Smith 1

Kihei Charter Highschool

KCS College Prep

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Erin Smith

Senior Seminar

Mr. Niko

3 September 2020

Preface

Throughout my time in high school, I’ve had a passion for helping others, along with an

especial interest in the college process. In order to genuinely help people though, a need has to

be targeted—and I believe I have found just that. Considering the unfortunate staff shortage

and Kihei Charter’s lack of a college counselor this year, I feel as though I have the resources

and motivation to assist Kihei Charter students with the college prep and search processes.

Quite frankly, there is not enough attention placed on this important topic, and oftentimes,

students don’t understand the value of beginning the college process during their junior year.

To target these needs, I have decided to create a college readiness service for the Kihei

Charter upperclassmen. Considering the fact that most juniors are roughly working at the same

pace, the milestones and curriculum in which I will present them will be structured and planned

out. With this being said, for juniors, I will utilize my resources along with research and compile

this information into workshop-style, informative Zoom presentations that target seven specific

college process milestones. To ensure all students can have access to this information, I will

simultaneously post these presentations, along with any other resources used, on my website.

Because of this, current Kihci Charter students, future Kihei Charter students, and even parents

can benefit from my project. Contrary to the junior curriculum, I will meet with seniors
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individually or in small groups, and provide them with support, implementing individualized

documents based on their specific needs.

Being a current high school student and having just gone through the college process

myself, I believe I have a unique viewpoint—one that an average adult counselor can’t easily

obtain. With my valuable resources and fresh perspective, I’m extremely excited about the

future of this project.

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Introduction

Driving Question

“How can I assist the KCS upperclassmen with the college prep process while supporting their

individual needs?”

Specialized Mentor

Along with the guidance provided by my senior seminar teacher, Mr. Niko, and other

Kihei Charter faculty members, my project mentor is Patti Pears. Holding a Master’s Degree in

School Counseling, Patti is also a Certified Educational Planner and holds a National Board

Certification. After assisting her son with the college process, she discovered her love of college

counseling and has continued to progress in her career. As my private college counselor, Patti

has provided me with many of the resources I will use throughout my project, along with the

confidence to share my knowledge with others. She is extremely generous and is eager to assist

me as my project progresses.

Key Content Knowledge

Throughout the entirety of this project, there are many things I will have to research and

learn along the way in order to be successful. With this being said, I will have to continuously
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research the college prep process in order to ensure I am presenting KCS students with the

most relevant and reliable information. College prep content ranges anywhere from how to

build a fitting college list, how to effectively research colleges, how to write personal

statements and supplemental essays, how to build a resume, and much more. Aside from the

college content itself, I will also have to deepen my understanding of teaching practices. Unlike

the college prep process, I’m not very familiar with instructing and guiding students. So, I will

have to research the most effective teaching strategies, such as utilizing 21st-century skills or

practicing inquiry-based instruction. Lastly, I will have to utilize the internet when I run into

technology-related problems because my project will be conducted virtually.

21st Century Skills

I believe my project will enable me to enhance my communication skills, interpersonal

skills, self-directional skills, and information skills. Considering our world’s current

circumstances and the global pandemic we are undergoing, I will have to constantly use my

communication skills when emailing student participants, presenting my work, communicating

with my mentors and teachers, and scheduling assistance sessions. I will also have to ensure

that this communication is clear and concise because it will mostly occur virtually, and

miscommunications are inevitable. Because my project revolves around assisting and

interacting with others, I also believe this project will tremendously enable me to enhance my

interpersonal skills. I may be a sociable person, but I’ve never had to interact with people in this

way, and this project will put my skills to the test.

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Although I have access to the guidance of my wonderful teachers and mentor, every

task in this project is completely up to me to complete. It’s up to me to research content, create

presentations, get student participants involved, and much more. In other words, one of the

only ways to take on these tasks is by using my self-directional skills, allowing them to naturally

enhance as this project goes by. Lastly, much of what outlines my project is the valuable

information I will present. So, through all of the research and other methods of gathering

information, I will be able to enhance my information skills.

Limitations

➢ Low student turnout

- Although I am not particularly aiming to get an extremely high student turnout, I still

want to make sure that my project makes a positive impact on those who are motivated

to learn. Based on my survey results, I don’t think this will occur, but in order to prevent

a low student turnout, I will continuously advertise through email, videos, and word of

mouth.

➢ Adapting to students’ different schedules

- Because there are many KCS students who take college courses and are on different

education paths, there will be many schedules to account for when scheduling my

presentations. To overcome this limitation, I plan on scheduling my presentations ahead

of time and on days where there are minimal classes, such as Fridays.

➢ Work overload
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- It may not seem like it at first glance, but this project is going to take a tremendous

amount of work and effort on my part. In order to not get overwhelmed and burnt out, I

will pace myself, take each task one step at a time, and treat setbacks as learning

experiences, rather than hardships.

Deliverables/Methodology

Throughout my project, I will continuously build my “KCS College Prep” website. As I

mentioned previously, this website will contain the milestone-specific presentations I have

created and presented. The website will also provide students with another way to contact me,

as well as links and visuals of resources used, so that content learned through this project is

easily accessible for students and myself. Since this website is mostly for current and future

juniors, I will also create a document consisting of all of the information I have compiled for

seniors. Along with the document and website, I will keep an up to date spreadsheet of

participants and their targeted needs. Lastly, I will gather data from my pre-project and post-

project surveys to gauge the success of my project.

