Parents of the HS Class of 2014

Parents of Class of 20xx
2361

<p>I agree with Blue and others when you say that the PSAT is not the end all to be all. DD14 didn’t score so well on the PSAT. She is up 100 points from last year. She will took the SAT last Saturday and retake it in February through the school. The ACT will come in April. She is currently taking 3 AP’s(last years AP score/5) and a college course at a local regional state university. She has done well in the class thus far and will take a step up and take a course at our local ivy in January. She was recommended by the Independent Study Coordinator to do so and I feel like her PSAT of 1670 should not hold her back. She realizes that she has some work to do as far as standardized testing so this is why early testing is of paramount importance. So does a score of 1670 mean that she will be banished to a life of a Walmart cashier? NO! Not at all. It just means that she has some weak areas and needs to learn the concepts/figure out how to beat the test so to speak. </p>

<p>I agree with Go2mom to a certain extent. There are kids who do poorly on the PSAT b/c they don’t realize the importance and don’t have the parent support. Even though I am not college educated, I still support(ok push) her to reach her dreams and actually go beyond them. She realizes that the sky is the limit. The only thing that will limit her? Herself. There are kids at her school who think that school is one big social hour & I shudder to think where they will end up in a few short years. Many of her classmates were raised by teen parents so the devil may care attitude is pervasive. </p>

<p>Some of you have said that when it comes to the GC’s, you don’t want to be “that parent”. I have found that I have HAD to be “that parent” and actually had her moved last week from one gc to another. Many issues have led up to this switch and felt is necessary for the well being of Ds future. </p>

<p>The original GC had her own agenda(or so I believe) and I couldn’t sit around and wait for the 2013-2014 application cycle to roll around and for her to decide to mishandle my daughters application/lors/transcripts/deadlines and such because of how she felt about me. I felt that her past deeds were a harbinger of next year and didn’t want to risk anything. So sometimes, we parents have to be “that parent”. I think we also must remember that they work for our children and not the other way around. They can be a bit reckless/lazy at times and don’t like when parents are on top of things. Especially at her school/with the population that exists.</p>

2362

<p>Good morning NHCtMom - </p>

<p>How’s my Scandal buddy?! Was Thursday awesome or what?? We really have to start our own thread in the cafe because there is just way too much to dissect. :slight_smile: </p>

<p>There absolutely are times to be ‘that parent’ and we all have to decide when it’s time to go there. I also can appreciate when you know in your gut someone has taken things to a personal level with you, the parent. My oldest son is/was (now 20) gifted and LD so we had to navigate the wonderful world of IEPs etc. When our neuropsych found out what county we lived in he honestly asked us if moving was an option. If your kid is in the top 10% of the class, colors inside the lines, and is a high achiever, you’ll never have a problem, however their special education services are notoriously bad…the worst in all of our surrounding counties. Super. :mad: Moving was not an option. By my son’s soph year the school allowed his IEP to expire (meaning no services) because I refused to sign the proposed one without the inclusion of a very simple, common accommodation. I happened to work at a middle school in the county at the time (something they didn’t know). I asked the head of special ed at our school for a reality check to see if we were off base. He had a long history with the county and was very respected. He said it was very, very common, appropriate in my son’s case, pointed out it was clearly now personal with the coordinator and parent for some reason. He advised requesting a meeting with the head of special education from the county level and doing so from my work email, XXCS.edu. You’ve never seen someone jump so fast. The administrators at the school called within two hours wanting to know why I didn’t contact them earlier and what could they do to help. The IEP was signed with the accommodation within two days. </p>

<p>Sometimes you have to be ‘that parent’. Deciding when it’s time is based on the school, your student, the faculty you are dealing with, etc. I hope the switch in GC’s will bring you better results and be more willing to work with you. You have worked so hard to ensure your DD has a bright future. You need a partner, not an obstacle!!</p>

2363

<p>Hi Blue… yes, Scandal was VERY VERY good! I tell you. We were on the edge of our seats watching that one! So many things came into focus… but many of the things we had already figured out(“we” being life long friends, who are sisters and I watched together, they both work for the school district where DD attends and one of them is the supervisor of all guidance counselors in the district LOL more on that later :)) My one friend KNEW it was Huck all along! I didn’t believe her and couldn’t fathom why he would do such a thing… but she called that one and wished she had bet me a round of martinis/tapas…LOL cause I said it wasn’t so! Coudn’t be so… and yes… it was so!!! We also figured out the whole Lindsay/Quinn issue long ago. And poor Fitz is none the wiser. Mellie obviously had a hand in his assassination attempt… because she was begging him to go back home prior to him getting out of the limo… she is a dirty so and so.</p>

