Happy Holidays from Stonehill College!

As the semester comes to a close for our students, faculty and staff gear up for the Stonehill College holiday party! Below are some photos from our lunch gathering.



Stonehill College Admissions Counselors. From left: Megan Adams, Evan Grenier, Shamika Walters, Me, Liz Stender, Andrew Leahy and Eric Nichols




The official uniform of the Stonehill College Admissions Office-The Quarter Zip




John Leahy (Director Recreational Sports) and Santa raffle off prizes

In January we will continue our discussion of the review process by talking about the role of the college essay. We will also document the path your application takes from the moment you press "submit" until decision letters are mailed. Have a happy and safe holiday season!

We'll see you in 2009!

Early Decision Update

Hi Everyone!

Those of you who applied Early Decision, letters have been sent out! Financial Aid packages will be following shortly after. Thank you to all of you that applied to us early!

For those of you that applied Early Action, we will be sending decisions out by January 15th. Hang in there!

Recommendation Letters

Hello everyone!

I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving! Awoken from my tryptophan-induced coma thanks to copious amounts of turkey, I am back to continue our application mini-series by discussing how we evaluate recommendations…both teacher and school counselor.

Right off the bat let me assure all of you (and your teachers) that we DO read your recommendations. We consider teacher recommendations an important part of the process. After all, who better to accurately depict your academic abilities than your teachers? Your teachers can give us valuable insight into important aspects of your candidacy. There is always a story behind the grade you get in a class and, good or bad, your teachers tell us that story.

When considering who to ask to write a recommendation for you ask yourself who knows me best? It is important for the teacher to be able to describe your abilities and work ethic in class, but it is also valuable if the teacher is able to speak from experience about your activities outside the classroom. Also, if possible, consider matching one of your recommendations up with the subject that you are interested pursuing in college. For example, if you know you want to go the school to study Biology, perhaps your Biology teacher would be a good place to start when considering your source for recommendations. Keep in mind that while the Common App. requires two teacher recommendations, you can always send in additional ones if you like.

We understand that not all of your teachers may be able to go into significant detail about all of your accomplishments outside of their classroom…That is where your school counselor comes in. He/she can give us a great summary of all of your accomplishments, while also emphasizing your strengths and areas that you may need improvement in. Your school counselor also acts as your advocate by explaining what is going on behind the numbers. Perhaps on your transcript it looks like you hit a “sophomore slump” in 10th grade as all of your grades dipped. Your counselor will be able to tell us why. Maybe it was a death in the family or perhaps a major illness like pneumonia or mono. Your counselor is there to help explain any aberrations on your transcript and, for this reason, is very valuable.

Some of the better counselor recommendations I have read all have one thing in common: they tell the story of who the applicant is and they don’t let one factor define that story. It is not just grades, or just activities, or just talking about “the illness”… there is no one “thing” which defines a student. SAT’s alone don’t…a grade in a class won’t. It is a collection of your 4 years in High School that we value…and your teachers and school counselor have an important role in telling us this story within their thoughtful recommendation letters.

Next up: Your Essay!

Student Impact

At Stonehill we look for commitment, dedication and leadership outside the classroom in conjunction with the academic transcript of a student. Does this mean you have to be student body president, captain of three varsity athletic teams and be a world renowned trumpet player? Absolutely not! Let’s discuss what we at Stonehill look for when we evaluate a student’s “impact.”

What’s important?

1. Quality over quantity. We would rather see an applicant who is serious about a club/activity/job for a longer period of time than a student involved in multiple activities in short spurts. If you’re dedicated and committed to a select few activities, we would much rather you follow your passion than to add superficial “resume boosters” to make your application look better. It takes a lot to fool Admissions Counselors – we can detect “fluff” from a mile away.

2. Taking a more active role. This could be anything from a leadership role as an upperclassman to a promotion at an after school job. An active participant is great, but someone who shows leadership and motivation is an applicant that really catches our attention.

3. Creativity and motivation. Love ping pong but your school doesn’t have a club? Want to raise money for diabetes but don’t know how? Figure out a way! It’s great to see on an application that a student has taken the incentive to start their own club, create a fundraiser or initiate something creative that they’re passionate about.

4. It doesn’t matter what you do- just get involved! There are no “right” or “wrong” activities to get involved in. Not every student we accept is in National Honors Society, has done over 100 hours of community service or has made the varsity team. We look for different activities, honors and clubs to create a more diverse and unique class. Basically, if you love it, keep at it.

Did you know that your level of involvement is factored into your financial aid and consideration for merit aid? You betcha. Just like we give curriculum a grade, we also grade students from “A” to “D” on their level of involvement and give special consideration to students that work part-time instead of after school activities. The students who typically end up with the best financial aid or scholarship packages are those who shine in and out of the classroom.

Why is impact so important in the admissions process? These students are the ones who enhance the Stonehill College experience for everyone on campus. Involved students are the reason why Stonehill has over 80 different clubs and organizations, 20 varsity athletic teams and hundreds of volunteer opportunities in the local and global community. They stay involved and make Stonehill such a fun place to be, they volunteer their time to help those less fortunate and they diversify the student body through their multitude of talents, experiences and ideas.

