SPOTLIGHT - DRAFTING PLANS

FINDING YOUR FIT FEBRUARY 

Juniors can sign up for 8th periods in the College and Career Center (CCC) Google Classroom to research and ask questions about colleges to include in their FIT college list.  Northwestern University has a terrific webpage dedicated to "What's the fuss about FIT?". The three main components of FIT:

• Academic→What course of study does the student want to pursue?   Is the student looking for study abroad? Co-Op?  Research Opportunities? 
• Social/Emotional→The college atmosphere aligns with the student's personality and preferences (geographic location, size of institution, diversity).  Where will the student feel comfortable and fulfilled?
• Financial→What can the family afford?  Never assume you can "figure out the financials later".  Federal Student Aid and Merit Scholarships may be available at your FIT schools. Have honest discussions about schools that are financially feasible.  

In addition to Naviance Student and all the information that colleges and universities offer on their individual websites, there are many external college search websites that may be helpful:

College Board | College Insight | College Navigator

Juniors, FCPS has a student Google Site dedicated to your post secondary planning (GSuite Student login required):  Class of 2022

CAREER PATHWAYS SPEAKER SERIES VIDEO LIBRARY

The FCPS Career Pathways Speaker Series is a new approach to help students connect directly with career professionals. The speakers share perspectives on what the world of work is like, the passion for what they do, and offer words of advice for students who could be considering a similar academic and career path.

This speaker series has professionals from the 17 different Career Clusters the opportunity to talk about their careers in a meaningful way that helps connect classroom learning to work-life and keep students engaged and dedicated to their academic and career plans.  Access the video playlist here:  Speaker Series Videos

Students also have access to the Work Based Learning (WBL) student website with more career exploration resources:  WBL Student (GSuite Student login required). 

COURSE PLANNING FOR 2021-2022

Underclassmen will make their course selections for the 2021-2022 school year with their counselors in February and March.  Students can begin to enter their preliminary course requests in StudentVUE so they are ready to discuss with their counselor.  We hope that students and families found the Curriculum Fair and Night to be helpful in informing the process and encouraging students to consider options they may not have initially considered or were new to them.  Links to all curricular resources can be found here.  

ENRICHMENT OPPORTUNITIES

The FCPS curated list can be found in Naviance Student.  Step-by-step directions for finding enrichment opportunities in Naviance Student. Below are some recent updates:

• Youth Voices Storytelling Fellowship | deadline January 29, 2021 
• Veterinary Medicine Careers Exploration | event date Jan. 30, 2021
• Big Future Days-College Board College Fair | multiple event dates beginning February 6, 2021
• Fairfax & DC Area USA Gap Year Fair 2021 | event date February 9, 2021 
• Historically Black College and University (HBCU) College Festival |  event date February. 20, 2021 
• Crimson Journalism Summit | event date March 27 & 28, 2021

The Virginia Space Grant Consortium (VSGC), in partnership with Averett University, Aviation Adventures, and the Virginia Department of Aviation, is offering flight academies at no cost for high school students statewide.  Pathways Flight Academies immerse students in learning to fly as a first step to becoming a commercial pilot. A virtual ground school and in-person flight sessions will be offered between June 21 and July 16, 2021 for selected students who have shown an interest in becoming a commercial pilot and have shown an interest and passion for Science, Technology, Engineering, or Math (STEM). Students admitted to this intensive program will undertake ground school and flight training that can potentially culminate in their first solo flight! 

Teen Job Fair: Every year the Springfield District hosts a job fair that also includes resume and career building information sessions. This year it will be held virtually on March 13 and March 20.  Students can register here.

MITRE Summer Technical Openings for current 9th 10th grade students:  apply here

MITRE Summer Technical Openings for current 11th and 12th grade students (and college undergrads):  apply here

SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

The FCPS curated list can be found in Naviance Student.  Below are some recent updates:

• Community Foundation for Northern Virginia Scholarships - 12 different opportunities
• AMS Freshman Undergraduate Scholarship – deadline Feb. 5, 2021
• AMS Minority Scholarship – deadline Feb. 12, 2021
• Virginia Latino Higher Education Network (VALHEN) – deadline extended to Feb. 12, 2021
• Hispanic Leadership Alliance Scholarship – deadline Feb. 26, 2021
• Gladys Carol Scholarship – deadline March 31, 2021
• National Pan-Hellenic Council of Northern Virginia Scholarship - deadline March 31, 2021
• Solvable.com Scholarship – deadline May 14, 2021
• Triple-Impact Competitor Scholarship Program – deadline May 31, 2021

OTHER SCHOLARSHIP SEARCH SITES

Students should research all Merit Scholarship opportunities that are offered by the colleges to which they plan on applying and follow the college's application timelines for these specific opportunities.  Some popular scholarship sites: 

Scholarship Sharing Database

College Board Opportunity Scholarships

RaiseMe | Earn money for college starting in 9th grade based on achievements in school and life.

FastWeb

FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) and Financial Aid resources | Visit www.collegeaccessfairfax.org for virtual resources or to register for workshops.

PARENT/GUARDIAN WORKSHOPS 

Register for upcoming virtual sessions at the link above or visit the FCPS Parent Resource Center video playlist here.

Questions?  Reach out to Student Services.

The information provided is for your information and review. Scholarships and enrichment programs offered by organizations other than FCPS are neither sponsored nor endorsed by FCPS, the Fairfax County School Board, the Superintendent or TJHSST. Students and parents should carefully review all application requirements. Parents/Guardians need to confirm the details, accuracy and relevance of any program chosen for their student.  This document contains links to one or more web pages that are outside the FCPS network.  Neither FCPS nor TJHSST controls the content or relevancy of these outside pages.

External opportunities may utilize an online technology, or video and web conferencing tool that has not been assessed or approved for use in FCPS by the FCPS Department of Information Technology.  Students should gain permission from their parent/guardian before engaging in any non-FCPS enrichment opportunity.  Families should review and agree to the Terms of Service and User Agreements for any technology platform used to facilitate these opportunities.