<p>Ok back to the issue at hand(sorry to all of you folks who have no idea what the heck I am talking about LOLOL)</p>

<p>I honestly think that the original gc forgot that her boss and I are friends. Its not something that I toss around. But folks at the school know it. Its a fairly new position for her since the fall of 2011. Her previous position was that of high school principal here in the city. And she turned that school into a tier 1 school. She was parochial school, then boarding school educated… long story short, she earned her Phd from Columbia U. So she knows what a good education looks like and demanded it when she came to the district 10 years ago. Many a teacher left the school, or called the hounds in on her(the teachers union)… but they clearly ran away with their tails betwixt theirs legs when she asked them point blank… "Would this type of teacher be acceptable for your child in XYZ town(which were all suburbs). With that, they had nothing to say and would leave her office and either the teacher would transfer out OR fly right and live up to her high expectations. She was promoted in 2011. And she is really making folks uncomfortable downtown. Unfortunately, the district is set in its ways but she doesn’t care. And folks don’t like her presence one bit! She feels that the students can absolutely have a private school education, on the public school level.</p>

<p>I say all that to say, when the issue arose last Tuesday with the erroneous grade(from the 2011-2012 school year) on Ds transcript that should have been changed 3 months ago, I marched into the guidance suite to inquire. The gc was very flippant and stated that the problem stemmed from central office and there was nothing that she could do about it.</p>

<p>She said she had it changed back in September and that everyone was having issues and that I had to just deal with it basicallly. She also told me that then wrong B+ that was on the transcript was no different from the A that she had earned when it came down to GPA, class rank etc. I then said that I had been waiting for an updated transcript since July and her response? “So has everyone else” in a very condescending manner. I was steaming mad and politely asked for the name of the person who could rectify this problem. She gave me a name but warned(over and over) that I was basically wasting my time and that they had tried in vein to get the transcripts of seniors changed and that I would surely get no help with my issue, seeing that my dd is only a junior. She told me that they are sending out transcripts of seniors with notes attached to explain the grade discrepancies??? Really? Wow… tacky I thought!</p>

<p>I immediately came home and emailed the person who is in charge of the transcripts and told her of the wrong grade and asked how/when the issue could be resolved. I cc’d the gc’s boss(my friend), and the principal… well, wouldn;t you know, the transcript person emailed me back with 10 minutes and guess what? </p>

<p>She told me that the request for grade change had NEVER been made! I was so irate/upset! I was so stunned as I read that email. You could have fit a Mack Truck into my mouth. I also got an email at the same time from the GC(who was now back peddling d/t me cc’ing her boss) and stated that she had the info on her desk and if I could get the prinicipal to sign, then she could put the request in!! IF I CAN GET THE PRINCIPAL TO SIGN??? REally? huh?</p>

<p>My response to her was “Is that typically a task for parents? or is that something that the gc and principal handle? and furthermore, I am perplexed that this issue remains unresolved because I was told it had been resolved months ago.” </p>

<p>Needless to say, the grade was changed in about an hour. And the principal emailed to say that she was not aware of the grade issue and she apologized. The next day, the principal and I had a meeting and I requested the change of gc which is very rare! This was not the first issue I had with her and knew that more would follow had the change not been made. The change occurred on Friday.</p>

2364

<p>NewHavenCTmom, I can hardly believe it when I read your terrible experience with your gc. Thanks for sharing it. We really need to check everything and sometime we really need to be ‘that parent.’</p>

2365

<p>I had an issue with the same gc last year when dd14 was a soph. She was taking Hon Alg II along with Hon Geometry. The Alg II teacher was seasoned and EXCELLENT. Ironically, I went to middle & high school with her and have known her for over 30 years as well. Unfortunately, she was promoted to Asst Principal on the 2nd day of school. DD came home and reported this to me and told me that she had a substitute(which typicall lasts all year). It was a Friday and the long Labor Day Weekend so I shot GC an email voicing my concerns and asked for a switch in teachers. I got no response and was OK with it d/t it being a holiday weekend but expected one on Tuesday morning. Never happened. So I went to the school at dismissal and just so happens that the gc was in the hallway… and saw me walking in the door and stated “Hi, I’m working on it”. So I felt confident that she was indeed working on it so I didn’t worry. So I figured I would hear something on Wednesday. Nope. Goose egg. </p>

