WesternHighlights from the 2012 Western Regional Forum
Found in Western News
Mar. 2011
Western Region educators gathered in Las Vegas last month to share ideas on strategies for meeting the challenges of today’s academic environment.
More than 450 education professionals joined the workshops and sessions on topics ranging from promoting college-going cultures to effective teaching in urban school districts.
A standing-room-only crowd attended “”Spectacular Solutions for Small Schools: High Leverage Moves to Grow Your AP® Program and College and Career Readiness.” The panelists at this session helped participants examine high-leverage moves to expand a district and/or school’s AP program. “I can go back and tell my administration that AP is not just for the elite,” said one attendee.
There was a great variety of sessions offered at the forum. At the “Financial Literacy Early Outreach Tools for High School Counselors” session, the discussion focused on helping high school students manage cash and educating families on smart financial decision-making when planning for college. Patrick Moore, assistant dean of financial aid at the University of Southern California charged the participants to make specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and timely goals in financial planning.
Youth advocate and author, Wes Moore led an inspiring plenary session on day one, stressing the importance of a K–16 focus. “There’s nothing more important than the future of education,” Moore said.
The first day of the conference wrapped up with afternoon sessions on teaching with technology, reforming a school district and Latinos and the College Completion Agenda.
The conversation continued on day two with sessions on enrollment management, strategies for teaching young boys, and key components for college and career counseling. A colloquium held on “The Crisis Facing Young Men of Color” featured a panel of distinguished educators, researchers and advocates who addressed the challenges facing Native American, Asian American/Pacific Islander, Hispanic/Latino and African American young men. “Self destructive behaviours can be avoided if students are afforded opportunities,” said Nolan Cabrera, assistant professor at the University of Arizona’s Center for the Study of Higher Education. At the awards luncheon, Andrea Mainelli, the College Board’s senior vice president of Region & Account Services, spoke of the organization’s vision and the success of this year’s regional forum season. Awards were presented to recipients of the 2012 Bob Costas Grants for the Teaching of Writing, the CollegeKeys Compact Innovation Awards, and the award for Excellence and Innovation in the Arts.
In addition to the sessions, the Western Regional assemblies met for their annual meetings and updated members on important issues, activities and initiatives for the coming year.
A Note from Western Region Interim VP David Gupta - 09-12
Found in Western News
Dec. 2012
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David Gupta |
Dear Colleagues,
It’s been an exciting start to the academic year for us in the Western Regional Office, and I hope it has been for you as well.
In the past few months, the regional staff has delivered 28 student achievement reports in all 12 Western Regional states to State Higher Education Executive Officers, the Council of Chief State School Officers and the P-20 Council.
Another recent highlight was our participation in the Institutional Methodology Institute in partnership with the California Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators in August.
Seventy-two people representing 36 institutions attended the institute at Occidental College and the University of San Francisco. This training helped participants gain an in-depth understanding of the CSS/ Financial Aid PROFILE® Institutional Methodology (IM), used to award institutional financial aid. This back-to-basics course used case studies to show how IM differs from the Federal Methodology (FM) that comes from the FAFSA. In addition, other topics, such as the noncustodial profile, professional judgment tips and complex family arrangements not considered in FM, such as family businesses and blended families, were also reviewed.
Two things we’re looking forward to this fall are the SAT® School Day and our annual Fall Counselor Workshops.
Three districts, Newberg School District and Lebanon Community School District 9 in Oregon, and Federal Way Public Schools in Washington, are among many across the nation that will simplify and improve student access to the college admission process by offering the SAT at their schools on Wednesday, Oct. 17. You can learn more about school-day testing here (link to regional story or earlier national story).
This fall, we will sponsor more than 43 Fall Counselor Workshops and 29 state-sponsored counselor workshops throughout the region. These three-hour interactive professional development sessions offer counselors powerful resources and tools to help connect their students to college and career success.
This year, we’re pleased to introduce our new 2012-13 College Board Resource Guide at the Fall Counselor Workshops. The guide includes comprehensive information and tips for counselors. For additional information, please visit www.collegeboard.org/fcw.
We’ll look forward to seeing you at one of these workshops or at the 2012 College Board Forum next month.
Regards,
College-Bound Seniors 2011 - WRO
Found in Western News
Sept. 2011
More students than ever before in Western Region states participated in the college-going process by taking the SAT®. Overall student participation in the SAT grew in 10 of the 12 states in the region, with a greater percentage of graduates taking the test than last year despite the fact that the number of overall graduates declined.
Data confirm that completing a core curriculum and enrolling in honors and AP® courses enhance student performance on the SAT. Students in the 2011 high school graduating class who reported completing a core curriculum received a combined SAT score that was, on average, 143 points higher than those who did not complete a core curriculum.
In California, more than 222,000 students in the high school graduating class of 2011 took the SAT, more than any class in state history and up 4 percent from 2010. The increase in participation pushed the percentage of California seniors who took the SAT above 50 percent. Of the state’s 2011 college-bound seniors who took the SAT, 65 percent were minority students, up from 64 percent in 2010 and 58 percent in 2007.
In addition, California’s 2011 cohort of test-takers continued to reflect the diversity of the state, with 45 percent of all California SAT takers reporting their parents’ highest level of education as a high school diploma or less, and 44 percent of all California SAT takers reporting that English was not exclusively their first language.
