WHS Guidance News
November 2018
It’s hard to believe that we have finished the first quarter of the 2018-19 school year! Guidance has been a bustling place this fall as we worked with seniors applying to colleges and planning their futures, administered the PSATs to all sophomores and juniors, and met with freshmen in small group Guidance classes. We are looking forward to more excitement this winter as we gear up to meet with our sophomores, discuss PSAT results with students, plan our Guidance Night (an evening of workshops for students and families), and begin meeting individually with our juniors. There is lots to look forward to in Guidance this winter!
On the following pages you’ll find information about:
Report Cards
Report cards will be distributed to students on Monday, November 19 in Advisory. This is a great time for students to reflect on their first quarter of the year and ask themselves a few questions:
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Have you been absent or tardy from class? If so, how can you improve your attendance 2nd quarter? Remember, absences impact a student’s credits. If you have questions about tardies/absences, check in 222.
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Have you been prepared for class every day? If not, why? How can you improve this?
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Have you been completing assignments on time?
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How did you keep track of your work? Did it work?
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What went well in Quarter 1? What would you like to improve upon in Quarter 2?
If students are having a hard time in a particular subject, they should consider speaking with their teacher about extra help before or after school. In addition, peer tutoring is available before or after school, the Raiders Study Club meets on Thursdays after school, and the Math and Writing Labs are open all day!
Seniors and Applications
We were so excited to help many of our seniors submit their first college applications in early November and are helping many others get ready to click “Submit” in just a few weeks. As the waiting game begins, it is important for students and families to remember a few things:
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Your materials are probably there! It is not uncommon for schools to send emails noting that a student’s application is not complete shortly after the student has hit the submit button on their application. Remember that the admissions office then has to match documents from a number of different places (Naviance, Common App, CollegeBoard, mail, etc.) in order for a student’s application to be complete. This might take a few days and students might get worried about materials not being submitted. Almost always, the school has the information they need, it just hasn’t all been compiled into one file yet, so try to be patient. Know that as long as the student’s application was submitted by the deadline, there is extra time given for supporting documents. If you keep getting notices, please stop by Guidance so we can see what is missing and help get it there in a timely fashion.
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Follow up transcripts are sent automatically! Many schools will ask for transcripts with mid-year or final grades. These are sent by Guidance automatically to all schools that a student has applied to, so there is nothing that the student needs to do to make this happen.
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Remember to complete the FAFSA! Financial Aid deadlines are important, too! Be sure to check each school’s deadlines and ensure that you have submitted all of the necessary documentation. In addition to the FAFSA, some schools look for the CSS Profile. If you need help, be sure to check out www.mefa.org for tips from the Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority. For additional help, consider attending a FAFSA Day event (https://www.masfaa.org/fafsa-day-2/) or make an appointment with ASA at the Boston Public Library (https://www.asa.org/college-planning-services/).
College Field Trips
Thanks to a generous grant from the Watertown Community Foundation and the Watertown Education Foundation, we have been able to sponsor FREE college field trips for students. In October, students visited Bridgewater State University where they were able to take a tour of campus, eat lunch in the dining hall, and even catch up with some WHS graduates! On Monday, December 3, we will be taking a group of students to UMass Lowell for a tour of the North Campus, home to the schools of Engineering, Business, and Sciences, and lunch in the dining hall. Students can still sign up for this free trip – permission slips are in Guidance.
Guidance Classes
During the month of November, guidance counselors are meeting in small groups with all 9th graders. These short meetings are geared towards helping the 9th graders get to know their guidance counselor, learn about the supports available to them in the building, and ensure that all students know who to go to for different supports. We very much enjoy meeting our 9th graders and getting to know them in these small group settings!
In December, all 10th graders will be given access codes for Naviance, our college and career planning tool. Students will then meet with guidance counselors to get an overview of the many different resources available to them through Naviance. This is a great time of year for students to meet with their guidance counselor to talk about their future! Things to consider include courses that might need to be taken, specific requirements for particular majors, summer opportunities, and more! 
Naviance
Naviance is our college and career planning tool. While most students tend to use it most when they begin researching colleges, there are a number of other great resources available to students.
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Careers: Students can take the Career Interest Profiler to learn more about careers that might be of interest to them based on their responses to a number of questions. Students can also search for particular careers and learn about the skills necessary to succeed in that field, how much money they could make at that type of job, what types of majors are associated with that career, and what schools offer those majors.
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Resumes: Naviance has a step-by-step resume builder that allows students to input all of their pertinent information and create a resume suitable for sharing with potential employers or colleges.
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Colleges: Students can use Naviance to research schools, learn about requirements, see data about acceptances at a particular school using the Scatterplots, and add colleges to a “favorites” list so they can go back to the schools later.
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Scholarships: Many of the scholarships that we hear about in Guidance are posted in the Scholarships section of Naviance (and in Simply Seniors).
Upcoming Guidance Events
Mid-November – 9th Grade Guidance Classes during Advisory
Wednesday, November 28 & Thursday, December 6 - Evening Conferences
Tuesday, December 11 – PSAT Scores available online at www.collegeboard.org (more information soon!)
