2009 High School EduGuide

Cosponsors:

The top five factors for high school success [BACK COVER]

Do you have the skills you’ll need for your career? [PAGE 4]

Wayfinding on your career path [PAGE 6]

There’s a smarter way to save [PAGE 14]

Plus how to:Find the right career [PAGE 3]

Start planning for college early [PAGE 8]

Choose your path to a college degree [PAGE 15]

High School www.EduGuide.org/h9

Are you on the right path? Test where you stand at www.EduGuide.org/h9 and get a free personal roadmap to reach your goals.

My Dad, My EduGuideWhen I was in high school I thought I wanted to be a doctor. No one in our family is a doctor (or a nurse or an x-ray technician, for that matter). We’re mostly lawyers or journalists or editors. We like words (a little too much, our in-laws say).

But I was good in math and science and I liked the thought of helping people. So at sixteen I set my sights on Michigan Med School. I didn’t take much college prep math and science in high school or volunteer in a hospital (both of which I should have done). Instead, I did what we all did in my family: I read books. Biographies, mostly, of pioneer women doctors like Elizabeth Blackwell.

My dad didn’t want me to be a doctor. It wasn’t a gender thing—he didn’t want me to marry a doctor, either. My old man had to be the first parent in history who didn’t want his kid to go to med school. Thinking he could gross me out of my decision, he bought me books with gory pictures of open heart surgeries and skin diseases.

On the inside cover of one, he wrote: “For my daughter on her 17th birthday, so she can choose wisely and well.”

My dad wanted his children to choose wisely—choose their lives wisely. Where I saw only the prestige and challenge in the life of a doctor, he saw long hours spent in windowless rooms, away from family. He didn’t think I was suited to that life, and he was right.

Eventually I made up my own mind about applying to medical school. All it took was one incredible college English class to convince me that a life of words was the life I wanted to live all day, every day.

I could have saved myself some time (and my father some trips to Barnes & Noble) if I had created a career plan in high school. I should have set up a job shadow day like the one described on page 7 or tried the Perfect Day exercise on page 9. You can use these and other suggestions in this EduGuide to get answers to questions you might have about your future. It’s not too early. Your career path really does begin here.

So, medicine was not for me. I didn’t even end up marrying a doctor. I married an engineer who loves books. Like my dad.

MaryKat Parks Workinger, Editorial Director, EduGuide

EduTest A test that gives you the answers. Use it to get coaching to build the future you want.

Set Goals and Achieve Them This online EduGuide helps you create goals that are focused and achievable.

My favorite stuff at EduGuide.org/h9

EduGuide is a national award-winning nonprofit committed to helping you create your personalized roadmap to student success.

Publisher: Bryan Taylor; Managing Editor: MaryKat Parks Workinger; Advertising Director: Ron Wilson; Distribution Director: Alicia Sutfin. Contributing authors: Susan Demas, Michelle Hagerman, Christine MacDonald, William Rapai, MaryKat Parks Workinger. Contents supported in part by the U.S. Department of Education College Access Challenge Grant and GEAR UP PR Award p3334s010013. However, contents do not necessarily represent the policy of the Department and you should not assume endorsement by the federal government.

EduGuide © 2009. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the written permission of the publisher. Comments and questions are welcome at 1-800-832-2464 or by mail at 321 North Pine, Lansing, MI 48933.

3H I G H S C H O O L E D U G U I D E www.EduGuide.org/h9

High school is the perfect time to aim for a career. You don’t have to lock your-self into one career path, but focusing on one or two career options now turns on your energy, fires up your enthusiasm, and makes decision-making much easier. You can change your mind later (chances are you will), but you will be ten steps ahead of kids who put off thinking about careers until they have to declare their college major.

There are jobs and there are careersA job can pay the bills (a good job can sometimes make you rich), but a career grabs your brain, your heart, and your imagination, and gives you back a life that is exciting and full.

You know a career is right when you:

• can’tstoptalkingaboutit(toanyone who will listen)

• daydreamaboutyourlifein that career

• wanttolearneverythingyou can about it

Being a stay-at-home parent can be a career, if it fulfills these criteria; being a Supreme Court justice can be nothing more than a job, if the work isn’t mean-ingful to you.

And don’t forget your lifeIt’s that thing you do when you aren’t working. Or is it?

You can have a life without a career and a career without a life. Choose wisely, and you can have both.

If you live to be 75, you’ll probably spend 52 years of your life working. When you’re

The decision is yours

Natalie recently earned a pre-med degree from the U of M. She wants to make horses part of her life and career—find out how she’s going about it.

Learn more at EduGuide.org/h9.

deciding on a career path, you’ll want to look closely at how people in that career spend that 70 percent of their lives.