Up next: Eric discusses counselor and teacher recommendations

To rank of not to rank....

The debate over class rank…will it ever really end? Well hopefully I can bring some clarity to the subject through the lens of the Stonehill College Admissions Office.

At Stonehill we try our very best not to disadvantage students from schools that do not rank their students. We have a system called “rank rating” in which we give unranked students a number from 1 to 7 based on information provided by their school’s academic profile. The school profile is a sheet of paper or a small brochure enclosed with every application that gives us all the information we could possibly want about a school. This may include courses offered, graduation requirements, grading system, average SATs, distribution of grades, number of students in the senior class, etc. It is with this class profile that we are able to assign students a rank rating based on the information provided directly from the school.

Do we re-calculate GPA? Simple answer- no. Since every high school is so different within their grading policy, we would rather get to know each high school well than attempt to fairly recalculate. “Fair” to us is taking the time to visit the high schools in our geographic areas, carefully reading school profiles and calling College or Guidance Counselors if we have questions about a particular student. We feel that this personal attention to each applicant is more valuable than a mathematical formula used to recalculate GPA.

We also look carefully at how a school weighs their grades. This example echoes Eric’s last post about curriculum.

Student A:
GPA of 3.9 and ranked 5% in their class in a school that doesn’t weigh their class rank. This student has taken all college prep classes and electives.

Student B:
GPA of 3.4 and ranked 15% in their class at the same high school. This student has consistently taken Honors and AP classes and in place of electives has taken an extra year of science and foreign language.

Although the class rank of Student A is better than that of Student B, their curriculum shows that they are challenging themselves and perhaps their rank is not a reflection of their academic success. Student B may very well be an acceptable student despite the fact that statistically his or her figures are lower than than of Student A. At Stonehill we also take into account grade inflation, the competitive nature of your class and why your high school has decided to rank or not rank its students when deciding how heavily class rank plays in an admissions decision.

Next discussion: Student Impact- why what you do outside the classroom is so important!

Application Review: Strength of Curriculum

Hi everyone!

As Katie mentioned, this post begins a series of entries designed to give you a more in depth understanding of what we consider the most important parts of the application. First, I am going to focus on what is the number 1 most important part of our decision: the strength of your curriculum.

Notice I didn't say GPA or Rank in Class...No, it is the depth and overall strength of your curriculum that is given the most weight in our decision-making process. I want to give you all a visual to explain why the curriculum wins out vs. GPA.

Let's say you only had GPA to go by and you saw applicant #1 had a 3.67 vs. applicant #2 who had a 3.45...Would you automatically assume the #1 is the far superior candidate? Well it isn't that simple...

Look at this example below:

Applicant #1

Class #1 CP Statistics A-
Class #2 CP English 12 A
Class #3 CP Anatomy and Phys. A-
Class #4 H World History B+
Class #5 Drawing and Painting B+
Class #6 Intro to Business A

Overall GPA= 3.67

Class #1 AP Calculus B
Class #2 H English 12 B+
Class #3 H Physics B+
Class #4 AP US History A-
Class #5 H Spanish V A-
Class #6 CP Psychology A-



Overall GPA= 3.45


Now as you begin to evaluate the transcript you get a clearer picture.

So let's dig further:

Applicant #1 is taking 3 college prep level courses in Math, English, and Science. #1 is also taking an Honors level History class and two electives in Business and Art. #1 has taken mostly College Prep level courses with one Honors course and a few electives sprinkled in.

Applicant #2 is taking 3 Honors level courses in English, Science and a Foreign Language. #2 is also taking 2 AP courses in Math and Science. #2 is also taking a 1 College Prep level course in Psychology. #2 is taking mostly Honors courses with a few AP classes mixed in. #2 has also taken a fourth year of a foreign language instead of filling that slot with an elective.

Now which student do you think is a stronger candidate?

Keep in mind that this is an incomplete example because it is only showing one year of work. When we evaluate a curriculum for Admissions purposes, we look over the course of all four years and track the progression.

For example, let's take 2 students that are interested in Business.

Here is student #1 and his Math curriculum over four years
9th: Algebra 1
10th: Geometry
11th: Algebra 2
12th: Statistics

Now here is Student #2:
9th: Geometry
10th: Algebra II
11th: Pre Calculus
12th: Calculus

By evaluating these two progressions I would look more favorably on Student #2 because the depth of their math background is more in line with that of successful Business student's here.

The important thing to remember is that every student is different and therefore we do a holistic review of the application. We choose to evaluate every individual to see what their path has been and ultimately make our decision based upon four years of academic work.

Next up: Katie will discuss how your involvement in and outside your school plays a role in our Admissions process!

