SAVE THE DATES!

March 7 and May16th!

GEAR UP families are invited for fun and facts about your students, financial literacy programs, and career readiness.

Parents in attendance have a chance to win a $25 gift card!

March 7th - 6 PM

Students will be given SEAGULL BUCKS ACHIEVEMENT awards,

Parents will have the opportunity to participate in some of the zany games GEAR UP students have used for learning financial literacy.  The VAULT program offered to your students during 7th period for the 2nd semester will teach life skills that last a lifetime.  Come see what they've learned and maybe find out a couple things for yourselves!

May 16th - 6 PM

Last Family Night of 7th Grade!

More info coming !

The 2011-2012 Advisory Board will meet tonight, Jan 25th at 5 PM in Mrs. Silvernail's classroom.  Dinner is provided.  Thank you to the following board members for their participation in making RJHS GEAR UP program a success!

BOARD MEMBERS

Julie Gardner

Janel Flemetis

Jennifer Topping

Jason Dunsmoor

Chris Stephens

Cindy Collins

Angela Silvernail - GEAR UP Staff 

Ronalda Wintrip - GEAR UP Staff

Denise Bell-GEAR UP Staff

Dave Vetter - GEAR UP Staff

Dale Bowen - GEAR UP Staff

Laurie Hatfield - GEAR UP Staff

WOW- Mt. St. Helens here we come!

7th graders are excited about the upcoming trip to Mt. St. Helens. 

The trip will include two St. Helens educational stops, including the Ape Caves, The Forest Learning Center, and Johnson Ridge Observatory.

We will leave at the crack of light-thirty (5 AM) and will return by 4PM on May 21st.

Meals will be provided, you are welcome to pack  your own between meal snacks. 

For more about St. Helens click here

The University of Washington State GEAR UP Project is piloting a new “eMentors” program to connect high school GEAR UP students to current University of Washington students. Through this pilot program, eMentors will supplement current programming serving GEAR UP students across Washington by providing assistance and advice concerning college and scholarship applications, college transition questions, and other questions relating to the high school students' transition from high school to college.

Services Available

eMentors will correspond weekly with GEAR UP students, checking in with the students and also offering assistance with brainstorming and editing remaining written pieces for college admissions and scholarship applications, assisting with research of different colleges and their programs, and addressing college transition questions and concerns as needed. In return, GEAR UP students are expected to check in weekly with the eMentors (via e-mail) with how they are doing and progress on current projects/applications they are working on.

In addition to the services available via email correspondence, the eMentors staff will also contribute regularly to the UW State GEAR UP Project eMentors Blog, writing on topics about their own professional, academic, and personal experiences. The blog is meant to act as a supplementary resource for students to have a glimpse into the real lives of current undergraduate students, and can be found at http://uwgearupementors.wordpress.com/

Questions and Signing Up

Contact Mrs. Hatfield or Mrs. Bell if you plan to attend University of Washington and would like to participate. Students should understand that participation in their program does require weekly correspondence with our eMentors, though more frequent contact is encouraged, especially if the student requires assistance with brainstorming, writing, or has questions they would like answered.

 

There is a new blog at https://www.theadmissiongame.com/blog/ that you will find helpful in writing your admissions essays. There is also information about financial aid.

 

21 Students and some parents enjoyed a trip to Portland's National College fair on Friday November 12th. More than 200 schools were in attendance, including ROTC and Vocational Schools.

It was exciting to hear enthusiasm for 5th year and beyond from the students as they gave mini updates (with candy bar prizes for participation) on what they'd learned. Students found information from at least 3 schools each, and were prepared with a fun fact.

 

YOU are eligible for the Gates Millennium Scholarship if you:

-are African American American, American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian Pacific Islander American or Hispanic American

-are a citizen, national or legal permanent resident of the US

Have a cumulative high school GPA of 3.3 

-Will enroll in college in the fall of 2011 as full-time student

-Have demonstrated leadership abilities through participation in community service, extracurricular or other activities

-Meet the Federal Pell Grant eligibility critera (don't worry about this-just apply)

Go online to www.gmsp.org and complete the forms by January 10, 2011. If you need help on this contact Laurie Hatfield or Mrs. Brown.

If you meet these criteria, be sure to APPLY!!

November 12th all GearUp students are invited to the College Fair in Portland, Oregon. We will be taking a bus that will leave at 7AM (its early I know but the fair starts at 9AM). Mr. Haerling and Mrs. Hatfield will be chaparones. There will be 200 colleges/trade schools/military there. Breakfast and lunch will be provided.  You should have gotten an email from Laurie on how to sign up. She her if you didn't or let Mrs. Bell or Mrs. Silvernail know. 

Here is a link: http://www.k12.wa.us/GraduationRequirements/pubdocs/GraduationToolkit.pdf 

to a site with a toolkit and a calendar of important dates (such as SAT dates& deadlines). The rest is mostly rules and such which may or may not be the same as Raymond. 

Pat Shults has left us and  Laurie Hatfield is our new Graduation Specialist. Her schedule will be posted on her office door and you can email her at lhatfield@raymond.k12.wa.us   Here are the plans for GearUp this year.

September 24th-12:30  Raymond Theatre  Peter Von Buskirk will advise on  choosing a college that is a good fit and then getting accepted to that college.

Peter Von Buskirk is a 25 year veteran of the college admissions process. He is an author and motivational speaker, excelling at simplifying and demystifying what is often thought of as a complex and mysterious process—college admission.  He will:

• Help you find and gain entrance into the college that fits you best.
• Reveal the "hidden agendas" that influence college admission.
• Close the informational gap between the rhetoric you hear from colleges and the reality.Orient you to the vagaries of college ranking guides.
• Guide you in evaluating financial aid opportunities.

Also this year:

• Visits to Lower Columbia and Clark College: both have lots of vocational programs as well as regular college classes
• Visit to Cornish Institute and NW Art Institute
• Museum of Flight (possibly with senior trip)
• Fees paid for SAT, ACT
• Peer Tutoring
• College Planning Workbooks by Peter Von Buskirk
• Training in Keynote for Senior projects
• Vocational Career Fair
• Graduation Specialist to assist with all aspects of senior year