Say you really love the outdoors: you need fresh air, natural light, and space to think clearly. Everyone says you are really smart and smart people should go to law school or medical school. You have the grades, you have the desire, and the work itself looks interesting, but don’t forget to consider how family doctors or high-powered lawyers spend their days. Mostly they spend them indoors, in exam rooms or offices. Lots of job satisfaction? Sure. Lots of $$? Usually. But there’s a life that goes with that career. You need to look at that, too.

Fortunately it’s not an “either/or.” You’re good in science AND you want to work outdoors. Large animal veterinarians and athletic trainers spend more time out-doors than pediatricians. Environmental lawyers spend more time outside than divorce lawyers. The per fect career should engage your whole life.

ValuesWhat you value and believe in must play a role in your career decisions, too. Okay, so no vegetarian would choose a career as a cattle rancher. But what about less obvious conflicts? If you want to be a pharmacist can you dispense all legal drugs in good conscience? Would your concern for working conditions in third-world garment factories prevent you from marketing designer blue jeans? It is wise to think about your core values and how they impact your future career—and the world you’ll be living in.

Wonder how other kids your age are answering these questions? Want to share what you’ve learned? Get involved in the Student Advice Forum on EduGuide.org/h9.

Now it’s your turn.

4 H I G H S C H O O L E D U G U I D E www.EduGuide.org/h9

The qualities I look for in a research assistant. Find out what this veteran field researcher at Rutgers University’s Haskin Shellfish Research Laboratory looks for when she hires students to work in her lab.

Learn more at EduGuide.org/h9

The Five Competencies Resources o allocates time wiselyo allocates money wiselyo allocates material and facility

resources wiselyo allocates human resources wisely

Interpersonal o participates as a member

of a team o teaches others o serves clients/customers o exercises leadership o negotiates o works with cultural diversity

Information o acquires and evaluates information o organizes and maintains

information o interprets and communicates

information o uses computers to process

information

Systems o understands systems o monitors and corrects

performance o improves and designs systems

Technology o selects appropriate technology o applies technology to task o maintains and troubleshoots

technology

The Three Foundation Skills Basic Skills: o reading o writing o mathematics o listening o speaking

Thinking Skills: o creative thinking o making decisions o solving problems o seeing things in the mind’s eye o knowing how to learn o reasoning

Personal Qualities: o individual responsibility o self-esteem o sociability o self-management o integrity

No matter what the job market looks like in the future, these skills will be critical to your success.

CharacterThere’s more to preparing for a career path than taking the right courses in high school or college. Career skills are nearly worthless without character skills. Though it is emphasized by parents or caregivers and often taught or discussed in school, character is essentially and finally a personal choice. It’s what makes you do the right thing, even when no one is looking.

In addition to well-educated and trained workers, employers are looking for people of character, who will represent their company, product, or service well. The traits they’re looking for include:

Integrityo Honestyo Taking responsibility for your actions

and the actions of your teamo Using a company’s materials and

technology wisely

Reliabilityo Showing up on timeo Putting in a full day’s worko Completing projects

when promised

Humanityo Treating all others—clients,

supervisors, support staff—with the same degree of respect

o Showing kindness and compassiono Helping out on projects

A few years ago, a group of professionals from industry, labor unions, and higher education got together to develop a detailed list of essential skills for high school graduates, whether they were planning to enter the workforce after high school or go straight on to college.

Called SCANS (Secretary of Labor’s Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills), these skills are divided into five competencies and three foundation skills. Check off the skills you already have (o✓).

Do you have the skills you’ll need for your career?


Design your future with MVs.students can plan for college and careers with online products from Michigan Virtual School™.

CareerForward: This course helps students wrestle with some of the burning questions about their futures: what am i going to do with my life? what is the world of work like? what will i need to succeed? how do i match my interests with work?

myDreamExplorer: this online career planning tool helps students explore college and career options, set short-term and long-term goals and create an Educational Development Plan.

Careerforward and myDreamexplorer are available at no cost to Michigan students. See your counselor for more information.


When Maria Hartman took a computer-ized career aptitude test last year, she entered information about her interests, strengths, and weaknesses. She got back a list of careers that might interest her. And while she’s still not sure exactly what she wants to do, Hartman, 14, and her school guidance counselor, Christine Cramer, both agree that the process of taking the test ignited a critical spark.

For the first time, Hartman, a Grosse Pointe South High School freshman, started thinking about what she wanted to do with the rest of her life. More immediately, she charted out a map for the courses and experiences that would pave her road to success.

“Our goal is to get kids looking at the bigger picture,” says Cramer. “We don’t want to restrict them to one career pathway—we just want to get them think-ing about the possibilities.”