Application Review- A Mini Series

Now that the Early Decision and Early Action deadlines have passed, Eric and I though it would be appropriate to discuss the process of how we at Stonehill review the application. It it one of our goals to "demystify" the admissions process by being open and honest about our process at Stonehill College. Throughout the next couple of weeks Eric and I will tackle the following topics:


-Strength of Curriculum
-Class rank versus schools that do not rank
-Student Impact: How what you do outside the classroom makes a difference
-Counselor and teacher recommendations
-Essay and supplemental materials


Eric wrote a great post on standardized test scores a few weeks ago, so in the spirit of not being too repetitive, we will not include much about that aspect of the admissions process in our "mini series."

REMINDER FOR THOSE WHO HAVE APPLIED EARLY ACTION

You must submit First Quarter Grades in order for your application to be complete. A midyear evaluation will not be sufficient. This is especially important to students from New York and New Jersey since schools tend to only send the Midyear Report. Please remind your College Counselor that we need First Quarter Grades ASAP. They can be faxed to 508-565-1545 or mailed to:

Stonehill College

Admissions Office

320 Washington Street

North Easton, MA 02357

Fall Travel Wrap-Up

Fall Travel is over!!!! For so many Admissions Counselors around the country, those are four wonderful words. Now don't get me wrong- we love to travel and meet students, but the wear and tear after two months can be quite draining! My bed at home and quiet office life is a welcomed change. In just a few weeks, we'll begin reviewing Early Decision and Early Action candidates which I know the entire office is looking forward to starting. After meeting so many great students, we can't wait to open up your file and see what you're all about!

To mark the momentous occasion that is the shift from travel season to reading season, I have added a photo montage of my travels in September and October. Here are "Katie's Fall Travel Superlatives"

Most Scenic: Litchfield County, CT

Prettiest School
Toss up this year between Salisbury School in Salisbury, CT and Avon Old Farms of Avon, CT. This decision was harder than McCain v. Obama. I'll give the upper hand to AOF for the coolness factor that they were second in line to have the Harry Potter movies shot on their campus.

Avon Old Farms

Salisbury School

AOF

AOF Fall Foliage

Thirstiest Counselor: Jackie Gould of Suffolk University
This woman drinks at least 5 water bottles during the course of any given college fair. I am constantly being asked if I can "watch her junk" while she goes on a hunt for more. She also harasses all the counselors around her to grab her more water bottles on their way to the hospitality room or the bathroom. She is out of control and must be stopped! In related news, I went as Snow White for Halloween and suckered Jackie into being my dwarf. Please see below.

(Photo credit: D.J. Moore of Wentworth Institute of Technology)

Most Memorable Student: Austin from Plainville High School

Austin asked me if I remembered his name, would he have a better chance of being accepted? He then proceeded to repeat in for me about 5 times in a row. Guess what? It's been a few weeks and I still remember his name. Perhaps this trickery works.

Best Ice Cream-Kimball Farm in Westford, MA

I'm a little bias. I grew up eating Kimball farm at least once a week during the summer months. It was 30 minutes from home and worth the drive! On my way through Central MA this fall I couldn't resist getting a cone. Their mint oreo in a waffle cone is to die for! Maggie Mo's in West Hartford, CT was a close second.

Best food at a college fair

Hands down- Glastonbury High School in Glastonbury, CT. The homemade cookies and apple cider made this an easy choice. Keep up the good work!

Worst Day: September 30, 2008

Hit a car parallel parking in front of a high school. Upon entering said High School, I found out I had actually parked at the lower school. So I dinged up my rental car for nothing. No worries, damage wasn't significant enough for penalty. Stressful nevertheless.

Best Friend: My GPS

Last fall travel season I did not have a GPS.....it did not go so well. Last spring I took my stimulus check and finally bought one. My life has forever changed.

Last of all....Happy Election Day! For those 18 and above, get out there and vote! If you need a little incentive, Starbucks is giving out free coffee and Ben and Jerry's is giving out free ice cream! Free stuff just for performing your civic duty! What are you waiting for???

Go Vote!!

So coming up this week:

• Katie will be wrapping up her Fall travel and highlighting some of the best, and worst moments.
• Now that the Early Action/Decision deadline has passed, we will begin to discuss our application review process so you can see what happens from the time you click submit on your computer, until the day you get a letter in the mail.

But for now just GO VOTE!

Enjoy watching the coverage of the election tonight. No matter who you are rooting for, this is a truly historic day in our history!

Early Action Vs. Early Decision Vs. Regualr: What is best for me?

Our Early Admissions Deadline is this Saturday Nov. 1st!

Still trying to decide between Early Action (EA) and Early Decision (ED)? Maybe you're not sure if you should apply EA or Regular. Below are some thoughts about our 3 ways of applying...

• Remember that while both ED and EA are "Early" admissions options, ED is a binding program.
  By applying ED you are telling that institution that you will definitely attend if you are accepted and your financial need is met. Because of this, ED should only be used if you are 100% sure that the school is for you. In most cases you must commit by the end of December, which is 5 months away from the normal commitment deadline of May 1st.
  
• EA gives you a chance to sit on the fence for a while.
  EA can be a good alternative for students who have a strong interest in 1 or 2 schools but maybe aren't as ready to make that commitment so early. typically colleges notify their EA applicants of a decision in early January, some 4 months before they have to commit.
  
