Postsecondary Counseling Newsletter

February 7th, 2024

Seniors and Families,

I have some important updates for you regarding FAFSA: If you haven't heard, the Department of Education has decided to fix a bug that might have resulted in many students inaccurately showing less eligibility for financial aid. While this is a good thing, the unfortunate result is that FAFSA data will not be available to colleges and universities until March. This means that you will likely not see your financial aid award letters until late March or early April. If you'd like a more in-depth explanation, listen to this story from NPR:

For many of our seniors, making a decision on where you will begin your postsecondary education in the Fall depends on finances, this is what our timeline will look like for the remainder of the school year:

ASAP: Submit the FAFSA - if you haven't done so already, you need to submit NOW. Please come see me or scheule an appointment for help if you need it. In order to fulfill the graduation requirement, you must forward me your confirmation email after you submit.

The rest of February: Activate your student accounts at each school to which you have been admitted. This is where you will check the status of your financial aid, including notices of requsts for additional documentation that you should submit as soon as you receive them so that your aid is not delayed.

While you are waiting on financial aid, apply for local scholarships and institutional scholarships! You can access institutional scholarships through your admitted student portal at each school to which you have beeen admitted.

March: Check your student account at each school to which you have been admitted weekly for updates to your financial aid status. Upload any additional documentation that has been requested. If you don't know how to do this, come get help from me!

Housing: March is typically when students are applying for housing, but you will not be applying for housing until you have decided which institution you will attend. We will need to keep an eye out for updates from individual schools about their housing application timeline.

Continue to apply for scholarships!

April: Continue to check your student account at each school to which you have been admitted weekly for updates to your financial aid status. If you receive a financial aid award and need help understanding what it means, come see me! You should wait to make a decision about a school until you are able to compare financial aid awards at each school to which you have been admitted.

May: It is likely that the usual May 1st deadline of confirming enrollment at your college of choice will be pushed. We will watch for communication from colleges as we enter the Spring. If you do not plan to attend a 4-year school, then there is usually not a May 1 deadline unless you are attending a 2-year school with housing.

Upcoming College and Career Events

2/7: 9th Grade career fair

3/13: Spring Junior Postsecondary night @ AHS 5:30-7:30pm

4/3: 9th Grade Career site visit field trips

4/13: Admissions Case Study @ AHS 9:00am-12:00pm (9th-12th)

4/17: PSAT/SAT testing day (9th-11th)

4/25-5/1: Sophomore Inspire Week (10th only)

5/1-5/21: LINK (Juniors only)

College & Career Events Calendar

Scholarships

FEBRUARY

9th: Steve Westhoff Scholarship Application

12th Colorado Masons Benevolent Fund-MUST SCHEDULE AN INTERVIEW PRIOR TO 

2/15: Durango 100 Club Scholarship 

26th: RMEL SCHOLARSHIP

28th: Colorado Council on High School/College Relations-Community Scholarship

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MARCH

1st: Colorado County Clerks 

1st: Meaningful Opportunity through Learning and Advancement Scholarship (MOLAS)                   

1st:  LPEA Scholarship

1st: LPEA John Voelker Scholarship

1st: LPEA Line worker Scholarship

1st: Tri-State Generation & Transmission Scholarship

1st: Basin Electric Scholarship

1st: The Denver Foundation scholarships - click for list, must create account to have access to apply

​1st: Latin American Education Foundation (Colorado residents)

11th: Always 100% Effort – Joe Burtoni Scholarship ($1,000) 

11th: Brinton Family Girls’ Swimming Scholarship ($1,000) 