With the tech explosion and service sec-tor expansion, entirely new career fields have been created while others have been wiped out. The unemployment rate for drop-outs and even high school graduates has surged, while the number of factory jobs held by people with some college education has tripled. Three quarters of the fastest-growing

occupations now require more than a high school diploma.

Fortunately, Cramer says, new career prep opportunities have kept pace with and reflect these changes in the work-place. For example:

• School programs are available tohelp students choose their courses and programs based on their career interests. Ask your high school coun-selor for details.

• Specialized schools have beenestablished that allow students to take college-level classes in high school or attend a school within a school where their daily classroom work is based on their chosen career pathway. For more information try www.michigan.gov/mde.

• A growing variety of internship,informational interview, and job shadowing programs are offered across the country. Go to www.jobshadow.org to find out where.

• After-school community programsthat teach bus iness, per sonal finance, and life skills can help you network with working professionals. For information, contact Junior Achievement in your area.

• Summercampsareagreatway tofocus on career exploration. Two examples are U of M’s Summer Sci-ence Academy and Michigan Tech’s Summer Youth Programs.

A whole new career ladderToday, students are encouraged to explore broad career areas and also expected to enter high school having made some initial choices and begun a plan for their future. At this point, parents might be wondering: why should my child be thinking about a career that may be 5 or 10 years away when he can’t even decide what to wear to school in the morning?

Making education relevant—particularly at this level—is critical because students are more likely to drop out in ninth grade than any other grade, according to Patty Cantu, director of the Michigan Office of Career and Technical Preparation.

“Lots of students begin to wonder why they are taking these courses,” Cantu said. “They don’t think they’re ever going to use this stuff.”

It’s not fair to ask a student to make a career choice from scratch in the 12th grade, says Cantu. “So schools are start-ing as early as kindergarten to help children explore careers.”

Wayfinding on your career pathBy William Rapai


“In middle school, we ask students to start thinking with a little more structure and to start to develop a plan for what they want to do in high school,” Cantu says. “If you want to be a chef, you need these skills; if you want to be a pilot, you need these other skills.”

New high school choicesThe first step in that future career may be choosing a high school program. For some, that process has become almost as important as choosing a college. In larger districts, students can choose between a traditional comprehensive high school or new models like academic academies and middle colleges. In some rural districts, students have more choices through regional programs and virtual learning courses taught over the Internet.

Bayshore High School in Bradenton, Florida, has three academic academies—schools within the high school. Each specializes in a different career pathway: engineering, performing arts, and sci-ence, says Vice Principal Elizabeth How-ard. “We need to give kids the necessary skills to survive and to be able to transfer their skills from one career to another.”

A different model at San Mateo Middle College in San Mateo, California, gives kids a head start on college. Principal

MythI can get a good paying job out of high school.

FactMaybe.

But college grads earn an extra $1 million more over their careers than high school grads. And adults with just a high school diploma are twice as likely to be unemployed as those with a bachelor’s degree.

Greg Quigley says juniors and seniors take college-level classes at the College of San Mateo along with their high school courses. Because there’s a strong career development emphasis, the high school students also use the college’s career development center and attend its job skill seminars and career fairs.

Such middle college programs, once thought to fit only the most gifted stu-dents, are now helping a wider circle of students accelerate their learning and tie it to something they can use to get ahead.

But before enrolling a student in a high school or special program, Larry Good, CEO of Corporation for a Skilled Work-force in Ann Arbor, Michigan, urges parents to ask:

• Whichoftheseschoolscanteachmychild skills that will transfer across wide careers with several different kinds of employers?

• Whatpercentageofthestudentbodytakes courses for college credit?

• Whatpercentageofthosestudentsactually does well enough in the course to get college credit?

• Where have the graduates of thisprogram ended up?

• Canyouputmeintouchwithsomeof them?

Real life: take it for a test driveStudents often learn more about careers from employers and specialized com-munity programs than they can in school. Valuable hands-on experience in the job market can take only a few hours out of a busy student’s schedule. Popular favor-ites include:

• InformationalinterviewYou can often learn more in an hour from interviewing a professional than you can in a week of Internet searches.

• JobshadowIdeally, after your informational inter-view, you can tag along with your inter-viewee for a few hours/days to see how she actually spends her time.

Keith Gall, a vice president of Junior Achievement Worldwide, has helped develop a national job-shadow program that takes place every Groundhog Day. On this day, students follow willing pro-fessionals through their workday.

“The idea behind job shadowing is not to get kids on a path that they can’t change from, but give them an idea of what’s out there,” Gall says. “This is more about getting exposure than it is about making a final decision.”

Gall believes it’s critical for kids to get workplace experience before they leave high school, even if it’s just to eliminate a possible career choice. It’s better to find that out now and choose another route than spend ten years preparing for a career that’s a bad fit.