<p>I emailed her late Thursday afternoon to inquire about the status of the teacher change. Again, my email went unanswered. I knew that time was of the essence and that the other class would be filling up quickly and was getting VERY nervous but figured that I would get some resolution come Friday morning. Nope. Zilch. </p>

<p>So I went over late Friday afternoon(nope, no appt, but when you ignore me, I just show up). I arrived, peeked my head in quickly and smiled, she was on the phone and had a gaggle of others in her office. So I figured I would sit down & wait for a few. I waited & waited & waited then waited some more… all the while, she was in the office chit chatting/laughing it up with the folks in the office. I was ok with this, I have a strong constitution and had planned on waiting the whole weekend, right in that chair if I had to! I was not leaving until the issue was rectified. </p>

<p>So finally, after 55 minutes, she emerges, with the gaggle in tow. I waved/smiled and asked the status of the class… her respone to me? In a very crisp/salty manner… “There is nothing I can do, the other Hon Alg II class is filled so she will have to stay where she is ,SORRY.” So I told her that this was not an option and a long term sub was not acceptable for my child who has proven that she can do honors work and that the district would have to pay for a college algII course if there was no room. She states “Well everyone else is in the same boat.” I told her that everyone else was not my concern and that the switch had to be made, and that room had to be found… for just one more. Even if DD had to sit on the floor… </p>

<p>After this 60 second exchange, the other gc(who dd now has) calls out to her, so gc goes into her office and they have a quick convo, peek at the computer screen and start nodding… with a few clicks of the mouse, the gc walks out of the office, over to the printer and hands me a piece of paper. And states, “She’s in, we found a spot.” The other gc had apparently looked at the class and found “one more spot”. All the time this took? 20 seconds at the most. Again, I was livid b/c I felt that he gc was playing some sort of game and didn’t want dd in the other hon alg II class which was unacceptable. I was livid but ran my mad(but happy) butt out of that office so quickly as I was afraid that they had made some sort of mistake!!! And just filed it in my brain for future reference… again, moral of the story… when ignored, show up… even bigger moral, remebering that they work for the student and the squeaky wheel gets the oil. So yes, I have had to be “that parent” b/c she hasn’t wanted to do her job/has been derilict in her responsibilities…</p>

2366

<p>Luckily we do have a good (but inexperienced with selective college admissions) GC. But I am also on a first-name basis with the principal and have gone straight to her on a couple of occasions when there was an issue with a PE teacher. </p>

<p>As to PSAT scores, DS got his and it is good – above the national merit cutoffs for Vermont for every year since 2006 (test year) but not by enough that we can totally relax.</p>

<p>Does anyone know for sure if the NM folks will hold onto a SAT score for someone who isn’t yet a semifinalist, so you don’t have to send it later if the kid is actually named a semifinalist. I was thinking that anyone whose kid has a PSAT score that may be in NM range should use one of your free reports to send the score to National Merit if the kids has a SAT sitting coming up. I haven’t tried this but assuming they can hold scores so you don’t have to spend $$ to send a score later. (And if the score isn’t high enough, I don’t think that would hurt them, they’d just have to send a better score later.)</p>

2367

<p>Congratulations mathmomvt…</p>

<p>NewHavenCTmom: I think in this case you did what every one of us do - “the parent”. At DD’s school, the principals (assistant) are always welcome to see the parents whenever there is an issue. Looks like that is the same case at your school too.</p>

2368

<p>Woot! Woot! DS got his PSAT is English class today - he scored higher than NM for our state last year - should be in the clear.</p>

<p>Re NMSF - it is certainly not the be all and end all, not even close. It is just one small piece of an application. Some schools value it more than others. It is what it is . . . now let’s work on those ECs, GPAs and essays!</p>

2369

<p>^^congrats glido!! That’s good news!</p>

<p>No PSAT scores here in NY yet. I pretty much know they won’t be spectacular. That’s not who S’14 is. It’s like asking a golden retriever if he can write poetry. Not a metric that measures who he is.</p>

