2012-2013 Volume 7, Issue 3: November 12, 2012 www.ewing.k12.nj.us
Announcements!
· FINANCIAL AID NIGHT AT EWING HIGH SCHOOL
Senior students and their parents/guardians are encouraged to attend this wonderful information-packed evening to learn all about current financial aid opportunities from guest speaker Robert Alston, Associate Director of Financial Aid from The College of New Jersey (TCNJ).
When: Thursday, December 6, 2012
Time: 6:30 PM
Where: EHS Media Center
For: Senior students and their parents/guardians
Cost: Free
This evening will be filled with information on: financial aid forms, need based and merit based aid, federal and state programs, and scholarships.
· HISPANIC COLLEGE FAIR – Cedar Gardens, Hamilton
Students in grades 10 – 12 are encouraged to sign up in EHS’s Guidance Office to attend the annual Hispanic College Fair. Over 60 colleges and universities will be present. Upon signing up to attend, students will receive permission slips which must be signed by parents/guardians and returned by Monday, November 26th in order for students to attend this college fair. Students do need to be Hispanic to attend this college fair.
When: Thursday, November 29, 2012
Time: Bus leaves 9:15, Bus Returns 11:15
Where: Cedar Garden Banquet, Hamilton, NJ
For: 10th, 11th, & 12th graders
Cost: Free
Sign-up deadline: Monday, November 26, 2012
Transportation: Free, busses to and from EHS
· NAVIANCE FAMILY CONNECTION
Welcome to Naviance Family Connection! Naviance’s Family Connection is a powerful, comprehensive online program that EHS parents/guardians, students and EHS Guidance Counselors began using at the start of the 2011-2012 school year to help students plan for careers and college. The Guidance Department strongly advises you to become familiar with the many resources available through Family Connection that can help guide students through their career and/or college research. It is a great tool for everything from personality and career exploration to college searches.
Additionally for seniors, you will be able to build a resume and organize your college applications. You can keep personal notes on colleges you are considering, keep track of transcripts and deadlines, and manage your list of potential colleges. Seniors requesting a “Guidance Counselor Letter of Recommendation” will be required to do so via Family Connection.
Our goal at Ewing High School is to provide our students, parents/guardians, and staff with a streamlined method for processing college information in a timely and effective manner. Tenth, eleventh and twelfth graders have already been provided with a personal access code and instructions for accessing Family Connection. Ninth grade students will be trained in the near future. Parents/Guardians and students must register separately and a unique email address is required for each registration.
Family Connection will also allow us to share information with you about upcoming meetings and events, local scholarship opportunities, and other Web resources for career and/or college information. In addition, the site will
include a link that you can use to send e-mail messages directly to your assigned guidance counselor.
· NJ SCHOLARS PROGRAM, LAWRENCEVILLE SCHOOL
The New Jersey Scholars Program (NJSP) offers an extraordinary, intensive, and interdisciplinary five-week residential summer academic program at The Lawrenceville School. NJSP seeks highly motivated and outgoing students who are New Jersey residents (must be a US citizen) and will complete their junior year at the end of 2012-13 school year. This FREE and highly competitive program will take place from Sunday, June 23, 2013 – Friday, July 26, 2013 and the topic for study will be Immigration: Demographic Disaster or Cultural Recreator?
The program teaches selected participants to think in a new way- relating disciplines instead of dividing them. Scholars participate in lectures and small-group seminars where extensive reading and writing assignments and research will occur. In addition, students will also be able to stretch and hone their creative talents in art, music, drama, and public speaking by contributing to an Arts Festival that is thematically related to the academic curriculum.
Ewing High School can only submit TWO applications for consideration for the summer program. The application process requires students to submit four essays, a term paper previously prepared for a class that demonstrates the quality of the student’s work, a teacher/counselor recommendation, and a transcript. Semifinalists will be selected by the Lawrenceville School for an interview and will also make the final selection of students for the program.
Interested juniors should submit their names to Ms. Jarrett in Guidance by Wednesday, November 28, 2012.