If your school doesn’t have a job-shadow program, contact the human resources or public relations department of com-panies that interest you. Many are willing to host curious students. Boys and Girls Clubs and the Boy Scouts’ Explorers program provide another way to connect with careers. The Junior Reserve Offi-cers’ Training Corps (JROTC) gives stu-dents a chance to learn about teamwork skills and jobs in the military.

William Rapai has worked as an editor at the Detroit Free Press and the Boston Globe.

Wayfinding on your career path

Find an Informational Interview Instigator at EduGuide.org/h9

EduGuide’s founder, Bryan Taylor, compiled strategies he learned on his career path into a tool to help students pursue theirs.


Start planning for college in 8th gradeBy Michelle Schira Hagerman

This College Prep checklist—created by Dr. Patrick O’Connor, author of College is Yours in 600 Words or Less—will keep you on the fast track to your goal.

Michelle Schira Hagerman is a veteran high school teacher.

www.EduGuide.org/h9

Check out our online EduGuide “Plan Your College Visit” to get the most out of your time on campus.


o Visit a local college campus. Attend a public open house, go to a sports event, visit the library or campus museum for fun. Once you’ve seen a college, you can more easily visualize going there.

o Tell your parents that you want to go

to college. Students are more likely to graduate from college when their par-ents consistently support them.

o Ifyoucan,takeAlgebraIandafor-eign language this year. Students who succeed in high school math are more likely to graduate from college. And, if

you can get high school credit for these courses in 8th grade, you’ll free up some space in your high school time-table for college credits.

o Get involved in one extra-curricular activity that enriches your life.

8th Grade

9th Grade

o Decide what you want to study at college. You can change your mind later, but having one or two ideas to focus on will help you figure out your final plan .

o Make a deep commitment to learn-ing. Students who succeed make a daily commitment to study, complete their homework, and make connections between classroom learning and life.

o Makecommunityserviceahabit.Pick a cause you love and start volunteering. Admissions officers are most impressed by a serious commitment of time (think 200+ hours) lasting several years.

o Take the most challenging courses in core areas of English, physical sciences, math, social sciences, and foreign lan-guages, plus challenging options like music and computer science.

o Visit three different kinds of college campuses this year. Compare urban and rural, two- and four-year, public and private.

o Bring the team together. Schedule a planning session with your counselor and your parents and plan out the courses, finances, and extra activities that will get you to college.

10th Grade

o Reach out. Do an internship at a local busi-ness or participate in an exchange pro-gram. Do anything that helps you explore the world outside your high school.

o Go to a college fair. Talk to a couple of admissions representatives about why you should consider their schools.

o Visit your top 3–5 schools. Spend a weekend if you can: stay in a dorm, talk to students, sample the atmosphere. Take the tour, but then get some time alone to explore the lecture halls and labs.

o In the spring of junior year, ask two teachers for letters of recommendation.

Give them a specific date by which you’ll need those letters next fall.

o Begin searching for scholarships. Use a calendar or planner to keep track of application deadlines.

11th Grade

o Get organized. Put all of your applica-tion deadlines on a calendar. Remem-ber, these deadlines are real. You won’t get extensions or second chances.

o Lead your team. Let your counselor and academic references know about

deadlines at least six weeks in advance. Send reminders and don’t be afraid to ask for confirmation.

o CompletetheFAFSAinFebruary. Even if you think you won’t qualify for financial aid, complete it anyway. The FAFSA is

often required for scholarship, loan, and work/study eligibility too.

o Thank people who help you get into college. Write them a note of thanks that includes your college plans

12th Grade

“I don’t know what I’m good at, what I want to study, or what I want to be when I ‘grow up.’ Help!”

Think of three people you admire 1. Why do you admire them?

2. What do they do for a living?

3. Are they happy/excited about what they do?

4. Could you see yourself doing the same thing? Why? Why not?

College costs are increasing annually, making it impossible to estimatetuition rates, even in the near future. This can make planning aheaddifficult and frustrating. However, the Michigan Education Trust (MET)makes it possible for parents, grandparents, businesses and others topre-purchase tomorrow’s undergraduate tuition at today’s cost.

MET is a smart, tax-advantaged way to save for college. Unlike stockmarket-based programs, MET contracts assure a child’s collegeeducation savings will be there when they need it, guaranteed! METcontracts are portable and transferrable and the funds used to purchasea MET contract may qualify for a gift tax exemption. MET contracts canbe purchased for Michigan children in one semester increments or bythe year with several convenient payment options available.

To learn more about the MichiganEducation Trust, log on or call today:

www.SETwithMET.com1-800-MET-4-KID(1-800-638-4543)

What will college tuition cost in 10 years?

College savings with a guaranteed future!

Tomorrow’s Tuition…SET with MET!