Resources and Activities

Resources/Materials

In order to successfully reach the goals in my project, I need access to a reliable

computer. Nearly all of the work I will be doing will be virtual, so I have to make sure my

technology is well-functioning for both the students I’m teaching and in order to complete my
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project tasks. Luckily, I have an effective Macbook computer along with fast wifi. I will also need

access to virtual college prep documents, research, Google Apps, and Weebly. College prep

documents range anywhere from guides, examples of work, personal work, informational and

application websites, and videos. Although I have the majority of my resources saved in files, I

can utilize research through the internet to enhance my knowledge on necessary topics. Google

Apps contains applications such as Google Docs, Google Slides, Google Sheets, and these will all

be extremely important for staying organized, creating individualized lessons, creating

presentations, and much more. Weebly will act as my web hosting service as I build my college

prep website, and lastly, I will need support and the participation of KCS students, as they will

ultimately determine my project’s success.

Budget

I do not have, nor will I need a budget for this project, as I have access to all resources I

need free of cost. Resources like career personality tests and guides typically cost money, but
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my mentor has graciously gifted me these in particular. Aside from money, my project will cost

a significant amount of time, and this is laid out in my timeline.

Timeline

Stage 1: Development/Project Begins

September 11th, 2020 - Project proposal is due

September 12th, 2020 - Draft and send introduction email to juniors interested in project,
outlining milestones that will be covered
September 14th, 2020 - Research more info for presentations/finalize juniors’ college prep
curriculum outline
September 15th, 2020 - Update “Quick Resources” tab on website
September 16th, 2020 - Plan logistics/meeting time of presentation 1 for juniors
September 18th-19th, 2020 - Work on presentation 1
September 20th, 2020 - Check with any seniors that I’ve assisted/develop documents for any
new inquiries
Stage 2: Project Continues
September 25th, 2020 - Rough junior presentation 1 date, covering introduction, high school
involvement, and benefits of starting college process early
(this is just the date I’m aiming for because I won’t know until I send out intro email)
September 28th, 2020 - If presentation occurs on 25th, post recorded presentation and
resources on website/update meeting with Mr. Niko
October 1st, 2020 - Set final timeline
October 5th, 2020 - Send announcement out to juniors to plan presentation 2 date
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October 8th, 2020 - Check with any seniors that I’ve assisted/develop documents for any
new/existing inquiries
October 12th-13th, 2020 - Gather any resources needed and build presentation 2, covering
personality tests and their benefits, as well as introducing Big Future and college factors
October 14th, 2020 - First blog is due
October 16th, 2020 - Rough junior presentation 2 date/post recorded presentation and
resources on website if presentation occurs/turn in expert interview document
October 19th, 2020 - Update meeting with Mr. Niko
October 21st, 2020 - Send announcement out to juniors to plan presentation 3 date
October 23rd, 2020 - Check with any seniors that I’ve assisted/develop documents for any
new/existing inquiries
October 26th, 2020 - Gather any resources needed and build presentation 3, covering College
Board’s Big Future, Unigo, Niche, and College Confidential
October 30th, 2020 - Rough presentation 3 date/post recorded presentation and resources on
website when presentation occurs
November 2nd, 2020 - Send announcement out to juniors to plan presentation 4 date
November 6th, 2020 - Gather any resources needed and build presentation 4, covering how to
navigate college specific websites
November 9th, 2020 - Check with any seniors that I’ve assisted/develop documents for any
new/existing inquiries
November 11th, 2020 - Update meeting with Mr. Niko
November 13th, 2020 - Rough presentation 4 date/post recorded presentation and resources
on website when presentation occurs
November 16th, 2020 - First progress presentation is due
November 30th, 2020 - Begin researching for argumentative essay
December 3rd, 2020 - Send announcement out to juniors to plan presentation 5 date
December 4th, 2020 - Update meeting with Mr. Niko
December 7th, 2020 - Gather any resources needed and build presentation 5, covering practice
“activities” resume for Common App
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December 11th, 2020 - Argumentative essay is due/rough presentation 5 date/post recorded

presentation and resources on website when presentation occurs
December 15th, 2020 - Check with any seniors that I’ve assisted before Christmas break, as
regular applications are due during the beginning of January
Stage 3: Project Ends
January 5th, 2020 - Send announcement out to juniors to plan presentation 6 date
January 10th, 2020 - Gather any resources needed and build presentation 6, covering
application essay tips
January 15th, 2020 - Rough presentation 6 date/post recorded presentation and resources on
website when presentation occurs
January 18th, 2020 - Update meeting with Mr. Niko/send announcement out to juniors to plan
presentation 6 date
January 22nd, 2020 - Gather any resources needed and build last presentation, covering general
application tips and giving a tour of the Common App
January 29th, 2020 - Rough presentation last presentation date/post recorded presentation and
resources on website when presentation occurs
February - Prepare for final progress presentation
February - Deliver final progress presentation
February - Prepare for final presentation
February - Deliver final presentation