Published by the Reseda High School College Office                                   Ivna Gusmão, College Counselor               Volume 2                   February  2008

Message from the College Counselor
College application season is mostly over except for a few Cal State University campuses and Community Colleges that are still accepting applications. Finals are here. It is time to focus and keep up the good work. Pay attention to your mail and your email. Colleges and universities will be communicating with you through email and regular mail. READ all information they send you. Colleges will let you know if there is something missing on your application or if they need additional information in order to make a decision on you. You will also get information on housing, scholarships and financial aid. READ all the information, follow directions and meet deadlines.

Mid-Year Reports
All seniors who applied to colleges or universities who require a mid-year report should have already turned in those forms with small addressed stamped envelopes to Ms. Gusmão. Please double check if any college to which you applied requires a mid-year report. The official waiting season has started. As you receive a college or university acceptance letter please bring a copy in to the College Office so that we can publish the good news in the Gazette and place you among Reseda’s Stars! We are proud of your achievement and would like to celebrate it. We want all admissions letters! That includes community colleges too!

Congratulations to Admitted Regents!!
Though most acceptance notices will come in March, some have already arrived. The following Regents have already been admitted to colleges and universities: Sergio Arce: CSUN, Cal Poly Pomona, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities; Joacim Benitez: Cal Poly Pomona, CSUN; Almarie Cacho: Mt. St. Mary’s; Jennifer Castillo: CSUN; Laura Chocano: CSUN; Archie Cordova: CSU Monterey Bay, Oregon St., Oklahoma St.; Karina Cruz: CSU Monterey Bay, CSUN, Mt. St. Mary’s; Bianca Cuenca: CSUN, CSU San Francisco, CSU Fresno; Jocelyn Dayaon: Mt. St. Mary’s; Alan Garcia: CSU Fullerton; Pasha Kazerouni: CSU Fresno, CSUN, Penn State; Lyndsey Mahoney: Arizona St., N. Arizona University; Benjamin Mashian: CSUN, CSULA; Luis Mercado: CSUN; Bianca Mihalescu: CSULA, CSUN, Mt. St. Mary’s, Cal Lutheran; Paul Nevarez: CSULA; Maria Olguin Chavez: CSUN; Adriana Ornelas: CSUN; Milton Palacios: CSU San Francisco; Alexis Pammit: CSUN; Karen Perez: Mt. St. Mary’s; Ratna Pottam: CSUN; Christina Ramos: CSU Chico; Ingrid Ruiz: CSULA, CSU Dominguez Hills, CSU Humboldt, Mt. St. Mary’s; Aisha Shakoor: CSULA, CSUN; Liliana Siguenza: Mt. St. Mary’s; Nancy Siquina: Mt. St. Mary’s; Gatis Skele: CSUN; Ryan Solis: MIT, US Military Academy, Westpoint; Ernesto Sosa: U of Wisconson – Madison; Jimmy Tran: CSU Chico, CSU Stanislaus; Tu Tran: Mt. St. Mary’s; Jose Vargas: Embry-Riddle; Congratulations Regents!! You make us proud! If you have not applied to a college yet, come to the College Office! There is still time! Most Cal State University campuses will close for fall 2008 applications on February 1 and a few on March 2 but community colleges are still accepting applications.

New Scholarship!!!
Mike and Maureen Volante are sponsoring the “Reseda Youth Scholarship” for $10,000 and several others for less. Please check www.resedacollegeinfo.com for more information on this great opportunity for Reseda Seniors.

Community Colleges
accept applications throughout the year!! For very low cost, community colleges offer wonderful opportunities for students to continue their education after high school. Students, who attend community colleges, may be eligible for up to $8000.00 per year in free money to help with college and living expenses. Just apply for financial aid! Students can enroll in vocational training, earn a two year college degree and/or take general education courses and transfer after two years to a four year college or university. Community college representatives visit Reseda every week. Come to the College office to sign up to meet with one of them! Do not be left out!

Senioritis
Please do not forget that all admissions are conditional. Any college or university could cancel your acceptance if you do not complete your senior year in good standing! If there are any significant changes in your academic program or your grades, you must notify the schools to which you applied. Do not set yourself up for unhappy surprises. UCs and other colleges and universities do send admission cancellation letters in the summer if your final transcripts do not reflect what you reported on your application! Keep working hard.

