PONCHATOULA HIGH SCHOOL

SENIOR PARENT MEETINGGraduation

ACT/SAT

TOPS

Financial Aid

Scholarships

Post-secondary Options

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.

GraduationWednesday, May 21, 2014

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.

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

2.5 minimum

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

ACTwww.actstudent.org

Test Date Registration Deadline (Late Fee Required)

September 21, 2013 August 23, 2013 August 24–September 6, 2013

October 26, 2013 September 27, 2013 September 28–October 11, 2013

December 14, 2013 November 8, 2013 November 9–22, 2013

February 8, 2014* January 10, 2014 January 11–24, 2014

April 12, 2014 March 7, 2014 March 8–21, 2014

June 14, 2014 May 9, 2014 May 10–23, 2014

• 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

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

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

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

• 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.p

df• TOPS Tech Award• http://www.osfa.la.gov/MainSitePDFs/TOPS_Tech_brochure_8-11.p

df• 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

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

Scholarships• PHS Counselors’ Web Page

• http://www.tangischools.org/Page/7324

• LELA• http://asklela.org

• Louisiana Connect• https://www.louisianaconnect.org

Lela

Louisiana Connect

Post Secondary Options

• Employment• Apprenticeship• Technical/Trade School• 2 year college• 4 year college• Military

Things to Consider• Admission Requirements• Degree Program• Scholarships

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.

Louisiana Public UniversitiesGrambling 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.eduLouisiana State University – Health Science Center Shreveport ww.sh.lsuhsc.edu/index.htmlLouisiana State University – Shreveport www.lsus.edu/Louisiana Tech University www.latech.edu/McNeese State University www.mcneese.edu/Nicholls State University www.nicholls.eduNorthwestern State University www.nsula.eduSoutheastern Louisiana University www.selu.eduSouthern 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/

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.eduOur Lady of Holy Cross College www.olhcc.eduOur Lady of the Lake College www.ololcollege.edu/St. Joseph Seminary College www.sjasc.eduTulane University www.tulane.eduXavier University www.xula.edu

Louisiana Community and Technical College System Community

Colleges www.lctcs.edu

Baton Rouge Community College www.mybrcc.eduBossier Parish Community College www.bpcc.eduDelgado Community College www.dcc.eduLouisiana Delta Community College www.ladelta.eduNunez Community College www.nunez.eduRiver Parishes Community College www.rpcc.eduSouth Louisiana Community College www.southlouisiana.edu

Technical Community Collegeswww.ltc.edu

L.E. Fletcher Technical Community College www.fletcher.edu/Sowela Technical Community College www.sowela.eduLouisiana Technical College www.ltc.edu

Louisiana Proprietary Schools

American School of Business http://www.americanschoolofbusiness.com/Aveda Institute http://www.avedainstitutes.com/Ayers Career College http://www.ayers.eduCareer 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.eduFortis College http://www.FortisCollege.eduITI Technical College http://iticollege.edu/Louisiana Culinary Institute http://www.louisianaculinary.comRemington College http://www.remingtoncollege.edu/South Louisiana Beauty College http://www.slbc-houma.com/

Decisions, DecisionsHow to Pick the Best College for You

• Rankings• Location• Available Concentrations & Departments• Your Potential Major• Costs and Financial Aid• Faculty

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/

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

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

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 Clearinghousehttp://web1.ncaa.org/ECWR2/NCAA_EMS/NCAA.jsp

Northshore College & Career FairTonight

6 p.m. – 8 p.m.SLU’s Pennington’s Center

New Orleans National College FairErnest N. Morial Convention Center

Tuesday, October 19:00am - 12:00pm, 6:00pm - 8:00pm

Baton Rouge National College FairBaton Rouge River Center

Wednesday, October 2 9:00am - 12:00pm, 6:00pm - 8:00pm

Useful Websites

• http://www.bls.gov/ooh/a-z-index.htm

• http://www.laworks.net/Stars/default.aspx

• http://www.self-directed-search.com/

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.

Counselors

• A-D

Denise Latour• E-K

Orlisa DePhillips• L-Q

Katharine Meadors• R-Z

Tommie Robertson

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.