I hope you are doing well this senior year. What I mean by "doing well" is that you are getting all of your next-year plans settled out, making the grades that will at least graduate you (but also will not harm your HOPE GPA) and that you are being intentional about closing out a great four year experience as you look to the future. I am writing this letter to give you some good advice and guidance as you finish up these next six months. Please indulge me the three minutes it will take to carefully read this letter.
1) If you are going to technical college, a two year college or a four year college, do your FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid). This application will help a student find funding for college, and it is one of the ways that a student can apply for HOPE Scholarship or HOPE Grant. The other way is by completing a HOPE application on www.gafutures.org. We have offered Parent/Student Nights for help with this, and we will offer one or two more going forward- stay tuned to the Guidance Blog for updates...
2) Please do the little bits every day that are required to pass your classes. It is amazing what just coming to school every day can do for your grade, but if you REALLY want to see that grade go up, do your classwork and study for tests. There is no substitute for this. SCHS does not give diplomas; we award them to the students who have earned them. If you are not doing the work of passing your classes, we cannot give you a diploma in May. Your teachers work overtime helping students who seek it out. Be one of those students they are helping. We love you too much to give you an easy diploma; we are trying to prepare you for a world that isn't easy.
3) If you are not passing a class at SCHS right now that you need to graduate, please do not come to me to seek Dual Enrollment as a way to hit the reset button on your class that you are failing. This is a terrible idea that will be the equivalency of jumping from "the frying pan into the fire." Dual Enrollment is not an easier way to a high school credit, and it takes any power that we have to help you out of our hands. Not a good idea.....
4) Love your mama and your daddy. Listen to them as they do know what they are talking about, almost all of the time! Too many reasons for this to list, and you might not see the importance of those reasons were I to list them out. Suffice it to say, the 30 year-old-version of you will circle this paragraph as the most important pieces of advice the 18 year-old version of you should have listened to.
5) Get to work on your CAPSTONE.
6) Let Ms. Justice help you with your applications for college. She rocks and you won't find someone who wants to help you get to where you need to go more than her.
That's it. Thanks for taking the time to read this letter!
Finish strong!!
Mr. Kulp
Mama or daddy, if you are reading this letter to your senior, don't let up. It is not your job to carry your kid across the finish line, but it is your job to make sure that life is not good if they are not doing what they are supposed to. Talk to the teachers and check Infinite Campus. Both are great resources. It is great to be on the same team as you.