$ $ $ Saturday, February 9th 9:00 to 12 noon
Get help one on one completing your FAFSA at RHS in the Library.

Financial Aid
All seniors planning to continue their education after graduation from high school should apply for financial aid. Whether you have good grades or not, apply! If you think you have no money or too much money, apply! If you plan to attend a public university or private college, apply! If you are a resident or a citizen, apply! If you are planning to attend community college, apply! There is aid available to help with tuition fees, books, and living expenses. You must submit the Free Federal Application for Federal Student Aid, the FAFSA and Cal Grant GPA Verification forms before March 2, 2007. This is your chance to get thousands of dollars in grants and/or loans to help pay for college. Most colleges require that FAFSA be filed to consider you for need based or merit scholarships. 1. Apply online. First, apply for a federal PIN (Personal Identification Number) by going to www.fafsa.ed.gov 2. Complete a FAFSA Web Worksheet at www.fafsa.ed.gov. You will need your and / or your parents’ 2007 W2 forms and 2006 or 2007 tax return. If you are not filing online, you can request a paper FAFSA. Ms. Gusmão will submit Cal Grant GPA verification forms for all students who returned the completed forms to her. If you have not yet completed the Cal Grant GPA Verification form, come to the College Office ASAP and see Ms. Gusmão or Ms. Kohli. You just need to know your social security number to complete the form. The deadline to file FAFSA and Cal Grant GPA Verification forms is March 2, 2008. File early! More money is available to you if you apply early. Remember FAFSA+CalGrant GPA Verification form = up to $9,700 in free money for college!! Apply to as many scholarships as possible. The College Office website has all the latest scholarships.Keep checking often for new ones, as they will be posted on the site as they become available. www.resedacollegeinfo.com Your link to all you need to know about applying for college. If you are confused and do not know how to fill out the free financial aid form (FAFSA), come to the College Office or to the Cash for College Workshop on Saturday, February 9th. We are here to help. There will be an AB540 workshop to help non-citizen students find funds and scholarships to pay for college at : “Cash for College” Workshop Saturday, February 9, 2008 Reseda High School 9:00AM-12:00PM There will be another Financial Aid Workshop on Wednesday, February 13 from 11:30 to 2:00 at Reseda High School in the Library. Sign up in the College Office if you need help.

Community College Assessments
Pierce College’s math and English assessment at Reseda High will be on February 21. Regents who plan to attend Pierce College in September must sign up in the College Office for the test. Santa Monica College‘s assessment will be March 10 at SMC. Students who plan to attend SMC in September must sign up in the College Office for the field trip to take the test.

CSU Required Assessment
All students planning to attend a Cal State University campus in the fall must take the English Placement Test (EPT) and the Entry Level Math (ELM). Go to www.csun.edu/testing to register to take these tests early. You can take the test at CSUN even if you plan to go to another CSU. The results will be valid at any CSU.

AP Exams
The College Board has announced that the fees for the AP exams this year will be $84.00 per exam. Fee reductions are available for eligible students who participate in the free or reduced school lunch program. Complete the AP registration forms that will be distributed in your classes before you come to the Student Store. Students can pay for the test with a check or cash at the Student Store at lunch beginning on February 25. Listen to announcements for details.

Juniors
College Information Night is on March 13, 6:00 p.m. in the Auditorium. Parents and students are invited to meet representatives from various colleges and universities, ask questions and learn about these institutions. Reseda High School will offer a FREE SAT preparation class during Saturday School this spring. Talk to your counselor to sign up. This class will prepare you for the May SAT. All college bound juniors should take their first SAT reasoning and subject test in May and June.

P C C s
If you are interested in learning about college admissions, being up on all the latest college information, helping your peers get into college and in earning community service, talk to Ms. Gusmão. You might be a great candidate for the Peer College Counselor program. Participation in this program is a good way to show admissions officers that you served your community above and beyond what is expected. The following students are our wonderful PCCs for this year: Katherine Dardon, Avneesh Kohli, Sergio Arce, Bashayer Albeloushi, Stephanie Raquel Rodriguez, Nupur Kumar, Emma Torres-Mendoza, Sweeta Abdul Samad, Joacim Benitez, Shawn Dean, Rodolfo Juarez, Adriana Ornelas, Ernesto Sosa, Sandy Morales, Tri Vo. Talk to one of our PCCs if you are interested in becoming part of our great team.

Ivna Gusmão