· NEW JERSEY STARS PROGRAM…free tuition is in the stars!
The New Jersey Student Tuition Assistance Reward Scholarship (NJ STARS) Program is an initiative created by the State of New Jersey that provides New Jersey’s highest achieving students with free tuition at their home county college.
NJ STARS Benefits
The NJ STARS award covers the cost of tuition, less any State and/or Federal grants and scholarships, for up to five semesters. The award covers these charges for up to 18 credit hours per semester. Funding for NJ STARS awards is dependent upon annual State appropriations.
Student Eligibility
New Jersey residents, who graduate in the top 15% of their high school class, complete a rigorous high school course of study and achieve the required score on a college placement test to determine college readiness may be eligible. (Note: All courses of study are considered “rigorous” for 2013 high school graduates.)
Students who do not achieve the required score on the placement test will be able to take appropriate courses while still in high school to improve their skills or they can attend remedial courses at the county college while enrolled in high school.
Students who graduate from high school and do not demonstrate college readiness will be given up to one year to gain the skills they need to become college ready. Students who do not demonstrate college readiness by September 1, 2013 are no longer NJ STARS eligible. NJ STARS does not cover costs for remedial coursework.
ü All students must enroll in a full-time course of student no later than the fifth semester following high school graduation.
ü Students must enroll full time in a degree program at their home county college, unless the student demonstrates that the home county college does not offer the desired program of study or the program is oversubscribed for at least one year.
ü Students must take a minimum of 12 college-level credits per semester. NJ STARS covers up to 18 college-level credits per semester.
ü Students and parent(s) must be permanent New Jersey residents pursuant to regulations established by HESAA at the time of high school graduation and upon county college enrollment.
ü Students must be U.S. citizens or eligible non-citizens and legal New Jersey residents for a minimum of twelve consecutive months prior to high school graduation.
ü Students must apply for all forms of State and Federal need-based grants and merit scholarships and submit any requested documentation to complete and verify application data within established State deadlines.
Application Process
ü Apply for admission to your home county college.
ü Meet all admission and application requirements established by the county college.
ü File the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) annually within established State deadlines.
ü County colleges notify students of NJ STARS eligibility.
Renewal Eligibility
ü Students must attain a minimum cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or higher at the start of the third semester of enrollment at the county college to remain an NJ STAR. Summer courses are included in determining the GPA.
ü Students must maintain continuous full-time enrollment unless on a medical leave, approved by the county college, due to the illness of the student, a member of the student’s immediate family, or a family emergency. The only other exception to continuous full-time enrollment applies to NJ STARS students called to partial or full mobilization for State or Federal active duty as a member of the National Guard or a Reserve component of the Armed Forces of the United States.
ü Students may take less than 12 credits in their final semester if the county college determines that the student needs less than 12 credits in that semester to complete the degree program.
ü Students enrolled in a nursing or engineering program that regularly requires six semesters to complete may retain NJ STARS II eligibility. However, NJ STARS will not cover the cost of the sixth semester.
ü Students may receive the scholarship for up to five semesters, including summer sessions. However, NJ STARS resources are not available to cover any summer payments.
For more information about NJ STARS I, contact the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority at www.hesaa.org or call (800) 792-8670.
· NEW JERSEY STARS II SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM
The NJ STARS II Program is a continuation of the NJ STARS Program that provides successful NJ STARS students at New Jersey county colleges with funding to transfer to a New Jersey four-year college/ university to earn a bachelor’s degree.
NJ STARS II Benefits
ü The NJ STARS II award will be based on tuition only, except for Tuition Aid Grant recipients who will receive NJ STARS II awards based on tuition and approved fees. The amount of the NJ STARS II award will be determined after all other State and Federal grants and scholarships are applied to these charges, not to exceed $1,250 per semester.
ü The State funds 100% of the NJ STARS II award, while students will be responsible for any remaining balance. NJ STARS II awards are dependent upon annual State appropriations.