• Want to compare Financial Aid packages?
  By applying EA you have the ability to compare financial aid packages with other institutions. When you apply ED and are accepted you must withdraw all other applications so there is no chance to do some comparison shopping. If Financial Aid will play a role in your decision it may be best to avoid ED altogether.
  
• Are you applying early so X school knows you're really interested!
  Well you don't have to! One of the biggest trends lately is to apply early at more and more schools. Some students even feel pressure to apply early because they see all of their friends doing it. If you need the extra time to complete your application, don't rush to get it in for Nov. 1. If you are worried that by applying regular will lead the school to believe that you aren't that interested there are some steps you can take to show otherwise.
  1. Go on an official visit.
  Many schools track who visits. By taking the time to visit the school in person you are showing interest in the school. Check out what each school offers. Some offer Group Info Sessions, Tours, Class Visit Programs, and a combination of all 3.
  2. Include a supplemental personal statement
  By taking the time to write a short statement about why you are interested in "X School", you can show that you have "done your homework" by discussing why specific programs and opportunities that the College has to offer are perfect for you. You can also talk about why you applied Regular as opposed to Early. Maybe you are taking the SAT or ACT again and want to wait for those score results. Maybe you are doing really well in your senior year and you want "X School" to see both first and second quarter grades. By taking these extra steps, in my mind, you have applied early!
  3. Still nor sure? Contact your Admissions Counselor.
  Each Admissions Office has a counselor that is assigned to your area. Reach out to them and ask your questions. We are a friendly bunch so questions are ok with us! By reviewing with you your individual situation we can try to advise you the best route to take for applying.
  
• Is it easier to get in EA vs. Regular Decision?
  Statistically our acceptance rate is higher for EA applicants vs. Regular applicants. Having said that, I bet you would see this trend with a majority of schools. Reason being, those who apply Early typically are the higher achieving students. Their academic profile is stronger, which leads to the higher acceptance rate. So while I won't say it is necessarily easier, EA does give those students who are "on the bubble" a chance to be deferred and re-reviewed with the Regular decision pool.

In the end, the decision is up to you. But remember that it isn't when you send us your application that matters, it is what is IN your application that is the most important. Good luck!

Climbing a mountain after work? Me too!

Hi Everyone!

So this week I had the pleasure of staying in the beautiful 'Lakes Region' of New Hampshire. It has been a wonderful week of fairs and visits and I have met some great students!

But after a long day of recruiting I wanted to take advantage of these surroundings so a few of us decided to do something different.

So myself and two admission friends, ventured out on a perfect fall afternoon. Destination: Mount Major in Alton, NH. Elevation: 1786 feet. Everest it is not but it is one of the most heavily hiked mountains in New Hampshire.

Joining me on this sojourn were:

Julie from Wentworth Institute of Technology

Nik from St. Joseph's College in Maine

I have to give Nik credit for doing extensive research and bringing this great spot to our attention. He said that it should take about 45 minutes to get to the top...it was more like 1:30 but we did stop a few times.

The first "stop" was not planned. Nik courageously saved Julie and me from what he was sure was a skunk. Upon further review it was actually a black and white dog...A terrier I believe. Needless to say, we didn't let Nik forget about this one for the rest of the hike!

Julie and Nik leading the way

This picture gives you a sense of how beautiful the trail was. It is also a deceptive picture as you may think this was just an easy, flat walk through the woods. Oh not true...not true at all.

See? It's starting to get steep and Nik clearly is ok with that...In fact, more than once, he sprinted up some of the more steep inclines. I chose to not do that and instead take pictures...

Eventually we made it to the first main overlook which was about two-thirds of the way up. We had some fantastic views:

What a view!

Julie and Nik agree. Two thumbs up!

This is proof that I actually went on this hike and didn't just let them borrow my camera as I stayed in the car...

Julie wasn't afraid of the edge!

Nik wasn't either.

I was but I didn't tell anyone.

About 20 minutes later we finally made it all the way to the top. It was worth the wait. There were a good amount of people at the top enjoying the view and taking a much needed break.

Julie checking out the view.

All of us at the top. At this point I couldn't feel my legs...

Concrete evidence that this is a small world? The friendly hiker that took this photo? Her son was an applicant to Stonehill last year and I had accepted him! Although he ultimately decided to go elsewhere, she told me to be on the lookout for her other son who is a sophomore in High School. Travel season takes you all over but I didn't expect to be doing some recruiting at the summit of a mountain! I guess next time a climb one, I'll be sure to bring along a few business cards!

Well that's it for me. I'll be sure to catch up with you all soon!

A Day in the Life of an Admissions Counselor

Many of you may wonder exactly what us Admissions Counselors do during the mysterious time we call "fall travel." Ponder no more.