There are lots of career skills assessments and materials to help you explore your interests. Your high school counseling office has tons—check them out sooner rather than later. But for now, here are two simple ways to start brainstorming about your future:

Describe your perfect dayIf you didn’t have to worry about income, job security, or skill level, what would a perfect work day look like to you? With-out stopping to edit yourself or question your ideas, free write about this perfect day, from the time your feet hit the floor in the morning (or is it af ternoon?), through until bedtime. Are you inside, mostly? Outside? Are you alone or with other people? Sitting at a desk or build-ing something with your hands? What does your workspace look like?

Another option is to make a “dream-scape” or collage using pictures that represent elements in your perfect work day. You could make a drawing of your perfect day, too. Whether you write about it or illustrate it, this “perfect day” should reflect what you need, what you value, and what you want. Just day-dreaming about your ideal work day will start you on the road to building it for real.


“With Michigan’s economic future on the line, the time for piecemeal

change in education in our state is over. From setting high standards

in our K-12 schools to giving every young person the opportunity

to earn a college degree, we are now committed to enacting

fundamental change in our education system. And whether we are

focused on the needs of our own sons and daughters or the health of

our state’s economy, this moment in time demands no less.”

—Jennifer M. Granholm, Governor of Michigan

Staying Ahead of the CurveSPECIAL SUPPLEMENT PROVIDED BY THE MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION, OFFICE OF SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT

Helping Your Child and School Stay Ahead of the Curve

The economy is changing and Michigan schools are changing with it!As children move through school, chances are what they learn will be different from what you learned in school. In fact, it seems change is all around us. Today, we live in a digital age where companies can plant jobs wherever there’s an internet connection, and two-thirds of all jobs require higher education or advanced training. If we want our children to be able to out-compete those who are challenging us for jobs, we must out-educate.

Clear learning goals are keyTo better prepare students for college and the workplace, teachers and parents must have a clear and common under-standing of what students at all grade levels need to know and be able to do throughout school.

Over the past five years, the Michigan Department of Education with the help of parents, state and national educational experts, and the business community have worked together to develop clear educa-tion learning goals for students. These goals, called “content expectations,” were developed in two formats: by grade for elementary and middle school students and by course or credit for students in high school.

Content expectations serve as the founda-tion for what is taught and tested to ensure

students are learning what they need to move successfully into the next grade or subject. To view these expectations, visit the Michigan Department of Education’s high school web site at www.mi.gov/highschool under “Curriculum & Instruction.”

Providing students with world-class educationTo make sure high school graduates have the educational foundation and critical think ing and problem-solv ing sk i l l s needed for future success, Michigan has implemented new world-class graduation requirements.

These requirements, called the Michigan Merit Curriculum, were signed into law by Governor Jennifer M. Granholm on April 20, 2006, and build on our elementary and middle school Grade Level Content Expectations, providing a continuous path of learning from kindergarten through high school.

The Michigan Merit Curriculum is effective beginning with the Class of 2011 and requires students to complete 16 credits plus an online learning experience to earn a diploma. Credits include:

• 4English

• 4Mathincluding:AlgebraI;AlgebraII; Geometry; and 1 additional credit

• 3Scienceincluding:Biology;Chemis-try or Physics; and, 1 additional credit

• 3SocialStudiesincluding:U.S.History and Geography; World History and Geography; .5 credits in both Civics and Economics

• 1Visual,PerformingandAppliedArts

• 1PhysicalEducationandHealth

• Onlinelearningexperience

Students in the Class of 2016 or later will also need to complete two world language cred-its in grades 9–12; OR an equivalent learning experience for credit in grades K–12.

For many students who already plan on taking similar credits, things will change very little. For others, the requirements will introduce new or provide addit ional instruction in key subject areas that studies show are critical to student success.

These requirements will still allow stu-dents the flexibility to incorporate addi-tional electives or a Career Technical Education program into their schedule.

The new law also allows parents and school personnel to request a Personal Curric-ulum for a student to modify cer tain Michigan Merit Curriculum requirements. These include:

• Substitutingacreditoradjusting the content expectations a student must meet based on his or her disability and Individualized Educa-tion Plan (IEP).


• AllowingstudentstotakeadditionalMath, Science, English or Language credits in place of the Visual Performing and Applied Arts, Physical Education/Health or the third Social Studies credit.

• Modifyingcreditrequirementsforstudents transferring into Michigan after completing the equivalent of two or more years of high school.

For additional information on Personal Cur-riculum options, please contact your local high school.

Measuring progress and providing new opportunitiesIn the spring of 2007, Michigan high school students said goodbye to the MEAP and hello to the Michigan Merit Exam (MME). Unlike the MEAP, the MME combines several important tests into one and provides stu-dents with both a free ACT college entrance exam and ACT job readiness assessment called ACT WorkKeys.