Wednesday, January 16 – Guidance Night: An Evening of Workshops for Students and Families
Wednesday, February 6 & Thursday, February 7 – Biology MCAS Retest
Thursday, February 7 - Junior Future Planning Night
Upcoming Special Opportunities
These are opportunities that we in Guidance are aware of; this list is by no means exhaustive and students are encouraged to keep an eye on their email for more Special Opportunity newsletters each month. Also check out our Summer Opportunities listings at https://sites.google.com/a/watertown.k12.ma.us/whs-guidance/resources/summer-opportunities.
The Waltham YMCA is having an Open House Job Fair on Tuesday, November 27th from 5:00pm to 7:00pm! Stop by the Waltham YMCA to learn more about job opportunities available, meet our staff, see our facility, and be entered to win a raffle prize! Come interview ready! Please be prepared with your resume, or fill out an application at https://ymcaboston.org/careers before the event!
EF Educational Tours is accepting applications for their Global Citizens Scholarship. Recipients will earn a trip to Panama! Applicants are asked to create a 2-3 minute video presentation discussing a water issue affecting their community or beyond, and how they would address it. For more information, visit https://www.eftours.com/global-citizen#how-to-apply. Applications due December 7!
The Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership (HOBY) conference is looking for 2-3 Watertown High School sophomores to attend their weekend-long leadership seminar next June. This is an awesome opportunity for students to develop as leaders and meet peers from across the state. Interested students should speak with their guidance counselor to learn more about this great opportunity and how to apply. Visit www.hoby.org for more information. The guaranteed acceptance date is December 7, 2018 and there is a registration fee.
Bryant University Sales Discovery Program is designed to assist students with building confidence, showcasing their unique value, and developing executive presence. Students learn to effectively network, create a 60 second commercial of themselves to use for college and job interviews. Students will also compete in a mini-speed sell competition for a gift card prize. Ideal candidates are juniors and seniors who are hardworking, competitive and have a great attitude. The event is on Saturday, December 8 at 10:00am to
12:30pm Apply at https://bit.ly/2JSZZu8.
Massachusetts Bay Community College is offering an 8-week Cyber Security course on their campus starting in January (Thursdays from 4:00-5:50PM). This course is one of the required courses for students pursuing the Cyber Security certificate and is being offered for FREE to students who meet one of the following criteria: 1) eligible for Free/Reduced Lunch, 2) will be the first in their family to attend college, 3) is under-represented in college admissions. If students are interested, they should speak with the Guidance interns for more information.
Newton Parks and Recreation is hosting a summer camp job fair to inform people about the positions that we offer at our various camps. Anyone ages 15 and older is welcome to attend. We offer entry level counselor positions, senior counselor positions, camp specialty positions (art, STEM, sports, creative writing, music and drama, nature, etc), inclusion aid positions and director and assistant director positions. The job fair will be held on Sunday January 6, 2019 (snow date January 13th) from 3:00 – 5:00 pm at the Newton South High School in the field house. Applications can be found at http://www.newtonma.gov/gov/parks/applications_n_permits/seasonal_employment.asp or pick one up in the Guidance Office!
Bank of America is now accepting applications for its Student Leader program! This signature philanthropic program offers youth the opportunity to receive a paid, non-profit internship and to attend a weeklong conference in Washington, D.C. to learn about enacting positive social change. Student Leaders will work as a paid intern at a local nonprofit for 8 weeks, attend a weeklong Student Leaders Summit in Washington DC, develop leadership and career skills, and connect with like-minded students from around the country. Check out the application here: bankofamerica.com/studentleaders. Applications are due by February 1.
Contact Us
Guidance Counselor Caseloads for the 2018-19 School Year
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Katja Baker x36603
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Adrienne Eaton x36605
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Kim Osborne x36606
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Lindsy Orpen x 36602
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Jaimie Leonard x36604
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2019 (121h)
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B-F
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G-K
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Students in our ESL Program
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A, L-M
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N-Z
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2020 (11th)
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A-F
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G-K
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Students in our ESL Program
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L-O
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P-Z
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2021 (10th)
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A-F
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G-K
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Students in our ESL Program
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L-O
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P-Z
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2022 (9th)
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A-D
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E-I
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Students in our ESL Program
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J-N
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O-Z
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*Ms. Osborne is available on Mondays and Wednesdays. On Tuesdays, Thursdays, or Fridays, please see Ms. Orpen for assistance.*
Adrienne Eaton, Lead Guidance Counselor Dr. Katja Baker, Guidance Counselor
[email protected] [email protected]
Jaimie Leonard, Guidance Counselor Lindsy Orpen, Guidance Counselor [email protected] [email protected]
Kim Osborne, Bilingual Guidance Counselor Linda Tracy, Guidance Secretary
[email protected] [email protected]
Guidance News Website (visit for the most up to date Guidance information): https://sites.google.com/a/watertown.k12.ma.us/whs-guidance/
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