Here's an example of one of my days "on the road." This is how last Monday in Pennsylvania went:

6:00 a.m. First alarm-snooze
6:10 a.m. Second alarm-snooze
6:30 a.m. Hotel wake up call....time to get serious
6:45 a.m. Finally get out of bed.
7:30 a.m. Leave hotel after raiding the breakfast bar
8:30-9:00 a.m. Devon Preparatory School visit
9:15 a.m. Dunkin Donuts stop in Pottstown, PA. Hazelnut latte and sesame bagel with cream cheese.
10:00-10:30 a.m. Hill School visit
11:00 a.m. -12:30 p.m. Kill time. Thank God for Panera's free wifi
1:00-1:30 p.m. Great Valley High School visit
2:00-2:30 p.m. Villa Marie High School Visit
2:45-2:50 p.m. Get gas
3:30 p.m. Take out from Cheesecake Factory at King of Prussia. I highly recommend the Bang Bang Chicken and Shrimp...awesome!)
4:00-5:00 p.m. Oprah (go ahead, make fun)
5:30-6:00 p.m. Nap
6:10-6:45 p.m. Get lost on the way to the Chester County Fair (I think every road in the Greater Philadelphia area is under construction...or at least every singe one I drove on!)
6:45-7:00 p.m. Attempt to find parking and the entrance to the fair
7:00-9:00 p.m. Chester County College Fair
9:30 p.m. Dairy Queen. I went for the mocha brownie blizzard. That's dinner right?
10-10:30 p.m. Entourage
10:30-11:00 p.m. Prepare for the day ahead. Double check school addresses, respond to emails, check voicemail and attempt to regain sanity.

So I hoped you learned a few things about what exactly we do when we mysteriously disappear each fall! It's no wonder we're so excited to read all your Early Action and Early Decision applications come November after 8 weeks of such a hectic schedule! But honestly, it's the great students and counselors that we meet that keep us energized. Admissions Counselors are crazy, outgoing people so we love meeting new folks everyday! It can sometimes be a draining job, but also one that is so fun and rewarding for all of us. There's something so fulfilling about meeting a student early in their Junior or Senior year and later reading their application to learn more about what makes them tick!

I just finished up two weeks in the great state of PA. It's one of my favorite places to visit since I get to mix a bit of business with pleasure. About half my family and friends live there so I got a chance to see my sister's college field hockey team, eat homemade Italian food at Aunt Cathy and Uncle Bob's, and catch up with some of my college friends. Stonehill also sent me to Pittsburgh for the first time to scope out some area high schools and college fairs. It was personally really exciting to visit a new place and see what kind of interest I could drum up in this area.

This week I'm in Central, MA recruiting where I grew up...and yes, that means staying with my parents in Westminster. Where exactly is Westminster, MA? Good question....and one people often ask. See map below to expand your central MA knowledge. It may come in handy some day! What does Westminster have to offer? This quaint New England town is home to the original Westminster Crackers, The Old Mill, Wachusett Brewery and less than 1/2 of Wachusett Mountain Ski Area (technically it's in Princeton, but who's counting?)

Who says you can never go home? There is no turn down service here and certainly no take-out. The comforts of a hotel are far behind me but getting to sleep in my old bed is kind of a nice perk. Today was a unique day because I got to go back to Oakmont Regional High School where I graduated in 2003. It was great to see what was new and reconnect with my former counselor Mrs. Dubovick and some teachers I hadn't seen in years. I even ate lunch in the faculty dining room! Talk about going back in style! I'll be here until Thursday and then off to Cleveland, Ohio on Monday! After Cleveland I'll be balancing my time between Western MA and Hartford, CT. More travel updates to come!

The Great SAT Debate...

Hello from Syracuse, NY!

I have met some wonderful students from this area, and besides our frequent requests to hear each other's respective accents (My Boston accent is nearly non-existent, but these kids had their up-state NY accents on full blast!), there have been many questions about how we view standardized test scores. Typical conversation goes something like this:

Student: "How much do you weigh the SAT and ACT?"
Me: "Well, we are actually test-optional so you don't have to submit SAT/ACT scores for admission.
Student: But if I don't send them it will look bad right?"
Me: Nope! The best indicator for us to know how well you'll do at Stonehill, is how well you are doing here and not the scores of the SAT/ACT.
Student: really?

Really!

School counselors in High School tend to get excited when they find out about another school that has abandoned the SAT. They tell me that they have always felt the SAT was hurting some of their brightest kids in terms of Admission into college, and by adding the writing section, the time it takes to complete the test has become an issue as well.

So why has it taken so long for Colleges to get the message?

I suppose stats have something to do with it...

SAT averages are a criterion of the coveted US News and World Report College Rankings. And most College Trustees want their school to be ranked as high as possible. SAT's are universally known, so if you are able to quote high averages, than your school has instant prestige in the eyes of many. The SAT has been ingrained in our society as the tell-tale indicator of intelligence. And admit it or not I bet most of the parents out there reading this are able to recall right away their own SAT score...but what if I asked you what your High School GPA was? Could you recall that?

