A Guest post from BayTech Charter School looking at college planning in the COVID era
“At some point we are going to get back to ‘normal’ and our juniors will want to attend college after they graduate from BayTech” said Dr. Seth Feldman, Executive Director at BayTech Charter. This year, the BayTech class of 2021 will have to add virtual college counseling to the list of oddities that their class will encounter as a group. The Class of 2021 will navigate unchartered territory as they try to figure out how to work through the ‘new normal’ of college search where all the former rules no longer apply
When it comes to college search, the Class of 2021 faces many new obstacles. According to Ryan Hughes, Lead High School Counselor at BayTech, “Some of the challenges our students will face are directly related to COVID-19, but others aren’t. Regardless of how the challenges were created, it is our obligation to help our students navigate these new realities”
As a starting point on their journey towards higher education, BayTech will be hosting a special session on May 20th at 6pm titled: Taking the Stress and Mystery Out of the College Search with BayTech’s Executive Director and College Counselor Dr. Feldman. Spanish translation will be provided, as well. The event will cover traditional topics such as the college search process, test preparation, introduction to financial aid, understanding the UC/CSU/Peralta systems. BayTech will also add new topics such as planning for admissions in the Age of COVID-19, why an HBCU’s should be on every BayTech students college list, and understanding WUE. According to Feldman, “Due to the strength of the Class of 2021, they shouldn’t take any college off the table and should have meaningful conversations with their families. BayTech students should be looking everywhere that meets their needs–all 50 states should be open to them!”
Special topics that may affect the Class of 2021 will most likely include the UC’s decision regarding standardized testing for next year; how grading for the second semester will be reported/received by colleges; creating personal statements that captures how the student kept up with school, their community and job/activities during COVID-19. “The Class of 2021 has a special story to share with the world and we are proud to help them tell their story,” proclaims Feldman.
BayTech is happy to announce that the Class of 2020 has been accepted many schools from across the country including: University of California-Berkeley, University of California-San Diego, Louisiana State University (LSU), Grambling University, Southern University, California State University Los Angeles, California State University East Bay, San Francisco State University, California State University Sacramento, Chadron State College, The Peralta System (Laney, Merrit, Alameda and Berkeley), Mills College, and the Art Institute of San Francisco.
We look forward to hearing from more of our senior students regarding their college acceptances throughout the rest of the year, and are excited to be making this first step to prepare our current juniors for the same success regardless of the evolving state of our “new normal.”
Register in advance for this meeting:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZEudeqoqDspG9BMq-g0up5gc8BKwiK5NDkR
All about BayTech:
https://www.baytechschool.org/