By: Gina Writz, Counselor Grades 6th-8th Alphabet M-Z
Our goal is to encourage students to look at the big picture of their future and provide them with new suggestions, advice, and encouragement as they explore their new goals. Our goal is to help students recognize there is more to the college process than grades. Even though grades are very important, we want students to discover their strengths, their interests, and their passion to help them be successful when high school ends. We have the privilege to collaborate with some of the best staff, parents, and community members in the state to help our students reach their maximum potential. We are very excited for the school year, and to watch students grow as they continue their journey through D’Evelyn. Counseling Calendar Sept. 3rd – Girls Mentor Training (7th Hour) Sept 3rd - Boys Mentor Training (7th Hour) Sept 6th - No School Sept 7th - Common Application Workshop (7th Hour) Sept 10th - Boys Mentoring (7th Hour) Sept 10th - Girls Mentoring (7th Hour) Sept. 13th 8th Grade Needs Assessment/Student Success (7th Hour) Sept. 13th – College Essay Workshop (7th) Sept. 14th - 7th Grade Needs Assessment/Student Success (7th Hour) Sept 14th - Sources of Strength (7th Hour) Sept 15th - College Day! Wear your favorite college shirt. Sept. 15th - 6th Grade Needs Assessment/Student Success (7th Hour) Sept. 17th – NJHS Meeting (7th Hour) Sept. 20th – Anti-Bullying (7th Hour) Sept. 21st – Anti-Bullying (7th Hour) Sept 21st - Common Application Workship (7th Hour) Sept. 22nd – Coffee with the Counselors (7:30am) Sept 22nd - Anti-Bullying (7th Hour) Sept. 23rd – Anti-Bullying (7th Hour) Sept. 24th – Boys Mentoring (7th Hour) Sept. 24th - Girls Mentoring (7th Hour) Sept 27th - 7th Grade ICAP (7th Hour) Sept. 28th – Sources of Strength (7th Hour) Sept 28th - 7th Grade ICAP (7th Hour) Sept 29th - Student Voice Sept 30th - New 8th and 9th grade student meeting (7th Hour) For All We Are Looking For Candy Donations! As a counseling department we try to make our activities fun and relaxing for students at the end of the day. One of the ways we do this is by engaging them in activities and conversation with prizes to be given away. The most common and fan favorite of prizes is candy. Unfortunately, with the counseling budget candy and other treats are hard to come by. We are looking for candy bag donations for this upcoming school year. After a long day of working in the classroom we want to provide the students with a treat before they leave for the day. We would greatly appreciate any type of candy bag donation. If you are able to help support our program please drop any candy you have to donate off in the counseling office with Sue Brown, or any counselor available. We want to thank every single one of you for your support! College Day We are excited to announce that we will be having an in-person College Night this year and we have a great night planned for you. College Night will be on Wednesday September 15th from 6:00 – 8:00 pm. Our keynote speaker is Rob Franek, the Editor-in Chief of the Princeton Review. He is the premier expert on college admissions and he will be speaking on Finding the Dream College for Every Student. Over his 27 year career working with colleges he has held jobs as an admission administrator, publisher, editor, author and lecturer. He is the author of several books such as: College Admissions During COVID, College Admissions 101, The Best 386 Colleges, The Best Value College and Colleges that Create Futures. You may have seen him giving an interview on the Today Show. He is a charismatic speaker with a fantastic wealth of information to share – you do not want to miss his presentation! We will have break-out sessions as well on the following topics: · Writing an Effective College Essay · Financial Planning for College · Thinking of Heading Out-of-State? · Test Optional, Now What? · Find Scholarships to Help Pay for College Reserve your spot and RSVP today! We are expecting a packed auditorium so please reserve your spot today. We are partnering with another local high school and will open up registration to them on 9/3. Please complete the following registration form to secure your seat: https://forms.gle/TGm55eMDaHMTTWhs6 Because of COVID and capacity we will be assigning seats for everyone. You will receive an email with your specific seats before the event date. We are excited for you to join us for this great event. College Visits Attention students! We have over 50 college visits already scheduled for this school year. We need students to begin signing up to meet with the college representatives who are CHOOSING to come to D’Evelyn to meet with all of you! We have created a google document that has the list of colleges coming to our school and what days. Attending college visits are very beneficial for multiple reasons:
College visits are available for all students to attend and students need to sign up for visits in Naviance. On Naviance, students need to go to the Colleges tab, and click on college visits. This will provide you with the list of colleges visiting our campus this year. We want to have every 10th – 12th grade student try to sign up for at least five college visits and every 7th-9th grade student sign up for at least one visit. How to view through Naviance:
Coffee with the Counselors Every year, at the beginning of the year, the counseling department likes to set up a time for parents to come into the counseling office to learn more about what we do, and to answer any questions you have about how we can best serve your students. This is typically a very informal meeting where we introduce ourselves, share our roles and responsibilities in the building, and then partake in conversation with parents. This is a great opportunity for parents to come in and ask questions about what their students work on with counselors, learn about resources we have to help students be successful, and for the counselors to receive feedback on how to strengthen the program. The date for Coffee with the Counselors will be on September 22nd at 7:30am. Coffee and breakfast treats will be provided by the counseling department. We will be hosting this event in the Counseling Office and we look forward to meeting with all of you! Grade Levels SENIORS We will be holding multiple workshops and activities throughout the year during 7th hour to help make the college process easier. Please keep an eye and ear out for our common application workshops, college essay workshops, scholarship workshops, and senior class meetings. We will be addressing all of your questions and concerns during this time, as well as meeting with you all individually to solidify your plan. This can be a very overwhelming time of the year, and we are here to help make the process go smoother. Do not hesitate to reach out to your counselor for questions. You will most likely need letters of recommendation for your college applications. Be sure to ask your teachers as soon as possible, and give them at least two weeks to complete the letter. You will need to provide them with the rec questionnaire, which can be found on the Naviance homepage at the bottom. You will also need to request a letter from them through Naviance. Be sure to ask them in person as well. Most teachers will not write you a letter if you do not ask them in person! If you would like a letter from your counselor please stop by to make an appointment. If you have any questions about this process please contact your counselor. JUNIORS This will be a year full of ups and downs, with the most exciting up being you are almost to your senior year. During your junior year one of the most important pieces to focus on is your academics and the SAT. On August 25th and 26th we met with you to help you get acclimated with Khan Academy (free SAT practice), and talk about the year. Our goal is to make sure you have all of the resources you need to be successful on the SAT and how to improve your scores. We will also be talking about steps you should start taking to prepare for the college process. Even though junior year is known as the most difficult year, we want to make sure you have time to enjoy the activities you participate in, and prepare for the next level. If you have any questions about college, the process, the SAT, Khan Academy, or just how to navigate through junior year please feel free to stop by and see your counselor. For most schools you will apply to, they need a letter of recommendation from your counselor. We enjoy getting to know you all so our letters can be as outstanding as you are. SOPHOMORES This is an important year to start discovering your interests, and what excites you about life outside of school. Starting to gain a stronger understanding of what you’re interested in will help you as you move along in the college/career process. We will be meeting with you all multiple times throughout the year, and we will mostly focus on the exploration of careers, your strengths, and how we can combine those to help you discover what you want to do after high school. As counselors, we are always here to help you with any issues that arise throughout your time at school, and if you have any concerns outside of school. Please do not hesitate to come see your counselor if you need any assistance. FRESHMEN This is the year that grades really begin to count towards your college transcript. We highly encourage you all to get off to a strong start, and work hard in all of your classes. We will be meeting with you all multiple times throughout the year to talk about goal setting, how to plan for success, the importance of freshman year, and how to prepare your next 4 years to have a strong college application. Our goal is to help you all be successful in and out of school. This is a great time to start learning more about your likes and dislikes. We encourage you to begin exploring career options and what your interests are. If you ever need any assistance please do not hesitate to reach out to your counselor. JUNIOR HIGH STUDENTS We hope the start of the school year has been fabulous and we want to welcome everyone back to in person learning. There have been a few changes in the counseling office. D’Evelyn now has two full-time junior high counselors with the addition of Ms. Writz supporting students in grades 6th-8th with the last names who fall between the letters of M-Z. Rob Northway is the other junior high counselor working with students grades 6th-8th with the last name of A-L. The junior high counselors will be meeting with students throughout the start of the year to complete a needs assessment survey, anti bullying presentations, and ICAP (Individual Career Academic Planning). Mr. Northway and Ms. Writz have an open-door policy and encourage students to stop by to talk through any concerns or if maybe students just want to say hello. We are looking forward to a great year! Rob Northway Gina Writz [email protected] [email protected] 303-982-2629 303-982-5214 By: Jon Watson, High School Counselor, A-K