Well, Stonehill is one of about 800 schools in this country who have attempted to put the spotlight back on a student's performance and course selection in High School as the most important measures of Admission. While I can't speak for all Colleges and Universities that have removed the SAT as a requirement I can tell you that there are at least 3 reasons why I feel we made this decision:

• The SAT is not reliable as a stand-alone indicator of success in college

Sure if you take SAT scores together with results in high school, you do get some increased validity...But tell that to the student who can't afford to take the test 4 times to improve their score or can't pay for that expensive test prep program which promises to (and in most cases can) raise their score at least 100 points.

• We can do just as good a job admitting quality students without the test.

Don't take my word for it. Ask Bates. They have been test-optional for over 20 years and they found that the average difference in freshman year GPA's between submitters and non-submitters of the SAT was .01! This was not a small sampling over a few years, rather this sample was made up of every single student that attended Bates over the span of 20 years! 20! and the differences were non-existent. The found the same results when looking at graduation rates too!

• We can't ignore how the SAT tends to adversely effect underrepresented populations like first-generation students and students of color

As family income levels rise, so do the average SAT results of the students who are taking them. SAT average scores are lower across the board for the very populations who need the most assistance in the admissions process; namely historically underrepresented populations, including first-generation students and students of color. I believe that an indicator so intertwined with socio-economic status should not be a requirement in the admission process.

That is why I am glad that Stonehill made this decision, and why I think many others (Wake Forest being the most recent) will continue to do the same.

Just as Rome wasn't built in a day, a student's admission into college shouldn't be torn down in a single SATurday...

New Science Center-first look!

Exterior of the new Science Center

So exciting! You are literally getting one of the first looks of Stonehill's brand new Science Center! I had the opportunity to attend a 'behind the scenes' tour with a few other folks on campus to see how the new project was coming along.


Admissions Counselors Shamika Walters and Andrew Leahy showing off their hard hats.

Andrew reminds us all what's really important

View from the main entrance

View of Donahue Hall from the second floor

Features of the new Science Center:
-Will house the departments of Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Neuroscience and Psychology
-Animal labs (including small mammals) for testing and observation
- Psychology observation rooms equiped with recording devices
-"Clabs" aka classrooms + labs in the same room.
-Atrium for events, speakers, student lounge area and cafe. Seats 500+ people
-Additional faculty offices, classrooms, labs and storage spaces for equipment

The "clabs" seem to be what the Science Faculty seem really excited about. This will enable a faculty member to lecture on a subject and immediately move the students over to their lab area to apply what they're learning to an experiment. In the current science center, students have class on one day and have to wait a few days to use this knowledge in a lab setting. Now there will be a direct connection between the two!

Below are two videos I took of the building project. The first video is a new Microbiology classroom as described by Professor Curtin who teaches Chemistry at Stonehill. The second video is a second story view of the atrium.

'

Want to see more? Here's the renderings of how the building will look next fall. http://www.stonehill.edu/x13009.xml

High School of the Week!

This is a shout out to a wonderful school in New Hampshire...Bishop Guertin, a.k.a, BG. Now BG is a great school. There are many wonderful activities students can choose from, they have an excellent curriculum which most of their students take full advantage of, and these kids are involved....really involved! Whether it's sports, clubs, or community service, BG students are very busy! We have been lucky over the years to matriculate dozens of these fine students, and most of them continue to make an impact and a lasting impression on our campus.

I am highlighted BG because I always feel so welcome at their college fair! I was at their fair early this week and, as usual, I wasn't disappointed. First of all, the counseling staff is very friendly. They even hand you their School Profile which is attached to a piece of chocolate! I don't know about you, but if anything is attached to candy I am more apt to pay attention!

I am glad that this fair is always scheduled early on in my travel season, because this is usually the kick start I need to head out on the road.

Yet, what truly makes this fair great is not just the chocolate, the attentive staff or the fact that I see many students, it's the fact that the students come to the table armed with excellent questions. Instead of just asking "how's your Psychology program", they ask "I'm interested in studying Child Developmental Psychology, what can Stonehill offer me in terms of curriculum and internship opportunities?"


Now that's what I call a quality question! I am always looking forward to a spirited game of "Stump the Admissions Counselor", because it challenges me to be aware of the latest and greatest that Stonehill has to offer and to be able to relay that info back to the prospective student...BG students never disappoint when it comes to this!


Now here is what my table at the fair looked like at 1:29, right before the fair started...





And this was my view at 1:31pm!







So thanks BG for reminding me why I like my job so much. I look forward to reviewing your applications soon!


Now I am off to Up-State NY next week. Will catch up with you soon!

Travel has Begun!

Yes faithful readers...our Office is out on the road in full force!

Let's see...last week, Liz was in Kansas, Megan was in St. Louis, Linda was in Florida, and Sam was in Atlanta, GA. If you are interested, you can see where we will all be this Fall, by visiting the "On the Road" section of our website!

