Connections Newsletter

TCA

Upcoming Events in Connections

September 3, 6:00-8:00: Junior/Senior/Financial Aid Family Night

• 6:00-6:40 Junior Connections Family Night - Overview of Junior year, and resources

• 6:45-7:10 Financial Aid (open to all grades) - Financial Aid, Scholarships, and FAFSA

• 7:15-8:00 Senior Connections Family Night - Overview of Senior year, calendar, and resources

September 4, 6:00-7:00: Freshmen & Sophomore Connections Family Night - overview of 9/10 curriculum

September 12: Southern Colorado Construction Career Days Field Trip hosted by Connections. Deadline to register is September 5

September 13: Deadline to pay mandatory AP Exam fee(s) in IC

Deadline to pay optional PSAT/NMSQT (10/11 only) fee in IC

September 23: Mini-College Fair during Flex in the Forum

September 30: Mini-College Fair during Flex in the Forum

October 10: Optional PSAT/NMSQT Exam. 10th/11th only (Deadline to register to pay the fee in IC is September 13)

October 15-17 - Colorado Free Application Days - see college websites for directions on how to apply, each college will have specific directions for their school

In the Community

September 3 – Denver Jesuit College Fair

September 23 - Christian College Fair

September 23 - Southern Colorado College Fair

September 29 - NACAC College Fair

October 5 – Explore Johns Hopkins: Denver

Our team supports every family. We strive to always be aware of opportunities as we advise our families. We want to partner with you and your teen. We have created a form to complete that WILL STAY CONFIDENTIAL in Connections.

Connections is hosting a field trip for interested juniors and seniors to attend the Southern Colorado Construction Career Days. Students will have an opportunity to perform actual trade skills and jobs while interfacing with expert contractors throughout the region. Students should be at school by 7:30 with the van leaving at 7:45 and returning by 2:30; lunch provided. See Connections for sign-up, permission slips are required. Deadline to return permission slips to Connections is September 5.

On August 26 or 27, Ms. Peters will be in your class to walk you through the process of applying to colleges, including how to request transcripts, letters of recommendation, and school reports. The Connections team will begin accepting application material requests on August 28. If you are headed to college and have not visited or connected with our college reps, please make those connections soon. We are hearing from colleges about the importance of “demonstrated interest” with comments such as “Please encourage your students to visit us either in-person or virtually”, or “To show demonstrated interest, students can interact with us during campus visits, virtual visits, school visits, college fairs, etc.”

I visited the Juniors in their History class this week and we covered several major points. We talked about the Connections Center (Career, College, and More in Room 1104), our exploration events available to them, and how to sign up. We host more than 100 events per year. To stay on track, families are encouraged to sign up for the Google Family Calendar; HOW TO videos and the iCAL link is on the TCA Connections webpage. Important events are listed on this calendar to help you make plans as a family. Click here for more highlights.

If you are a Sophomore or Junior and choose to take the optional PSAT/NMSQT exam on October 10 am, the deadline to pay is September 13. The $18 fee is payable in Infinite Campus OPTIONAL fees. For Sophomores, the PSAT/NMSQT is great practice for the SAT and preparation for the qualifying Junior year PSAT/NMSQT. Juniors who take the PSAT/NMSQT and meet other program entry requirements can compete for recognition and scholarships conducted by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. Families, check if your employer is listed as a scholarship sponsor. These sponsor scholarships are often awarded to children of employees who are NOT in semi-finalist or finalist standing.

I look forward to continuing where we left off last year. I will be in your classes starting in early September to continue exploring the many possibilities for your life after TCA. See you soon!

This week I met with freshmen in Mr. Perry’s World History classes and focused on exploration of Career Clusters. Freshmen year Connections is all about career exploration and self-discovery. Freshmen completed the Career Cluster Finder in Naviance--an inventory that allows them to match their interests, strengths, and personal qualities with potential career areas or clusters. Their top career clusters were ranked based on their responses. Career Clusters are a grouping of similar careers and a great starting point to explore future careers. If you would like to complete a similar inventory, click here. Students enrolled in second-semester world history class will work on Career Clusters with me in the spring. Students and parents can find follow-up curriculum lessons in Naviance by clicking on Planner, then Curriculum. Lessons are available on a variety of helpful topics, including “My Career Clusters.”

The AP Exam is REQUIRED for all AP courses. The fee for EACH exam is $99, payable in Infinite Campus fees. Fee waivers are available for those who qualify.

