@snappity207 - another option to take a look at is Univ of Arizona’s SALT program (Strategic Alternative Learning Techniques) → https://salt.arizona.edu/.
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Thanks! We are in Maine and not looking too far afield. Applying to some non selective CIC schools and hoping for a tuition waiver, otherwise we have the option of free at my university or the community college system.
Some CTCL schools in your general neck of the woods, according to the CTCL website:
- Clark University
- Hampshire College
- Bard College
There’s also a handful of CTCL schools in Pennsylvania. CTCL Map – Colleges That Change Lives
Online interview w/the new fast food chain appears to have gone well. They asked her if she’d be willing to train at a different location before the new location (closest to us, where she would be working) opens and she wisely said yes. Wore her hair up in a bun like I’ve been suggesting all of the other interviews…but I can’t say that there wasn’t bickering between her and I this morning about it. LOL! 
She did decide that on the hair topic, I am The Borg and resistance is futile. 
She also now has an In & Out interview on Tues morning next week. She tried to protest doing that on Tues morning because “…but I have a Panera interview that afternoon!” TOO BAD! That one’s at 2 pm! This one’s at 9 am! SUCK IT UP, BUTTER CUP!
Holy cow, another place contacted D24 today, so she’s got yet another interview being lined up. Must be a lot of students quitting with the new school year starting.
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Welcome!
I’m not very familiar with most of these schools, but they participate in CIC and seem to have some strength or popularity in their art-related majors, in case your family would like some additional options to investigate.
- Albertus Magnus (CT): About 1k undergrads
- Daemen (NY): About 1800 undergrads
- Endicott (MA): About 3100 undergrads
- Lesley (MA): About 1600 undergrads
- Marymount Manhattan (NY): About 1600 undergrads
- New England College (NH): About 1k undergrads
- Roberts Wesleyan (NY): About 1k undergrads
- Russell Sage (NY): About 1100 undergrads
- Siena (NY): About 3500 undergrads
- Springfield (MA): About 2k undergrads
Thanks! A few of those in MA are on her list, too.
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My D22 has the same learning differences and has done so amazingly well at our local small state (non-flagship) college. While there isn’t any prestige to it, the small class sizes and individual attention and encouragement from teachers have totally boosted her confidence and she is so much more excited about learning than she was in high school. Her brother, S23, will be going to a much larger university and when D22 toured she definitely knew she had made the right decision to attend where she is. She said she’d be totally overwhelmed on a large campus and loves her small class sizes.
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Oh yes, we aren’t enamored with brand names - I work at a small private and our students are served very well by our non- brand name school! My only requirement is that it be regionally accredited and the numbers work for us. (While many use a state uni tuition as a benchmark, mine is “room and board” as even if she attends my school, we will pay that for the residential experience.) small schools will be the way for this one!
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We are headed to school tomorrow to pick up schedules & locker assignments. Word on the street is that seniors’ school day will be from 9:20-2:45 and everyone is all clucking about it. 
D24 has definitely decided to skip honors college app for U of A since it would be a waste of time and effort. She completed another College Essay Guy writing exercise today. And after much gnashing of teeth on The Child’s part, she came up with a list of 10 reasons to answer a supplemental essay question of “Why Austin College?” No essay writing has happened yet…this was just a list to use later so she has some easy-to-access bits of information to use. Tomorrow, I’m going to make her come up with a similar list for Southwestern and then later this week, do another one for Centre College.
With the school year starting in a couple of days, it does appear that a looming sense of “OMG! This is my last year and then we will all scatter to the winds!” fear is coming up for D24 because she has been talking again about how the reason she wants to attend U of A is “so I can see my friends all the time.”
DH & I are following the counselor’s advice on this for now. She previously recommended to just cool our jets and let it ride for awhile because a lot of change happens with seniors from August to March/April…and the colleges that seemed super important in August often shift to be less than important months down the road.
