NYC kids travel all over the city to attend a vast smorgasbord of more than 400 high schools, many with specialities from law, health and engineering to food, finance and the arts. But each one should offer the academic basics to launch students into a college or well-paying career. Here are some tips for making the most of these crucial four years:
ADJUST YOUR PARENTAL ROLES
“Parents of high schoolers sometimes become hands-off because the kids are ‘self-sufficient’ (they can travel on their own, manage school work without parents meddling all the time, etc.). However, I believe parental involvement is extremely important for this age group. As kids age, our role changes from constant caretaker, scheduler and chauffeur to more of guidance counselor, overseer and enforcer.”
— Shino Tankikawa, mother of two, president of District 2 Community Education Council
CHALLENGE KIDS TO THE MAX
“If you want to go to college, make sure you take college prep courses.
“I can’t tell you the number of kids who don’t do this and find out later they have to take remedial classes, or just don’t get into the colleges they want.
“Ask for four years of math and science. Unfortunately, a lot of high schools don’t offer this. Colleges look for the five solid academics — English, history, math, science and a foreign language. Some schools offer few or no Advanced Placement classes. Fight to get the most demanding course load your school offers, including honors classes. Take College Now — CUNY classes for high school students during the school year or over the summer.
“This applies even to students not going to a traditional four-year college.
“Today’s cars have a lot more computerized parts, so mechanics need more math and science. If you want to become a registered nurse, you need four years of math and science to get into a program.”
— Clara Hemphill, editor of Insideschools.org, an independent guide to NYC schools
MEET YOUR GUIDANCE COUNSELOR EARLY
“It’s important to meet the guidance counselor with your child during the first weeks of school. Say, ‘Hi, we’re new here. My daughter is interested in performing arts. Please keep her on your radar.’ They’ll see that you’re involved, and the child won’t be afraid of the guidance counselor. It really helps as they see each other in the hallway, or as issues come up.”
— Jacquie Wyans, Inside Schools editor, co-author of NYC Best Public School guides and Bronx mom of three
KEEP TRACK OF CREDITS
“It’s hard to tell in high school because everybody has individual programs. We get calls from seniors who find out they’re actually a few credits shy of being seniors. They may have failed a class. They have to do summer school, credit recovery, or they may not graduate on time. It could be a silent killer. Get a progress report after every single semester.
“And don’t ignore gym. Even a half-credit short for gym can hold students back from graduation. Often, kids get downgraded in gym because they’re not in full-uniform, typically a school T-shirt and shorts or sweat pants.”
— Jacquie Wyans
PURSUE YOUR PASSION!
“If you’re going to a large high school, get yourself immersed in a club, a smaller group. right away — an activity you really love, so you’ll be around classmates who really love the same things you do. Otherwise, in a sea of thousands of kids, you’re going to feel lost.”
— Jacquie Wyans
MONITOR YOUR CHILD’S PROGRESS ONLINE
“Use ARIS, the Department of Education’s online information system. At the beginning of the year, the DOE issues a student OSIS, or ID, number in the back-to-school paperwork. There will be different passwords for student and parents. You can see if they were late for class, what homework was given, whether it was turned in on time and grades. It will tell you if a kid is not passing. A color graph can show you how many credits your child has earned and whether he or she is on-track to graduate.” Go to http://www.arisparentlink.org.
— Jacquie Wyans
START THE COLLEGE SEARCH EARLY
“A lot of people don’t start the college search until junior year in high school. You have to think about the admission criteria at the colleges you would like to go to beginning in the freshman year, and ideally earlier. All of them want to see good grades. They also care about the quality of courses. How high did you get up in math? Produce a full and rigorous transcript with a good GPA that colleges will admire.
“The SAT is important. Unfortunately, because everybody is taking prep courses, you need to take prep courses. It’s no longer an even playing field. But it doesn’t have to cost a fortune. Take advantage of everything your school has to offer in terms of test prep — sometimes classes are offered for free or low-cost through a non-profit, or by teachers during or outside regular school hours. The ACT is becoming more popular as an alternative. Figure out where your strengths lie and which tests the colleges you like will accept.
“If you’re dreaming about becoming an artist, you need to start building a portfolio to apply to art school, and it’s got to be good. Art teachers can help you do it.”
— Kim Nauer, director of Schools Watch at the Center for NYC Affairs and mother of two
APPLY NOW EVEN IF YOU GO LATER
“If your child plans to take a year off after graduation for travel, volunteerism or any reason, go through the college application process anyway. It will be much harder to get transcripts and teacher recommendations if you delay it. My daughter took a year off after graduation to join a non-profit in Africa. Only one college that accepted her agreed to defer enrollment; another areed to hold her application on file until next year.”
— Shino Tanikawa
FACEBOOK IS FOREVER — EVEN IF IT KILLS YOU
“Remember the Internet is a permanent record. College admissions officers, scholarship committees, coaches and future employers are all searching you out online to find out what you’re doing. If you wouldn’t put it on your college application, don’t put it on Facebook, Twitter or other social media in an unprotected way.”
— Parry Aftab, Internet privacy and security lawyer, executive director of wiredsafety.org