The MME provides a way for the state to measure all students in the same way, at the same time. It offers parents and stu-dents valuable information on student academic progress. The exam also helps teachers identify students in need of aca-demic support.

Good news! Students who complete a MME qualify for a $4,000 Michigan Promise Schol-arship to help pay tuition and costs at a state university, community college, technical, or trade school. Students scoring Level 2 or above in each of the required test compo-nents are eligible to receive up to half of their scholarship in the first two years of postsec-ondary enrollment (in installments of $1,000 each year).

Earning college credits during high school—makes senseWhile a decade or two ago, education or training for students beyond high school was an option, in today’s global workplace, it is a necessity. To make college and post sec-ondary job training opportunities more affordable, Michigan high school students have more opportunities than ever before to earn college credits, at their high school or even on a college campus, at little or no cost. These include:

• CareerTechnicalEducationprogramsprovide students with the opportunity to learn academic subject matter and acquire skills that prepare them for successful career entry, advancement and/or continuing education.

• AdvancedPlacement(AP)coursesprovide students with the opportunity to take college-level courses right at high school that are taught by high school teachers.

• DualEnrollmentcoursesallowqualifyingjuniors and seniors to take one or more college-level classes at a college campus or online. These generally are courses not offered at high school or that cannot fit into a student’s schedule.

• DirectCollegeCreditcoursesprovidestudents with the opportunity to take college level courses at high school and generally are taught by college faculty.

• InternationalBaccalaureate(IB)diplomaprograms offer students aged 16 to 19 who attend an IB-designated school a demanding two-year curriculum measured by international assessments and widely accepted as college credit by colleges and universities.

• MiddleorEarlyCollegeHighSchoolsprovide students with the ability to earn both a high school diploma and up to 60 college credits, which are transferable to most state colleges and universities.

Because early college credit opportunities differ from district to district, check with the high school guidance counselor to see which options your school offers.

How you can helpWhile your teen is continually asserting his or her independence, the high school years are actually a time when they need you more than ever.

Things you can do to help your child succeed:

— Talk to him or her about the importance of a high school education and how it can impact future success.

— Expect your child to achieve and succeed. The more you expect, the more they will learn.

— Get involved and stay involved. Students perform and behave better when parents are actively involved through volunteering, attending meetings, conferences, etc.

— Watch for warning signs. Ask your school to notify you and immediately get involved if your teen is absent from class without your permission or begins to fail a course. Students who miss class or begin to fail a course are more likely to drop out of school.

— Help your teen learn good study habits by establishing a study routine in a quiet area at home.

— Stay informed by reading all school information or visiting the school web site.

— Volunteer. There are many ways to provide support both during and after school hours. It shows your child that he or she is important and that you value education.

— Most importantly, be supportive.

1. Require fewer remedial and entry-level courses in college.

2. Improve their chances of graduating from college.

3. Have the potential—as a college graduate—to earn over $1 million more over their lifetime than high school graduates.

4. Enter the workplace more prepared.

Studies show students who take college level or challenging courses while in high school:

IMAGINE THE PLACES YOU COULD GO

YOUR FUTURE IS IN COLLEGE

Central Michigan University

www.cmich.edu

Eastern Michigan University

www.emich.edu

Ferris State University

www.ferris.edu

Grand Valley StateUniversity

www.gvsu.edu

Lake Superior stateUniversity

www.lssu.edu

Michigan State University

www.msu.edu

Michigan TechnologicalUniversity

www.mtu.edu

Northern MichiganUniversity

www.nmu.edu

Oakland University

www.oakland.edu

Saginaw Valley State University

www.svsu.edu

University of MichiganAnn Arbor

www.umich.edu

University of MichiganDearborn

www.umd.umich.edu

University of MichiganFlint

www.umflint.edu

Western MichiganUniversity

www.wmich.edu

Wayne StateUniversity

www.wayne.edu

NMU

SVSU

WMU

FSUCMU

MSU

UM-F

UM-DUM-AA

EMU

OU

WSU

MTU

LSSU

GVSU

IMAGINE THE PLACES YOU COULD GO

YOUR FUTURE IS IN COLLEGE

Central Michigan University

www.cmich.edu

Eastern Michigan University

www.emich.edu

Ferris State University

www.ferris.edu

Grand Valley StateUniversity

www.gvsu.edu

Lake Superior stateUniversity

www.lssu.edu

Michigan State University

www.msu.edu

Michigan TechnologicalUniversity

www.mtu.edu

Northern MichiganUniversity

www.nmu.edu

Oakland University

www.oakland.edu

Saginaw Valley State University

www.svsu.edu

University of MichiganAnn Arbor

www.umich.edu

University of MichiganDearborn

www.umd.umich.edu

University of MichiganFlint

www.umflint.edu

Western MichiganUniversity

www.wmich.edu

Wayne StateUniversity

www.wayne.edu

NMU

SVSU

WMU

FSUCMU

MSU

UM-F

UM-DUM-AA

EMU

OU

WSU

MTU

LSSU

GVSU


Add up the savingsHere’s one formula for shaving more than 25 percent off the cost of college—one full year’s tuition based on the national average for public universities. If you want to keep more cash in your pocket, plan your own formula today.

