CTCL E-News March 2011

RACE TO NOWHERE SCREENINGS HELD ON CTCL COLLEGE CAMPUSES

The film, "Race to Nowhere" is a call to action for families, educators, and policy makers to challenge current assumptions on how to best prepare the youth of America to become healthy, bright, contributing and leading citizens. CTCL is included as a resource on the RTN website and in discussions by college counselors offering alternatives to using college rankings, which often lead to stress during the college search process.

Kalamazoo College on March 16 and Allegheny College on March 29.

STUDENTS NEED TIME TO MAKE INFORMED COLLEGE CHOICE

Policy makers on Capitol Hill are struggling with developing regulations, aimed mainly at for-profit colleges, to creating a waiting period after acceptance and financial aid and before the deadline for enrollment deposits. 

Most traditional colleges have built this time into the admissions and enrollment process, but in both for-profit college recruitment and not-for-profit college admissions, the schools retain much of the power over the process. Students are subject to application deadlines, competition for limited seats, and financial aid requirements, and lots of confusing terminology, all of which inhibits students making sound choices among institutions.

It is important to arm students to make better decisions: comparable information about college options, opportunities to seek counsel, and time. A waiting period coupled with good information and access to unbiased advice is the most basic necessity for good college decision making.

The National Association of College Admission Counseling (NACAC) released a statement supporting regulations aimed at predatory college admission practices and in testimony before the Senate HELP committee noted, "Because the transition to higher education is an unsystematic, often opaque process that individuals possessing varying levels of 'college knowledge' must navigate, the information asymmetry between the employees in charge of recruiting and prospective students is immense.

In an unregulated environment, the potential for misrepresentation and outright fraud is a clear and present threat, which can result in harm to students and, in the case of federal aid and loans, to the taxpayer."

MARCH MADNESS ISN'T ALWAYS ABOUT BASKETBALL

March is the month of the waiting game for college decisions to be released and with it the stress and anxiety on the part of students and their parents.

If the application process worked the way it was meant to, students should be ready for admission to several colleges and happy with each of those fat envelopes-if all the colleges on their lists were indeed good fits and not just place holders.

Too often students obsess over where they didn't get in and why, instead of moving on to celebrate the acceptances and recognize that they can only attend one college. Let go of the rejections and move on!

Parents can help with their child's anxiety, and their own, by remembering to take the long view:  this is one piece of their future and not the determining factor in future success and happiness. For coping tips and advice check out NACAC's Dos and Don'ts for Helping Your Child Through College Admission. 

CTCL 2011 PROGRAMS ANNOUNCED

The dates and locations for the 2011 CTCL national program series: "How to Choose a College That's Right For You" have been chosen and can be found on the Events link at ctcl.org.

In a shift from past years, the Midwest series will move from September to late August, starting in St. Paul, MN on Saturday, August 27 and will include a return to Kansas City, MO on August 31. The Mid-August/South Tour, starting on August 13 in Houston and Austin, TX, will include a return to Raleigh (Cary) NC on August 16. As always, all of the CTCL programs are free of charge and open to the public.

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