thoughts on college application season

The rush, the final decisions, the anxious wait throughout winter.

The college application season is a universal experience for most seniors. Even students that are not going to four-year colleges feel the pressure to find the right trade school, branch of the military, or work force for them.

Though Huntley High School has many resources available to students regarding future plans, they are not all known. Even Laura Martens, the College and Careers counselor, is a resource that not many students know about until later in high school, if at all.

“I think there could have been more communication regarding the resources available and more in-depth explanations of what the counselors can help you with,” alum Emily Domek, Class of 2022 said.

The obstacle in many students’ path is not a lack of resources, but rather where to access them and how to utilize the tools. The College and Careers central page, a gold mine of information, is hard to find and never explained.

“Because my parents don’t really know anything about it, it’s mostly just me on my own trying to figure all of this out myself,” senior Nataly Rodriguez said, who will be a first generation college student.

If students take the time to visit the College and Careers center, like Rodriguez did, they will have an abundance of help and information. Prospective first-generation students and firstborn children looking to apply to colleges, trade schools, or the military often have no place to start.

“They don’t know what are they supposed to put in box A, box B, box C because they’ve never been in an application situation like this before,” Dual Credit English teacher Kate Mennoneh said.

In DCE 151, Martens takes a full period to explain the application process, timeline, and her resources page that takes students step by step on whatever path they are taking. While extremely helpful to DCE kids, others not enrolled in that class miss out on important information.

“I break it down,” Martens said. “I have an entire slide presentation about choosing colleges, I have an entire slide presentation about the application process and what you might need and who you talk to.”

These slideshow presentations are linked on the college and careers website: sites.google.com/ district158.org/collegecareer.

In the infographic to the left, we have compiled a casual timeline along with research to help anyone wanting to plan ahead or stay on track.

For students who have the space in their schedules, the College and Careers class can be a great option to learn more about the possibilities of their future. For each month, College and Careers teacher

Students, faculty can do more to improve the application process Kirsten Sanchez gives a checklist to her students of what they have to do to stay on track. The lists are usually personalized based on the student’s path, whether they want to go to a trade school, military, straight into the workforce, twoyear or four-year college.

“I think the process here at Huntley has really improved greatly with this class and also with Mrs. Martens,” Sanchez said.

However, if students are not in DCE or College and Careers classes, then they hear about resources and strategies through the grapevine.

An assembly specifically for juniors and seniors at the beginning of the year that is the same presentation as Martens’ in DCE would be great for students to have a starting point, a place to brave questions that everyone may have.

“There are an abundance of deadlines and items that need to be completed in order to apply to schools,” Domek said. “So having this resource available would help consolidate this information and ensure students are on track.”

According to 11/12 counselor Patty Zacharias, senior assemblies regarding future plans used to be held every year. Raider Way lessons work the best now, but it should be imperative that separate

assemblies or lessons be taught depending on the student’s interests: trades, military, university, or another path. We strongly recommend that each student tries to meet with either Martens, their assigned counselor, or both. One-on-one help is one of the most beneficial options, so it is important to utilize the support system. “I wish more students would come to us,” Zacharias said. “I send out invitation emails and stuff like that, but students get so many emails [that] they get lost in the crowd.” While the application process Thoughts on the future may have some bumps in the road, students also can put the pedal to the metal and pull their weight. The faculty at Huntley are unable to help if they are unaware something is wrong. “Advocate for [yourselves] because colleges and universities, post-secondary anything: nothing is just going to fall into your lap,” principal Marcus Belin said. “You have got to do some legwork and you [have] got to go after it.” Fall of senior year is an extremely overwhelming time. There is a lot going on: tough classes, jobs, sports, extracurriculars, social obligations, and keeping up with grades so you can ace the final transcript. “Not only the process itself can be stressful, but just moving on and not being in high school any more can be stressful,” 11/12 counselor Danielle Rewiako said. “We’re here to support you and make you guys feel comfortable.” Don’t worry - if you plan on going to college and haven’t decided on a major, know that around 50% of students enter undecided. Some tried-and-true methods include having a list, no matter the length, of any schools that interest you by the summer before senior year. This gives you time to really research, reach out to schools, and visit without worrying about school just yet. Start narrowing it down by August and ask teachers for recommendation letters if you haven’t already. Remember, no matter what path you are going down, you are not alone. You got this.

Humans of Huntley

How did you become a librarian?

I was working as a teacher’s aide and as a substitute teacher at an elementary school. While I was working there, my neighbor told me about a job here at the library. I started out part-time in the Children’s Department, and I loved it.

What is your most prized possession and why?

I have an old camera that my dad got when he was in service, in France. He has been gone for 10 years and it reminds me of him.

Librarian at Huntley Area Public Library

- Pamela Kampwerth

Growing up, what was your favorite memory?

Camping with my family is my favorite childhood memory. We would camp outside, cook over an open fire, and saw many different sights while traveling. I’ve seen a lot: the Black Hills, the Corn Palace, Devils Pyramid, the mountains, and more.

What do you think makes you an interesting part of the community?

I am the volunteer manager for the library, and I volunteer for CERT, which is the Community Emergency Response Team through the police department. I also volunteer for an organization which is a part of the McHenry County Emergency Management Agency. I have basic training in search-and-rescue, so I help look for lost peoplein the area when I am called. Huntley is a great place to live and I try to help out by volunteering.

What is your favorite place that you have traveled to?

I’m very much an outdoor person, so I enjoyed traveling to Iceland. It’s a volcanic island with a national park there. At the national park, two continental plates come together there and you can see both of them. That’s the only place in the world you can see that. There was just so much to see, a lot of falls, waterfalls everywhere. We took a hike through one of the old tunnels, which was like a cave, but it was a lava tunnel.