3 three-credit AP courses taken in high school $1,856

2 three-credit dual enrollment/direct credit courses taken in high school $1,237

1 Michigan Promise scholarship* up to $4,000

Money saved by not having to take a remedial course in college $ 619

Total Savings $7,712*If eligibility requirements are met (for more information go to www.michigan.gov/promise).

Actual costs are lower than you might think2008-09 national average annual tuition and fees, not including room and board, from College Board Survey.

College Type Price Tag Cost to Family

Two-year Public* $2,402 $102

Four-year Public* $6,585 $2,885

Four-year Private $25,143 $14,493*In state

That college price tag may not be as bad as it looks. On surveys, parents routinely guess that tuition at community colleges and public universities is higher than it really is. And as the above chart shows, with all of the need-based and other scholarships out there, families rarely pay the full price anyway. You can always borrow for the rest or get the military to pick up the costs while you serve. In fact, some of the most expensively priced schools cost the least because they have money set aside for scholarships. For example, Harvard provides free tuition for all admitted students with a family income of $60,000 or less.

Compare five tax-free college savings tools.

Read the EduGuide Shortcut “Earn College Credit in High School.”

By Christine MacDonald

High school countsEmily Sole, from Traverse City, Michigan, handed over more than $600 to Wayne State University for a remedial math class that won’t even count toward graduation. She blames herself for not taking her high school math seriously: “I took Algebra II with a bunch of my friends and I just goofed off,” she admits. She took geom-etry her junior year but passed on math her senior year because she wanted to take more classes that matched her interests, primarily business.

Now as a college freshman, studying business administration, she regrets the move. She spends five hours a week in a computer lab going over math basics she should have mastered already.

Unprepared college freshmenColleges routinely test incoming fresh-men to gauge how prepared they are for college-level work. According to a report published by the American Diploma Project and Achieve, Inc., almost 70 percent of college instructors reported spending time reviewing materials with their students that they should have learned in high school. The same profes-sors estimate that half of the incoming freshman class is unprepared for college-level math and writing.

Why? Many college freshmen who feel unprepared for college admit that they didn’t work hard in high school.

By taking a tough

high school course

load, you’ll avoid

paying for no-credit

remedial college

classes later.

There’s a smarter way to save

Taking the hard courses pays offJim Levasseur, from Mount Carmel, Illi-nois, took six Advanced Placement classes in high school and entered Bowl-ing Green University with 33 credits. Since 33 credits is the equivalent of a whole year of college credit, he entered school not as a freshman, but as a sopho-more and saved himself an estimated $21,700 in out-of-state tuition and room and board at the school.

Since tackling these challenging courses also helped Levasseur improve his scores on the PSAT, he earned a full - r ide National Merit Scholarship that will pay the rest of his way through school.

Having the required courses behind him lets Levasseur take classes he is more interested in sooner, including more in his major of computer animation. It also allows him to register for courses as a sophomore honors student, practically guaranteeing he won’t get shut out of any classes.

It also calmed his nerves about making the transition to college.

“It’s sort of like a big head start,” Levas-seur said. “I was confident in my ability to do work at the college level.”

Christine MacDonald covers education for The Detroit News.



“In a global economy, where the most valuable

skill you can sell is your knowledge, a good

education is no longer just a pathway to

opportunity—it is a prerequisite.”

FromPresidentObama’s Address to Congress

Career CertificateCareer training for many trades, offered by community colleges and smaller specialty schools.

Stephen Huseby, 22Film Production Certificate Compass Film Academy

Though Stephen Huseby describes himself as “pretty much a born actor,” it took four months working for a charity in Mozambique and South Africa to make him decide to finally pursue his passion for film.

“I was completely by myself with just my camera and computer,” Huseby recalled. “It changed my life.”

Confident he has “unique stories to tell,” the aspiring director and producer enrolled in Compass Film Academy’s one-year film production certificate program in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Huseby graduated from Grand Rapids Baptist High School, where he was active in theater. But he didn’t receive much encouragement from his guid-ance counselor or family members, who thought a career in film was a “far-fetched dream.”