Welcome Back! As the counseling department, we understand there may be a plethora of concerns that students and families have as the school year begins. We want you all to know that we are here to support you and your students as we transition back to a more “normal” school year. The counseling department is here to assist students and families with academic concerns and struggles, emotional support, college and career support and information, and any other concern you all may have. As we transition back to a more normal school setting, our goal is to encourage students to look at the big picture of their future and provide them with new suggestions, advice, and encouragement as they explore their new goals. Our goal is to help students recognize there is more to the post-secondary process than just grades. Even though grades are very important, we want students to discover their strengths, their interests, and their passion to help them be successful when high school ends. We have developed a curriculum, which aligns with district standards and provides students an opportunity to explore career and academic interests outside of the classroom setting. We have the privilege to collaborate with some of the best staff, parents, and community members in the state to help our students reach their maximum potential. We are very excited for the school year, and to watch students grow as they continue their journey through D’Evelyn. Counseling Calendar Aug. 16th – New Student Orientation Aug. 17th – First Day of School Aug. 23rd – 12th Grade College Process Presentation (7th Hour) Aug. 24th – 12th Grade College Process Presentation (7th Hour) Aug. 25th – 12th Grade College Process Presentation (7th Hour) Aug. 25th – 11th Grade Khan Academy/SAT Information (7th Hour) Aug. 26th – 11th Grade Khan Academy/SAT Information (7th Hour) Aug. 26th – Back to School Night (6pm) Aug. 30th – 10th Grade Do What You Are Activity (7th Hour) Aug. 31st – Sources of Strength (7th Hour) Sept. 1st – 10th Grade Do What You Are Activity (7th Hour) Sept. 2nd – New 8th/9th Grade Group (7th Hour) For All We Are Looking For Candy Donations! As a counseling department we try to make our activities fun and relaxing for students at the end of the day. One of the ways we do this is by engaging them in activities and conversation with prizes to be given away. The most common and fan favorite of prizes is candy. Unfortunately, with the counseling budget candy and other treats are hard to come by. We are looking for candy bag donations for this upcoming school year. After a long day of working in the classroom we want to provide the students with a treat before they leave for the day. We would greatly appreciate any type of candy bag donation. If you are able to help support our program please drop any candy you have to donate off in the counseling office with Sue Brown, or any counselor available. We want to thank every single one of you for your support! Best College Day Yet! D’Evelyn’s annual College Day will be held on September 15th at 6pm, and this year we have the pleasure of welcoming nationally recognized college guru Rob Franek! Rob is the founder of the Princeton Review, which is a test prep and college information organization. They have published multiple books on the best colleges in the country, SAT/ACT/GRE/MCAT test prep books, and they provide multiple videos and presentations on college admissions. Over the years, Rob has developed strong relationships with many of the top schools across the country, and he is coming to D’Evelyn to share his insights with our community. In the evening we will be hosting an event for all family members to attend. The evening of the 15th, we will have a Keynote Speaker Address (Rob Franek) and 5 guest presentations for families to choose from. We have set it up so you are able to attend 2 of the 5 sessions. All families 7th-12th grade are encouraged to attend. It is never too early to start thinking about the college process. We are expecting a packed house so registration for the event will be required. The event is completely free, but because of our ability to land a high profile speaker we will need to pack the house. We are opening up to D’Evelyn families to register for the event starting on August 23rd. Our families will have first priority through September 1st. At that point, we will be opening it up to a few other Jeffco Schools if we cannot fill the space. We will only have around 500 tickets available, and it will be on a first come first serve basis. More information on the ticket registration process and the breakout sessions to come next week. College Visits Attention students! We have over 25 college visits already scheduled for this school year. We need students to begin signing up to meet with the college representatives who are CHOOSING to come to D’Evelyn to meet with them! By next week, we will have a list of college visits posted to our website for students and families to view. Attending college visits are very beneficial for multiple reasons:
Coffee with the Counselors Every year, at the beginning of the year, the counseling department likes to set up a time for parents to come into the counseling office to learn more about what we do, and to answer any questions you have about how we can best serve your students. This is typically a very informal meeting where we introduce ourselves, share our roles and responsibilities in the building, and then partake in conversation with parents. This is a great opportunity for parents to come in and ask questions about their students work on with counselors, learn about resources we have to help students be successful, and for the counselors to receive feedback on how to strengthen the program. The date for Coffee with the Counselors will be on September 22nd at 7:30am. Coffee and breakfast treats will be provided by the counseling department. We will be hosting this event in the Counseling Office and we look forward to meeting with all of you! Grade Levels SENIORS Mr. Watson and Ms. Harrington will be meeting with you all on the second week of school to go over the college application process. We will be meeting with you in smaller groups (size of about 30), and it will be either Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday. Please listen for when your part of the alphabet is called. We will demonstrate all of the steps that you need to take in the college application process, and we will answer any questions that you may have. We will be holding multiple workshops and activities