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That would be so nice! These kids need sleep! Our day here goes from 7:50-2:30, then sports/after school from 3-7pm- that is a long day. Would be nice if they could sleep in a little.
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The high school here is finally moving from a 7:30 start to an 8:30 start. Now the 3:20 end time is gonna make afternoons/evenings feel a bit scrunched but I think worth the change.
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Our HS is a charter school, though, so no bussing. So the 9:20 am start time works great IF you have your own transportation and don’t have to drop off a sibling who has an earlier start time OR 1 of your parents/guardians can drop you off for such a late start time.
In D24’s case, D26’s start time (10th grade) is 7:30. So D24 still has to be there at school 2 hr earlier anyway. Therefore, she’ll get to either sit around in ‘early bird’ for 2 hr or will have to find something else to do elsewhere for an hour and a half-2 hours-ish. We live 30 min away from school, so coming home doesn’t make sense.
Oh man that is a bummer
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Picked up school schedules. Seniors’ day is definitely 9:20-2:45. D24’s classes are:
- College counseling
- math capstone: Applications in Math, which D26’s math teacher said is a finance math class. This is being taught by the Econ teacher.
- foreign language capstone class in French
- Humanities capstone class: Shakespeare. Taught by D24’s favorite English teacher.
- science capstone: Biology and Bioethics.
The Shakespeare teacher is who D24 is going to have wrote her Humanities letter of rec. The STEM letter of rec is a harder decision. And letters of rec are important for this kid since she’s applying as test optional.
A couple of colleges she’s applying to DO allow extra letters of rec, so she’s asked her choir director to write one & choir director already gave a resounding yes. She’s going to submit that for the 3 LACs she’s applying to.
They took school pics today. D24’s turned out great. Younger child flat out refused to smile for hers. 
The Child is at another job interview right now. 2 more interviews tomorrow. The Child’s BFF is starting a K-pop dance club at school and wants D24 to join. D24 said no. BFF said, “You’d probably do it if it was a Jonas Brothers dance club though.” Yes, she would.
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This is fascinating to me, and I’m glad some schools are finally making this a reality. At our school (I call it “our” because I work there), Morning Meeting is at 8:10, classes end at 3:10, mandatory tutorial time until 4, and then sports/after-school activities. Such a long day for the kids, but I guess it prepares them for life?
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Applicants I interviewed from “arts” magnet schools were seldom available before 9 pm or more likely 10 pm for a phone interview, typically working me in after they got home but before they started on homework. I’ve had a few (phone) interviews start as late as midnight. It does get pretty crazy.
Me being an all-night person (vs just a night person) made such late interviews no problem. In my last semester of HS BTW, thanks to a few CC evening classes (Calculus until 10 pm) my first HS class of the day was at 1 pm – a night owl’s dream.
Funny how different people are- I am a total morning person and am much better waking up super early but then I am useless after 9pm.
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2 more job interviews down yesterday & this a.m. for D24. 1 more this afternoon. Based on what she’s told us, it sounds like she’s getting a lot better at her interview skills. Something is bound to come about from it all.
D24 & I looked at the Common App yesterday evening. Random observations from that:
- each of the LACs she’s applying to allow you to also upload a resume. So have to add that to the “to do” list.
- 1 LAC has 2 supplemental essays. 1 LAC has 1 supplemental essay. 1 LAC has no supplemental essays.
- U of A has an optional 250 word supplement where you can “share any relevant information about your academic record that is not reflected on your transcripts including, for example, hardships you’ve experienced, or any learning and/or attention differences, you may do so in this optional statement.”
- The extra questions that the colleges have you answer are interesting, like are your parents alumni, and stuff like that.
- Some colleges let you list up to 3 preferred majors. Some just 1.
- U of A’s application fee went up to $80. Ouch.
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I believe that a resume is optional. My S22 and D20 applied for music so had to upload music resumes but everything else was listed in the activities and awards sections. For most students, that should provide plenty of space to get the needed information across.
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