The PSAT/NMSQT Exam at TCA will be Thursday, October 10 from 8:00 -11:45, arrive by 7:45. This is the National Merit Scholarship Qualifying exam for juniors and is a PSAT/NMSQT practice exam for sophomores. Register by paying the optional fee in Infinite Campus by the September 13 deadline. Note: this is on the Thursday morning of Parent/Teacher Conferences BEFORE Fall Break.

The 2024-25 PSAT/NMSQT exam will be digital. Currently, you can complete full-length practice tests. Per College Board: PSAT/NMSQT practice tests will be available in Bluebook (the digital platform) you can Download the Bluebook App and Practice.

Free test prep resources:

Official SAT Practice Tests (College Board)

Khan Academy (SAT Free Official SAT Practice Tests | College Board)

ACT Academy with Practice Tests

How to Improve Your ACT Score by 2 Points in 20 Minutes

Free SAT Tutoring and Prep | Schoolhouse SAT Bootcamp

More test prep resources are on the Connections webpage.

If you qualify, here are avenues to waive college admission testing (SAT, ACT, AP) or college application fees. If you qualify for an SAT fee waiver, or the ACT fee waiver, you can be approved for a fee waiver to most colleges. Another route is the NACAC College Application Fee Waiver. Please connect with your junior/senior advisor in Connections Ms. Peters tcacollege@asd20.org for assistance.

The Boettcher Foundation is hosting webinars on “Everything You Need to Know About Scholarships.” During these webinars, they will discuss how students can “ACE” their college and scholarship applications, including tips on how to help your applications stand out. You can register to attend one of the webinars by clicking on the date you wish to attend (please note that you only need to attend one, as the same information will be presented during each webinar)

• September 10th from 5-6pm

• September 26th from 12-1pm

• October 9th from 5-6pm

An abbreviated version of the presentation is also available here

Colorado Promise: Two Free Years of College Expanded - Beginning in Fall 2024, students who attend public institutions and have family incomes of $90,000 or less are eligible for a complete reimbursement of any out-of-pocket tuition and fees paid for their education. The program expands on individual institutional promise programs and extends financial support to middle-income Colorado residents.

The Cooke College Scholarship Program is an undergraduate scholarship program available to high-achieving high school seniors with financial need who seek to attend and graduate from the nation's top four-year colleges and universities. Deadline to apply is November 14.

Student-athletes wanting to study and compete at an NCAA school are encouraged to register with the Eligibility Center at eligibilitycenter.org. More information here.

Are you thinking about applying to a highly selective college? Johns Hopkins University Admissions has published a College Planning Guide and Workshops to help with the application process.

The University of Colorado Boulder is launching the following new programs: Bachelor of Arts Degree Program in Public Health, Bachelor of Arts in Education Studies and a Bachelor of Arts in Middle & High School Teaching.

Smith College is hosting Women of Distinction, a fully funded fly-in opportunity for seniors to explore their campus on October 18-19 or November 8-9. Deadline to apply is September 15.

Oberlin College is hosting their Oberlin Overnight Program for seniors to get a firsthand view of campus life. Visits include themed programming; the Diversity & Access program also includes round-trip airfare and requires a special application. Deadline to apply is September 22.

The University of Nebraska-Lincoln hosts a Student and Family Virtual Visit Week from September 24-26. The week will include webinar sessions for in- and out-of-state scholarships, financial aid, and academic sessions with various colleges and the University Honors program. They are also hosting Pre-Health on Monday, October 7 from 12:30-5:00 pm for students who are seeking a career in the healthcare field to learn more about what Nebraska has to offer, specific program information, and how to prepare for success. UNL offers the National First Responders Pledge, an in-state tuition rate for out-of-state first responders and their dependent children.

VOICE at Wellesley College is their virtual college access program for seniors on September 28-29. VOICE stands for vision, ownership, inclusivity, sense of community, and equity—as students aim to use their voices to intentionally impact the world for the better. Deadline to apply is September 11.

The Coding School offers online Artificial Intelligence and Quantum Computing for credit courses. Full Scholarships available. Classes begin September 29.

Freshmen Checklist

Sophomore Checklist

Junior Checklist

Senior Checklist

Back-to-School Checklist

Joanna Peters, Director - Junior, Senior

Katina Dahl, Advisor - Freshmen, Sophomore, AP, PSAT/NMSQT

Jodi Hoffman, Office Manager - College & Career Visits, Community Service

Email: tcavisits@asd20.org
Website: tcatitans.org
Location: 975 Stout Road, Colorado Springs, CO
Phone: 719-484-0091 1104