throughout the year during 7th hour to help make the college process easier. Please keep an eye and ear out for our common application workshops, college essay workshops, scholarship workshops, and senior class meetings. We will be addressing all of your questions and concerns during this time, as well as meeting with you all individually to solidify your plan. This can be a very overwhelming time of the year, and we are here to help make the process go smoother. Do not hesitate to reach out to your counselor for questions. You will most likely need letters of recommendation for your college applications. Be sure to ask your teachers as soon as possible, and give them at least two weeks to complete the letter. You will need to provide them with the rec questionnaire, which can be found on the Naviance homepage at the bottom. You will also need to request a letter from them through Naviance. Be sure to ask them in person as well. Most teachers will not write you a letter if you do not ask them in person! If you have any questions about this process please contact your counselor. JUNIORS This will be a year full of ups and downs, with the most exciting up being you are almost to your senior year. During your junior year one of the most important pieces to focus on is your academics and the SAT. On August 25th and 26th, we will meet with you to help you get acclimated with Khan Academy (free SAT practice), and talk about the year. Our goal is to make sure you have all of the resources you need to be successful on the SAT and how to improve your scores. We will also be talking about steps you should start taking to prepare for the college process. Even though junior year is known as the most difficult, we want to make sure you have time to enjoy the activities you participate in, and prepare for the next level. If you have any questions about college, the process, the SAT, Khan Academy, or just how to navigate through junior year please feel free to stop by and see your counselor. The majority of schools you will apply to will need a letter of recommendation from your counselor. We enjoy getting to know you all so our letters can be as outstanding as you are. SOPHOMORES This is an important year to start discovering your interests, and what excites you about life outside of school. Starting to gain a stronger understanding of what you’re interested in will help you as you move along in the college/career process. We will be meeting with you all multiple times throughout the year, and we will mostly focus on the exploration of careers, your strengths, and how we can combine those to help you discover what you want to do after high school. Our first meeting will occur on August 30th and September 1st. You will only need to attend one of the sessions. As counselors, we are always here to help you with any issues that arise throughout your time at school, and if you have any concerns outside of school. Please do not hesitate to come see your counselor if you need any assistance. FRESHMEN This is the year that grades really begin to count towards your college transcript. We highly encourage you all to get off to a strong start, and work hard in all of your classes. We will be meeting with you all multiple times throughout the year to talk about goal setting, how to plan for success, the importance of freshman year, and how to prepare your next 4 years to have a strong college application. The first time we will meet is on September 7th, 8th, or 9th. You only have to attend one of those sessions. Our goal is to help you all be successful in and out of school. This is a great time to start learning more about your likes and dislikes. We encourage you to begin exploring career options and what your interests are. If you ever need any assistance please do not hesitate to reach out to your counselor. 8th GRADERS Welcome to your second year at D’Evelyn! I truly hope you have a happy, successful and productive year. We will be available to help you in any way we can, and you are always welcome to come talk with us about any concerns or problems you may be having. You can even come in and share good news with us! Eighth graders will be meeting on Monday, September 13, to complete our annual Needs Assessment. This is your opportunity to tell us what you need from Counseling. We will also be meeting once each semester to work on your Individual Career and Academic Plans. One thing to remember is that it is important for you to continue to develop good work habits and study skills as you prepare for high school. If you would like to talk about this further, please come see me. Also, keep in mind that it is important to enjoy yourself, and the best way to do that is to get involved in a sport or extracurricular activity that you enjoy! We consider it a privilege to be your counselors. Mr. Northway and Ms. Writz 7th GRADERS Welcome seventh graders! Every year will be new and different and each year will have many opportunities for you to learn and enjoy what this school has to offer. Not only “school,” but there are many clubs, sports, and extracurricular activities for you to become involved with. D’Evelyn requires a lot from its students, but when you talk to the upper classmen they will tell you that it’s worth it. Please keep in mind that we are available to help you with anything that may come up. If you have difficulty in one of your classes, with friends, lockers, or anything please come see us and we can work on solutions together. You can come in and see us before school, after school, at lunch, or during a passing period. You will not be counted tardy anytime you need to see us during part of a period. We consider it a privilege to be your counselors. Mr. Northway and Ms. Writz |
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April 2022
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