15th: Durango Elks Lodge #507 scholarship

15th: Durango Elks Lodge Fred Zimmerman memorial scholarship

15th: Durango Elks Lodge Veterans scholarship

15th:Winifred R. Reynolds Educational Scholarship

15th: Sachs Foundation

18th: Independent Bankers of Colorado Scholarship

18th: Durango Area Association of Realtors

19th: RMACAC Scholarship

19th: IBC Bank Scholarship

30th: United Methodist Thrift Store Scholarship

31st: Young American Creative Patriotic Art Scholarship

31st: P.E.O Wanda Greve Memorial Scholarship-FEMALE ONLY

31st: Society of Women's Engineers Scholarship-FEMALE ONLY

31st:  Grossman Scholarship

31st: Durango High Noon Rotary Scholarship

31st: USDA/Forest Service/Rocky Mountaineers scholarship

APRIL

1st:  La Plata Cattlemen & Cowbelles Scholarship Association (5 Scholarships-1 you do not need to be a part of the organization!)

1st: NNMSMGA Scholarship

5th: CESDA Scholarship

5th: La Plata Conservation District Scholarship

5th: Colorado Burglar & Fire Alarm Association’s 2024 Youth Scholarship 

9th: Women's Energy Network: Kelly de la Torre Scholarship

10th: National Council of Jewish Women

15th: Colorado Second Chance Scholarship

15th:  Denver Scholarship Foundation - will take you to a page with multiple scholarships listed, create account to apply

15th: Southwest Colorado Bar Association

15th: Dorothy Gore PEO Scholarship-FEMALE ONLY

16th: Kit Faragher Scholarship

19th: MCA Denver Failure Scholarship

26th: Student Scholarship Essay Contest (9th & 10th Grade)

30th: United Methodist Thrift Shop

30th: Cibrowski Family Scholarship ​

30th: South Fork Fire Rescue Scholarship

30th: High Noon Rotary Scholarship

30th:  CESDA Scholarship

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​MAY

1st: LaPlata Conservation District

1st: Southwest Colorado Bar Association Scholarship

31st: Forward Steps Foster Youth Scholarship: Application & Info sheet

JUNE​

1st: Kelly de la Torre Scholarship (females STEM)

​15th: Excelsior Scholarship

15th: Helen M. McLoraine Nonprofit Employment Scholarship

Also remember that you should be applying for Institutional scholarships.  (these are scholarships awarded by the colleges to which you've been accepted). There is usually one general application that is accessed through your student portal that you create after you've been accepted. Examples include:

• University of Utah - DUE 2/1
• Montana State - Feb 1
• Fort Lewis College Foundation DUE 4/6
• Colorado State University DUE 3/1

National Scholarships

Also check out web search engines and apps:

• Scholarship Owl
• Bold.org
• Cappex Scholarship List
• College Board
• Going Merry
• Fastweb
• IEFA International Scholarship Search Tool
• Peterson's
• Raise.Me (More like a scholarship predictor/estimator for specific schools)
• Scholarships.com
• TFS Scholarships
• Unigo

The Denver Foundation scholarships are open now. Click here to apply

Resources

February resources for 12th-graders

• Senioritis: This is not the time to slack off. Colleges will see your final transcript this summer, and they do have the right to rescind (i.e., take back) their offer of admission if your spring grades drop significantly (gulp).
• Admitted student events: If possible, attend in-person and virtual events for admitted students to get your questions answered and help inform your decision-making process.
• Scholarships: Search for possible fits based on your academic interests, gender, religion, and more.

Opportunities

Interested in Health Care?

Register for the Colorado AHEC HOPE program! Montly virtual education sessions that culminate in the opportunity to attend a free, week-long summer institute in Colorado Springs or Denver! You only have to attend 3 sessions total to qualify for the summer institute. Register HERE

Erin Cummins-Roper (she/her)

Dean of Career & College Counseling  

Animas High School |Tel: (970) 247-2474 | x2272 | Cell: 970-903-1617

www.animashighschool.com 

Schedule an appointment with me!

Office hours:

T/TH 1:00pm-3:00pm

Fridays: 9:00am-12:00pm

Financial aid and scholarship help every Friday 12:00pm-3:00pm