Travel is an exciting time in Admissions...It is a chance to reconnect with colleagues and friends that have the same territory as you. Like seeing an old friend from childhood, an Admissions Counselor can go for a year without seeing a fellow Counselor, and yet, can reconnect instantly without missing a beat. It's funny how much the alphabet plays a role in who you know best on the road. For the most part, Colleges are in alphabetical order at college fairs. Therefore I know very well the Counselors from Suffolk, Sterling, and Stevens, but it took a while to move down the alphabet and introduce myself To Josh at Lesley and Cathy at Curry! My friend Meghan who used to work here and now is at Endicott mentioend that it will be hard getting used to "another part of the alphabet" at college fairs!

Travel is also a time to reconnect with hundreds of school counselor office's in High Schools all over the country! Between the 11 of us in the office we will visit thousands of High Schools and meet with some wonderful school counselors and their interested students.

I began my travel this past Friday in New Hampshire. I was visiting schools in the Portsmouth area. Portsmouth High School happened to be my first visit of the season. Portsmouth is a great school with a wonderful College Counselor named Mr. Modern. I always remind him about my first year at Stonehill when I visited him at Portsmouth and found myself in the middle of a fire drill. Without missing a beat, Mr. Modern brought over the students that were interested in Stonehill and we all met outside to talk. He has always been very nice to me over the years and it is clear that he knows his students well. I met with 6 wonderful students and they asked some great questions.

Quick tip to all you students out there: If you are interested in a College that is visiting your school, come prepared with a few questions to ask the Admissions Counselor at the visit. We all meet hundreds of students a year, but we are more apt to remember the ones that have clearly done their "homework" and ask some insightful questions during the High School visit!

Next up is Nashua, New Hampshire. I'll be sure to post an update soon!

Greg Mortenson comes to Stonehill

This Friday Stonehill hosted Greg Mortenson, author of the New York Times bestselling Three Cups of Tea. This event was open to the entire Stonehill community and the public, but most specifically geared towards the First-Year Class. Three Cups of Tea was assigned to the class of 2012 as their summer writing requirement. These students were encouraged to discuss the book with their Peer Mentors and orientation groups and to attend Mr. Mortenson's speech as a group. The Admissions Office also invited area high schools to attend and over 200 students and faculty members attended.



Packed house!

Greg Mortenson's speech

Standing ovation for Greg Mortenson

During his speech, Mortenson highlighted the main points of his book by taking the audience through his journey from a failed ascent to the peak of K2, to building schools in the most remote areas of Pakistan and Afghanistan. He stressed the importance of educating girls in these societies since they have such an impact in these communities, especially in regards to combating terrorism by influencing their sons. At the end of his speech, the audience was given the opportunity to ask questions directly to Mr. Mortenson for approximately a half hour. For a detailed account of Greg Mortenson's speech, check out this article. http://www.stonehill.edu/x13967.xml

Into the Streets Day

In earlier post I had mentioned that I would be participating in Into the Streets Day. Into the Streets is the community service organization at Stonehill that also happens to be the largest student organization on campus. On Monday, August 25th, I joined the entire First Year Class, the Peer Mentors and other members of the Stonehill Community by participating in a community service project in the Easton area. My group's assignment was the Children's Museum of Easton. Our guide showed us around the museum and even let us play before getting to work! Our project was to prepare around 5,000 letters to be sent out to the community to make them aware of all the fun events the museum is holding this fall. Here's some pictures from our day.

College students like to play too! Climbing the tree fort at the Children's Museum

Our group waiting for the bus at the end of the day. Exhausted!

Afterwards the entire group headed back to the Sports Complex to reflect on our community service project. We all agreed that while it wasn't the most exciting or glamorous job, we all had a good time and felt we really helped out the Children's Museum. A mailing of this size would have taken their small staff all day! We were all glad that we could help out their staff and I look forward to staying involved with Into the Streets.

Interested in learning more about community service at Stonehill? Click here!

A Historic Week in Politics

I admit it...

I have been a political "junkie" for a long time. I majored in Political Science as a student here at Stonehill, and while there, I couldn't imagine a more interesting time to be studying politics. I was able to get a unique look into the workings of both the House and Senate as the impeachment hearings of President Clinton were laid out before all of us on TV. If that wasn't enough, during the fall of 2000 I had the opportunity to go to Washington D.C. to participate in a full-time internship with the Education Trust, a non-profit educational advocacy organization. I worked on K street which was a mile from the White House.

While there I was able to witness how the electoral college system can create some intense drama. I stayed up late election night and tried frantically to explain to my roommate who was from Mexico, why the winner of the contest switched 3 times! As we all remember it ultimately wouldn't be decided for over a month. I traveled with friends to the Supreme Court to wait for the Bush V. Gore decision and while I was disappointed in the outcome I wouldn't have wanted to be anywhere else.

Fast forward 8 years later and a tremendous week of politics that may rival 8 years ago in terms of significance has just ended.

First, a woman in this country has never come as close to the Presidency as Hillary has. On August 26th, 1920, the 19th amendment of the constitution passed that gave women the right to vote. 88 years later to the day, Hillary Clinton gave a wonderful speech at the Democratic National Convention where she reminded us of this historic event and put it into prospective as she explained that her mother was born before women could vote and now she was able to vote for her daughter for president. I talked to my own Grandmother, who is 90, about Hillary's speech and she said with immense pride that she was proud of what Hillary had accomplished.