2370

<p>My S got his PSAT and he’s 4 points over last year’s cutoff for our state. So he is probably in a good position there.</p>

2371

<p>No scores here yet, either. I’m wondering if they’ll wait until some time in January when semester grades come out.</p>

2372

<p>My '14 guy has his birthday today - 12/12/12… but of course, he isn’t 12. He’s actually happy about that. He prefers being 17…</p>

<p>Congrats to all on PSAT scores! Here’s hoping they are quick to those still waiting.</p>

2373

<p>Congratulations to S of 1or2Musicians! 4 points over last year’s cutoff is a great place to wait out this year’s cutoff!</p>

<p>And Happy Birthday to Creekland’s son … an auspicious day to celebrate being 17 and a junior and being on the absolute cusp of everything!!</p>

<p>@ ordinarylives, you could email the gc to ask when they release the info. My DD’s school sends out scores after students are released for winter break … I think they believe this will dampen any hallway comparisons. </p>

<p>I was just lurking on the Parents of 2013 thread and the stress of waiting for EA decisions is palpable. In just one year we will be anxiously waiting, commiserating or celebrating with each other!</p>

2374

<p>I am a bit frustrated that my S only scored a couple of points above last year’s cutoff in Texas as that means we cannot feel secure he made it. It was especially frustrating because he had been doing much better on the practice tests. Only once since College Board started using the 240 total score has the Texas cutoff been above his score, but knowledge of that one time is troubling. He isn’t that upset because the schools he is most interested in do not give that much for NMSF, but I was trying to get him to add some schools that are very generous to NMSF students, and now with the uncertainty it will just be that much more difficult to convince him.</p>

2375

<p>You all have been busy in my absence! It took me awhile to catch up with the thread.</p>

<p>Most importantly, someone start a scandal thread in the cafe – love the show!</p>

<p>DD’s school has the PSAT scores but won’t release them until next week so that the gc’s can “explain” the scores in English class. Whatever… Not holding my breath for NMF as DD is not an SAT kind of kid. Hoping the ACT will be her saving grace. I personally think these tests are a money making scam and have absolutely no bearing on how a student will perform in college.</p>

<p>Agreeing with the poster upthread about the ridiculous amount of homework they load on juniors. Anyone see the latest study regarding homework? All those hours are really for naught. </p>

<p>Maybe it’s because I have a cold and sore throat and am crabby, but I’ve about had it with the nonsensical hoops our kids have to jump through BEFORE they even apply to a college. grump, grump.</p>

2376

<p>S’s scores appeared in today’s mail… he got in the range I was hoping for, a nice improvement over last year’s scores which were dismal. He’s signed up for prep in the winter so hopefully he will come out of this with a) decent SATs to keep his options open; b) not too much stress; c) no need to prep over the summer and test again in the fall.</p>

<p>Meanwhile, D is considering a part-time job tutoring for SAT prep, but not her brother! LOL</p>

2377

<p>Happy Birthday Creekland’s DS!</p>

<p>Congrats to Seattle_Mom’s DS on his nice PSAT!</p>

2378

<p>congrats seattle_mom and everyone else with PSAT scores they’re pleased with :)</p>

<p>I agree that the homework load is ridiculous especially considering the research that shows it is not actually all that helpful. But for my S’11/15 it has gone up a LOT in college (he’s in engineering) so maybe getting used to a crazy workload will pay off if they actually use the “opportunity” to develop some time management skills.</p>

2379

<p>Sending congrats to everyone whose kids did well on the PSATS.Hopefully some of the CC offspring will receive some of that NMS cash.</p>

<p>HappyOR: In answer to your question about Oregon and lack of college entrance/PSAT/SAT/ACT knowledge or interest – I think it’s because the state has a serious educational crisis. I’ve been advocating for the kids since Kindergarten and finally gave up on public school Hopefully, DS will join his sister at a private high school next year.</p>

<p>Mathmomvt: Time management is the toughest skill for teens to master. Even though the college work load is heavy, at least they don’t have the pressure to do all the EC’s, climb Mt. Everest, save the rainforest and cure cancer to get to the next level.</p>

2380

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<p>Well, that depends… if they are aiming toward med school, those other things still count… My '14 guy isn’t, but my college freshman is. It’s definitely helpful that he learned how to study and manage his time while at home.</p>