So Huseby attended college in Wyo-ming before transferring to Grand Rapids Community College. But when he enrolled in Compass at the urging of his friends, Huseby knew he’d made the right move. “I like that it’s a one-year program and how intense it is, how hands-on,” he said. “The teachers all have to be working in the industry.”

Military TrainingOpportunities for career

certificates, academy degrees, or money for college.

Teresa Vigmostad, 19Sonar Technician U.S. Navy

Teresa Vigmostad was sitting in a class her senior year in high school while students tried to one-up each other’s college plans.

“I said I was going into the Navy,” Vigmostad recalled, “and the teacher looked at me and said, ‘But aren’t you smart?’”

With a high grade-point average and killer ACT scores, Vigmostad was used to that reaction at Brighton High School, located in an affluent Detroit suburb. But after considering colleges, she realized she was searching for a different challenge after high school.

“The Navy has good job training,” Vigmostad said. “I’d get to see the world and do it for free.”

After completing boot camp in Illinois and sonar training in California, Vig-mostad started a new career as a sonar technician aboard the USS McFaul, which sails to European ports. Vigmo-stad plans to get advanced degrees using Navy tuition assistance.

“A lot of people don’t understand what the military is really like,” Vigmo-stad said. “It’s definitely made me more independent.”

Associate DegreeTwo-year degrees for many

careers that can also count toward completion of a bachelor’s degree.

Tara Sweet, 20Practical Nursing Major Lansing Community College

When Tara Sweet walks into a room she knows exactly what color the walls and curtains should be. She’s the one her grandparents call when they need to redecorate their kitchen.

Sweet started out in the interior design program two years ago at Lansing Community College, a logical choice only a half-hour from her job and home. This fall, she switched to nursing after talking it over with her mom.

“There are a lot more job opportuni-ties in nursing,” she explained. “With interior design, you’re self-employed and it can be hard to find clients.”

Sweet spent most of her time at Dans-ville High School in Dansville, Michi-gan, “taking every art class they had,” but now wishes she had spent more time in the science lab. She’s set a goal of finishing her nursing degree in two more years.

“I wish I would have started out in it—I would have been done faster,” Sweet said. “But I’ve really enjoyed college. It’s way better than high school.”

Four roads to a college degree

Susan J. Demas is a freelance writer and a 2006 Knight Foundation Fellow.

Bachelor’s DegreeFour- to five-year programs

available for hundreds of professions.

Shaina Losey, 19Graphic Design Major Saginaw Valley State University

Colored pencils and paintbrushes found their way into Shaina Losey’s grip from the time she was six. Though her parents kept her well supplied with sketchbooks, they also made sure she brought home As and Bs from school

Dad, Randy Losey, works as a car sales-man and mom, Michel, is a church secretary. Neither went to college, so they scrimped and saved to give their daughter that chance.

“I can’t remember ever thinking I wasn’t going to college,” said the Corunna High School graduate, “just like I can’t remember not wanting to be an artist.”

Losey’s school counselor tried to steer her into education, advising her it would be more practical.

But with the support of her parents, Losey settled on nearby Saginaw Valley State University, which sports a solid art department and low tuition. A graphic art major, Losey said her SVSU adviser is guiding her toward intern-ships to prime her for jobs with maga-zines post graduation.

“My parents aren’t concerned that I’ll get a good job,” she said. “They think it’s a good idea that I do some-thing I love.”

Susan J. Demas

The top five factors for high school success

The high school years are full of choices and challenges. Here’s a quick way to find out how your family measures up on five factors critical to success. Give your family one point for each step you’ve taken so far, then add up your score to see where you stand and which issues need extra attention.

1. Courses

Planned a four-year college/career prep schedule.

Planned at least one course in those four years where college credit can be earned.

Have contact info for a couple sources you can call for tutoring.

2. Calendars

Signed up for at least one school related-activity.

Kept a student calendar to plan homework projects, deadlines ,and events.

Scheduled a regular supervised time after school to do homework each day and a way to verify that it’s done.

3. Connections

Met someone at the school who can help you stay informed and solve any problems.

Family has talked with school counselor about their goals and how best to achieve them.

Asked an active parent or successful student what to watch out for.

4. Careers

Written a career preparation plan signed by the family and school.

Spent a couple hours job shadowing and interviewing someone to explore one career.

Taken responsibility for a regular paid job, volunteer gig, or family chore.

5. Colleges

Spent time on a campus for an event or tour.

Parent and student have saved a few dollars for college on a regular schedule.

Signed up for a college-based class, summer program, or online activity.

Total Score

You have to start somewhere. 0–5 You’re setting yourself up for success. 6–10 You’re on track — but what could you do better? 11–15

Want better results? You’ll get:

•afreepersonalizedroadmap

•ongoingsupportfromour nonprofit network

Documents

2009 High School EduGuide