<p>i was talking to my friend (she is black) and we were talking about colleges. she asked me which colleges i was applying to and i asked her the same question. she then told me princeton one day actually CALLED her and recommended to her that she apply to princeton. i am not here to talk about affirmative action but how the hell would princeton be able to actually find out her # and call her?</p>
<p>BTW, she ended up not applying there.</p>
<p>Places like Princeton and Harvard have people who call minority students and try to convince them to apply. They could have gotten her information from a testing agency or someplace else. I think they have a program called UnderRepresented Minority Recruitment or something to increase diversity. It's a form of marketing and keeping their applications high/acceptance rates low.</p>
<p>oh i see. that is crazy</p>
<p>Yeah, I've heard of universities making phone calls out to students. Though I'm sure she was surprise to know a Ivy League did so.</p>
<p>The deeper pocket schools do this to some form or another. My HYP alma mater has a program where students returning home on Thnxgiving break actually schedule to speak at traditionally under-served (read NEVER) high schools and school districts -- mostly urban and very rural ones. The idea behind this effort is to find the diamonds in the rough.</p>
<p>I'm one of the lead recruiters in our nearby large urban school district. I would feel no qualms calling up the principals of the top high schools and asking which are students (mostly African American) who could benefit from my personal telephone call -- to nudge them to apply to my school. I see nothing wrong with that at all.</p>
<p>As for AnnaSmith's assertion "It's a form of marketing and keeping their applications high/acceptance rates low." While a cynic might see it as such, I see it as sincere desire on my school's part to find that one-in-a-million kid in that obscure HS that has never had an Ivy applicant much less an acceptee. I wholeheartedly support my school's recruitment efforts (despite the fact that they have no problem with record breaking no. of applications year after year)</p>
<p>T26E4 - It's good to know about the recruiting. I live in the middle of no-where Tennessee. I doubt my district has had any kid apply to an Ivy. Most kids go to UT- Knoxville or Chattanooga or head to Alabama and Georgia. The school just started an honors program, no AP's although they do offer some dual enrollment at the community college in senior year.<br>
The guidance counselor only seems concerned with the top 10 kids out of 130. She works hard to get them scholarships, but doesn't appear to find the right spot for the other kids, unless they are athletes. She's retiring this year, so the new one might be better.
Most two earner families are earning less than $50,000 and this is before the tanking economy. The school offers very few ECs that are not sports related, with football being the most important. The area is small town rural and 95% white.<br>
I'm happy to have learned about CC. I'll use this knowledge for my D and her friends, but I feel for the A/B and B kids who want to go to college but have no one advocating for them. The kids are really great kids, but so many think they will no have no hope for college.<br>
How do we get good schools to look at these kids, and vice-versa?</p>
<p>Yeah I'm pretty sure the Ivy Leagues have the means. I know email isn't the same as calling, but Harvard had their like little Asian organization thing email me to apply to Harvard. Creepers I say.</p>
<p>@Yankee Belle</p>
<p>If your district isn't being perused by colleges then the students will have to take the initiative. It's harsh, but some areas are bestowed with easier opportunities. AP's can be dealt with by a lot of self study and taking the exam on your own if that's an issue. With initiative it's possible for people outside that top 10 to excel but it's bound to be tough.</p>
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that is crazy
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<p>I don't think it is crazy at all. Universities advertise to prospective students and employers that they have a diverse student body. They need to actually have that for it to be true.</p>
<p>Thanks for reply. My question is how do you get the kids to even begin to realize all the possibilities that are out there? Do you think it would be strange if my D and her friends started a club where kids could explore their options, study for ACTs, do scholarship searches, help each other with applications, etc. Her friends are all on board and their parents, too. They're freshman and doing a twice a month at my house to prepare for the PSAT. I know it's early, but it's a productive social event and it gets them thinking.</p>
<p>But I think about the other kids. One A/B kid gets grounded for everything less than an A because he won't be valedictorian and hence won't go to college due to money. But as I've learned here, there are schools where he could get merit and financial aid. And he is not going to be Val. It will hard for him to even make top 10, yet his parents expect nothing less out of fear for his future. They know of no other options, except Community College, and there are many more like that. They want the best for their kids but only know of one way to get it, because that's the way it's always been.</p>
<p>Yankee Belle-
The support group/study group is a great idea. Any college brochures that are surplus they can donate to the school guidance office or the town library.</p>
<p>Get these kids hooked up with Questbridge and other organizations that specialize in getting low income kids into college. I bet that if you start a thread with that as a title you can get information on additional programs. The sooner the kids know about this, the better.</p>
<p>@Yankee Belle,
Questbridge is a great idea, and so is your support group idea. As to getting this district "on the map," I'd suggest you put the GC in touch with the regional admissions counselors for colleges and invite them to visit the schools. A counselor visit to an unknown school can make a huge difference for the kids and the admissions staff... and the latter seem to appreciate finding out about schools that aren't already on their radar.</p>
<p>Thanks for the suggestions. I will talk to present counselor and see if she can set something up for the spring, and also have D and company talk to Principal about an after school college prep activity.</p>
<p>yeah i go to one of those obscure rural high schools; iv'e had local reps call me to tell me about x school b/c my scores are high...of course i want to go into ag, so usually i have to turn down applying. Anyway, im the only person to apply to an ivy league in the last couple of years, no one has gone since a guy that just graduated from MIT go accepted...he's like a celebrity around here for that acccomplishment</p>