Parents Supporting Parents
• FAFSA Day

Students and parents are invited to play an active role in the scheduling process. Students can review the graduation requirements and course offerings through our WRHS Educational Guide, review prior grades in PowerSchool and revisit career clusters and pathways that have been revealed through Naviance.

The scheduling process involves three parts.

1) Recommendations for course levels will be inputted into PowerSchool for students

2) Students review those recommendations in PowerSchool, select their core classes, and choose electives based on their interests.

3) Students meet individually with their counselors to review their choices and finalize their course requests for next year.

Scheduling Timeline

February 3rd - February 10th:

Current Juniors, Sophomores, and Freshmen should login to PowerSchool and make course selections using their teacher recommendations (visible in PowerSchool) and the WRHS Educational Guide.

February 22nd - March 1st:

Current Juniors meet with their school counselors individually during their science classes to review and finalize course requests. Some students will have virtual meetings.

March 2nd - March 8th:

Current Sophomores meet with their school counselors individually during their Health classes to review and finalize course requests. Some students will have virtual meetings.

March 9th - March 15th:

Current Freshmen meet with their school counselors individually during their Freshman Seminar classes to review and finalize course requests. Some students will have virtual meetings.

April 16th:

All requests for reconsideration of level change forms are due.

Please visit the Scheduling Process Timeline for more information!

Every Wednesday the counselors have been meeting with one of the grade levels to discuss various topics including welcoming back our students, reviewing the college application process, and delivering our Naviance inventories; to name a few. The presentation time slot is 11:15-12pm each week.

Our next two Wednesdays (1/27 and 2/3) will focus on the scheduling process for our current juniors and we also will be starting our college admissions overview! Our freshmen and sophomores already had their scheduling presentation earlier this month. At the end of February, counselors will be meeting with sophomores for Naviance inventories. In March, we go back to delivering our new Social Emotional Learning (SEL) program for freshmen.

The school counselors will be hosting a College Admissions Process Overview Presentation on Tuesday, March 2nd at 6pm via Google Meets!

The agenda will include:

• Review of graduation requirements and scheduling for senior

• Overview of college admissions process

• Trends in college admissions

• Standardized testing

• College Fairs

• Developing the list

We are excited to welcome Jordan Young to our BRYT program as our clinician. Here is more information on Jordan:

My name is Jordan Young. I am very excited to be joining the Wachusett Regional High School Team as the BRYT program clinician. I come to Wachusett with experience in Middle School and with Adolescent aged youth involved in mental health and juvenile court systems. My educational background is a Bachelor's degree in Psychology from Framingham State with a Master's degree in Social Work from Springfield College. A little bit about myself; I have lived in central Mass for about 10 years after taking some time to travel post college, I'm always willing to talk about my corgi, and I am a big sports fan (Go Chiefs). I look forward to working with all students, parents, teachers and staff for years to come.

Helping students adopt and maintain healthy behaviors is at the core of our school counseling program. To have healthy behaviors students must first start with education and awareness. Our February newsletter will be posted soon and will include information on this month's theme which is CULTIVATING HEALTHY RELATIONSHIPS.

Please see our past newsletters as well:

Wachusett Wellness Newsletter: January

Wachusett Wellness Newsletter: December

Wachusett Wellness Newsletter: November

Wachusett Wellness Newsletter: October

• NACAC is offering virtual college fairs

• *Don't miss the college fairs throughout January-May! A STEM fair and Performing and Visual Arts Fair is also being offered!

• CollegeBoard is offering a virtual college fair for sophomores and juniors:

• *BigFuture Days are designed to give students a tailored experience so that they can establish connections with colleges and act on important college planning tasks such as building a college list and identifying scholarships.

• *The Northeast event will be on March 7th. There are three other regional events (West/Southwest, Midwest, and Southeast) in February and March.

  
  

School Counselors Celebrate During National School Counseling Week, Feb. 1–5, 2021

National School Counseling Week highlights the tremendous impact school counselors can have in helping students achieve school success and plan for a career. Wachusett Regional High School cited school counselors for being actively engaged in helping students examine their abilities, strengths, interests and talents; for working in a partnership with parents as they encounter the challenges of raising children in today’s world; for focusing on positive ways to enhance students’ academic, postsecondary and social/emotional development; and working with teachers and other educators to provide an educational system where students can realize their potential and set healthy, realistic and optimistic aspirations for themselves. School counselors are certified, experienced educators with a master’s degree in school counseling. The combination of their training and experience makes them an integral part of the total educational program.

2021 Activities:

Students: Do you know which counselor previously coached JV Tennis and is a graduate of WRHS? Do you know which counselor plays the drums and piano in their spare time? There will be counselor trivia each day of the week (Feb 1-5th). Follow wrhscounseling on instagram so you can participate in the fun! A prize will be given to students who answer the questions correctly!

Staff: We thank you for your commitMINT to the counseling staff and of course our students! There will be a small token of our appreciation in your mailbox next week!

Please view this month's Diversity Newsletter that addresses the topic of community involvement. You will be able to view WRHS clubs and local organizations who are looking for volunteers.

We are thrilled to bring our families and students a new service offering going into the new school year. We have signed up our school to have access to College Guidance Network, a virtual programming network specializing in demystifying the college admissions process.

Take a closer look at the full schedule of programming and speakers on their programming page. You will also be able to view past presentations there as well.

Making & Managing Your College List

Wed., February 24th via Zoom

8-9pm

What's New and What's Changed this Year

Wed., March 10th via Zoom

8-9pm

College as an Investment

Wed., April 7th via Zoom

8-9pm

We recognize what a challenging time this is. The BRYT Family Engagement Team invites you to participate in our weekly Parents Supporting Parents group where parents can get & receive support from each other.

Please join us every week for PARENTS SUPPORTING PARENTS. Simply click the link and join the Zoom meeting. All are welcome so please share with family and friends.

View the flyer HERE for dates/times!

SUBMIT YOUR FAFSA FOR COLLEGE FINANCIAL AID AT FAFSA.GOV

Your FAFSA will allow colleges to determine if you’re eligible to receive FREE money for college next year. And you don’t want to miss that!

And as an added bonus, FAFSA Day MA is offering a $1,000 college scholarships to a high school senior who attends a FAFSA Day event and completes the attendee survey.

These free, virtual FAFSA Day events will help you and your family complete your FAFSA.

Register by clicking on an event below.

· Sunday, February 7th @ 2:00 p.m. en Espanol

· Thursday, February 11th @ 7:00 p.m. in English

Even if you can’t attend a FAFSA Day event, be sure to submit your FAFSA at fafsa.gov.

Follow us on instagram: @wrhscounseling

Email: lauren_clark@wrsd.net
Website: https://wrhs.wrsd.net/school_counseling
Location: 1401 Main Street, Holden, MA, USA
Phone: (508) 829-6771
Twitter: @CounselorsWRHS