ü Approved Fees – Applies to NJ STARS II Students Receiving Tuition Aid Grants
ü All fees charged by a New Jersey four-year institution that are mandatory for attendance as well as any fees required for a specific program of study are approved.
Student Eligibility
ü Students must be NJ STARS recipients or non-funded (tuition and approved fees fully covered by other State and/or Federal aid) during the semester of county college graduation.
ü NJ STARS students must have graduated from a NJ county college with an associate degree and a GPA of 3.25 or higher.
ü Family income (including taxable and untaxed income) must be less than $250,000.
ü Students must be admitted to a New Jersey four-year institution that participates in the Tuition Aid Grant (TAG) Program. Note: NJ STARS eligibility does not guarantee admission to a New Jersey four-year college or university.
ü Students must begin NJ STARS II program participation no later than the second semester immediately following county college graduation.
ü Students must be enrolled in a full-time course of study (minimum 12 college-level credits) each semester.
ü Students must apply for all forms of State and Federal need-based grants and merit scholarships and submit any requested documentation to complete or verify application data within established State deadlines.
Application Process
ü Must meet all admission or application requirements established by the New Jersey four-year institution.
ü Must meet all institutional deadlines for admission and financial aid.
ü Once admitted, students must submit to the New Jersey four-year institution a final county college transcript that reflects a cumulative GPA of 3.25 or higher.
ü Must file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) annually within established State deadlines.
For more information about NJ STARS II, contact the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority at www.hesaa.org or call (800) 792-8670.
Career Spotlight
Cosmetology
The field of cosmetology encompasses several occupations including hairstylist/cosmetologist, make-up artist, barber, skin care specialist and nail technician.
Educational Requirements:
In order to work as a hairstylist/cosmetologist, one must attend a state-licensed barber or cosmetology school. Training programs in cosmetology vary. Manicurist and skin care training programs are not as long as traditional cosmetology programs. Students can expect to take courses in basic safety and sanitation, hair care including coloring, cutting, and styling, hair removal and waxing, nail care, skin analysis and care, and salon management.
Other Requirements – Cosmetologists:
All personal appearance workers, including hairstylists, hairdressers and cosmetologists, but not shampooers, must be licensed. Upon completion of a state-approved training program in cosmetology, one usually must take a state-administered licensing exam. There are generally separate exams for manicurists/pedicurists, and skin care specialists.
Job Outlook and Wages:
Overall employment of barbers, cosmetologists, and other personal appearance workers is projected to grow much faster (14%) than the average for all occupations through 2020, but the amount of growth will vary by specialty. Earnings can vary by location, specialty, and experience but the median hourly income for 2010 was $10.82 per hour ($22,500 annual).
Cosmetology Programs in our Area
The Lab – Paul Mitchell Partner School
25 Scotch Road, Suite A
Ewing, NJ 08628
(609) 406-0444
www.lab.paulmitchell.edu
Mercer County Technical Schools
1085 Old Trenton Road
Trenton, NJ 08690
(609) 586-5144
www.mcts.edu
For additional information, visit http://www.bls.gov/ooh/personal-care-and-service/barbers-hairdressers-and-cosmetologists.htm.
Community Resources
THE TCNJ CLINIC – FAMILY COUNSELI NG & THERAPY SERVICES
The TCNJ Clinic is a community based clinic providing low cost supervised Family Therapy, Counseling and Training serving Mercer County and surrounding communities. The Clinic is located on the campus grounds of TCNJ, Forcina Hall, Room 124.
Services are provided by graduate-level or post graduate interns who facilitate individual and group counseling, as well as marriage and family therapy. Fees are based on a sliding scale. Clients seen by graduate students or post graduate clinicians are under the direct supervision of licensed professionals with experience and expertise. The team approach to treatment utilizes live supervision and DVD recording for the benefit of clients. The TCNJ Clinic offers a wide assortment of services:
Family Therapy and Counseling
Assessment and evaluation of family functioning
Treatment and family systems problems including:
Adapting to predictable family life cycle transitions
Communication problems between family members
School-or-work-related problems affecting the family
Problems with child and adolescent behavior