At the same time we have the first African American to be nominated by a major political party as their candidate for President of the United States. Senator Obama accepted that nomination on the 45th anniversary of Dr. King's "I have a Dream" speech. Near the end of Obama's speech he said,

"It is the American promise that brought Americans from every corner of this land to stand together on a Mall in Washington, before Lincoln's Memorial, and hear a young preacher from Georgia speak of his dream. The men and women whogathered there could've heard many things. They could've heard words of anger and discord.They could've been told to succumb to the fear and frustration of so many dreams deferred. But what the people heard instead -- people of every creed and color, from every walk of life -- is that in America, our destiny is inextricably linked. That together, our dreams can be one."

Finally McCain ended the week by announcing his pick for VP, Alaskan Governor, Sarah Palin. Palin is only the second woman, to be nominated as Vice President. Regardless of the outcome of this election in November, history will be made as someone other than a White, Male will occupy the Presidency or the Vice Presidency of the United States.

So maybe the exciting political times that shaped my time at Stonehill will be outdone by the present political climate. Regardless, it adds up to a historic time to be a student of politics...no matter what school you attend!

Is Summer Really Over???

Yes...summer's almost over. The first sign of its conclusion is the return of students to campus. Tomorrow Stonehill College welcomes 637 new First Year students to campus and we could not be more excited! I wish them all the best of luck. This Sunday should be really fun since the ENTIRE class of 2012 will head into Boston for the day. It's a great way for the students to get acquainted with their new surrounds and to really see what the city has to offer. Monday is Into the Streets Day- a community service day for the entire First-Year Class. Students are split into small groups with an upperclassmen student leader and a staff/faculty leader and assigned a local community service project to complete for the day. For the first time I'll be volunteering to help the program and I couldn't be more excited! I will have to remember to take some pictures for the blog :)

On a personal note, I was able to take the last of my vacation days last week. I packed up the car and spent a few days in Newport, RI with some friends from college. Here's a couple pictures from the week.

Brenton Point State Park, Newport, RI

Michele and I

No beach day would be right without a PB&J with your initial on it

Good luck to everyone with the upcoming school year!

Housekeeping note: For those interested in a Senior Class Visit Day, we have officially posted the dates. Stonehill will be hosting students from Monday, September 15th-Friday, November 14th. We will not be hosting students on Monday, October 13th or Tuesday, October 14th since there are no classes in session due to Columbus Day. Scheduling will officially begin in a few weeks once we have the class schedules of our student hosts.

Cape Cod Roadtrip

ROADTRIIPPP! Well...kinda. Liz Stender and Professor Ubertaccio (the Pre-Law Advisor and Director of the Martin Institute for Law and Society) have been busy planning a Send-Off Reception for students from the Cape Cod Area. Since Professor Ubertaccio lives in the area, he so graciously offered up his home for a location. The reception was a great way for students from the Cape to meet others that live close by and make some friends before starting classes this fall. Perhaps some carpool buddies in the making! Below is a step-by-step account of our journey.

Liz Stender: Admissions Counselor Extraordinaire. Clearly excited that she gets to meet all the students from Cape Cod that she spent all winter accepting.




















The spread: Stonehill College does NOT skimp when it comes to food.





















Is that what I think it is? OH SNAP! A Watermelon whale. I really wish I could take credit for it, but Liz's fiance spent 2 hours making this on Tuesday night....I just sprinkled on some blueberries.

Our guests are arriving! Professor Ubertaccio greets Coral Azarian (class of 2008) and her mother.


I hope that everyone who came had a great time! I was so busy I forgot to take pictures of our attendees but I hope the pre-party pictures did the job. Less than 2 more weeks until the Class of 2012 arrives on campus! Best of luck and enjoy what little is left of your summers!

A day at the lake...

Summertime in the Office of Admissions involves many things...Reflecting and evaluating this years programs, planning for the upcoming year in terms of travel and events, hosting thousands of visitors to our campus, and of course....using vacation time!

Well last week was I was enjoying option 4, although I would call it more of a "Staycation" as we didn't venture far from home. I have to admit I liked our staycation! Kelly (my wife) and I were able to tackle a few house projects that we (ok...actually I) had been putting off. One of the highlights of the week was going out to my father-in-law's lake house that he has in Spencer, MA. I was excited to bring our beagle Griffin to the lake to test out his interest (if any) in swimming!

By the way this is the beagle in question:

Now for Griffin, this was a day of many "firsts".

• First day in Spencer, MA
• First day spent at a lake
• First time on a boat
• First time trying to swim (not successful) but he earned a treat anyway
  

Griffin really enjoyed the boat part...

Griffin enjoying the view!




Kel and I also enjoyed having Griffin around!



Now, I thought it was a bit cold to swim...


This is my brother-in-law, Jeff, trying to decide if he was going to jump in...



His own kids and niece finally convinced him...
(It looks like his son, Matt, needed some additional convincing!)

It was a great day and I hope there is time for some more days like this before Summer ends!