California isn’t the only state in the region with a cohort of test-takers that increasingly reflects the diversity of its state. In Washington, the class of 2011 was also more diverse than in years past, with 32 percent minority participation among the state’s college-bound seniors (up from 23.6 percent in 2005). Minority participation in Oregon was also greater than in years past, with 25 percent participation among the graduating class of 2011 (up from 17.6 percent in 2005).
Finally, more college-bound seniors took the SAT than ever before in Idaho, where students also showed long-term increases in mean scores for both critical reading and mathematics. The state of Idaho recently announced that as part of their effort to better prepare every student for postsecondary education, they will offer all high school juniors the opportunity to take the SAT for free. After a competitive bid process, the State Department of Education selected the SAT as the best test to meet the needs of students, as well as the most cost-efficient.
A Note from Western Region Interim VP David Gupta - 02-13
Found in Western News
Dec. 2012
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David Gupta |
Dear Colleagues,
It’s been an exciting start to the new year, and I hope you are seeing the rewards of your hard work.
The College Board and the Western Regional Office staff are pleased to continue to support educators through a variety of resources and events. I’d like to mention a few here:
Don’t miss highlights from the Western Region in The 9th Annual AP® Report to the Nation. Several states showed significant gains in participation and success in AP courses. Congratulations to California (24.7%), Utah (22.2%), and Washington (20.0%) three Western states that exceeded the national average (19.5%) of graduates scoring a 3 or higher on an AP Exam. Many districts in our region have been named to the AP District of the Year Honor Roll, and one, Glendale Union High School District in Arizona, is the 2012-13 recipient of the AP District of the Year award in the medium-sized district category. Last year’s AP District of the Year award winner in the same category, Val Verde Unified School District in Perris, Calif., and one of its fine AP teachers, Michael Towne, are featured in this year’s report.
Last month, Patricia Martin, vice president for the College Board and director of the National Office for School Counselor Advocacy, led two data workshops for public school counselors from across California. Santa Clara University and Chapman University hosted 62 counselors from 12 school districts who came to learn more about utilizing data to support college and career readiness counseling. Participants learned how to access, analyze, disaggregate, cross-tabulate and chart longitudinal data directly linked to student achievement through the use of data sources such as national databases; state, district and school report cards; and outside sources such as College Board reports.
Several Western Region high schools, colleges and universities are joining the AP | Cambridge Capstone™ Program and Credential. This exciting initiative combines the in-depth subject-matter study offered through AP courses and exams with the interdisciplinary global seminar curricula and assessment of research projects and presentations offered by University of Cambridge International Examinations.
Students earning passing scores in the seminar course and on the research project as well as scores of 3 or higher on a minimum of three AP Exams will receive the AP | Cambridge Capstone Credential, demonstrating their proficiency in college-level subject knowledge, as well as in research, communication and collaborative skills. Schools in the Western Region participating in this new program include Chadwick School in Palos Verdes, Calif., and North Central High School in Spokane, Wash. Colleges in the West that have signed the letter of support include Claremont McKenna College, Pitzer College, University of California, Berkeley, and University of Southern California. Please look for additional updates on this initiative at http://aphighered.collegeboard.org/exams/cambridge-capstone.
In the meantime, I’ll look forward to seeing you at the Western Regional Forum in San Diego.
Best regards,
David Gupta
A Note from Western Region VP Al Mijares
Found in Western News
Apr. 2010
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VP Al Mijares |
Dear Colleagues,
I’m excited to share with you news about important work going on throughout our region this spring and plans for workshops coming later this year.
We recently hosted a very successful Higher Education Advisory Group meeting at the regional forum where we discussed Score Choice™, increased communication and collaboration between public and private and other institutions as well as professional development for enrollment personnel, among other topics.
A Note from Western Region VP Al Mijares
Found in Western News
Sept. 2010
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VP Al Mijares |
Greetings! As we launch into a new school year, the Western Regional Office staff are proud to report on an engaging and exciting summer connecting with our constituents across the region.
In Nevada, we held CollegeEd® training for the Clark County School District to support its districtwide implementation. In Colorado, we participated in Colorado Advocacy and Training Day, a general update of SAT® and AP® policies aimed at admission professionals. In Washington, we informed and partnered with Bellevue School District, which ranked 47th in the Investing in Innovation (i3) grant competition.
A Note from Forum 2010 from RVP Al Mijares
Found in Western News
Oct. 2010
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RVP Al Mijares |
Dear Colleagues,
Forum 2010 was truly a powerful gathering of the College Board’s membership. The meeting afforded opportunities to meet with educators, both members and prospective members, to discuss practical solutions to problems we face in K–12 and higher education.
We had a very strong turnout of higher education and K–12 professionals from the west, and they presented on a number of great topics. Their session topics ranged from ethical and policy considerations for the Net Price Calculator and eliminating barriers to the college application process to keeping Native American Students at the forefront of campus diversity agendas and increasing achievement levels of African American and Hispanic males.
A Note From Western Regionl VP Al Mijares
Found in Western News
Dec. 2010
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VP Al Mijares |
Greetings!
As we head into the new year, the Western Regional Office staff is proud to report on a busy and exciting fall spent supporting your efforts to connect students to college opportunity and success.We hosted workshops on strategic inquiry generation in Seattle, Wash., and Pasadena, Calif., where attendees heard from Ed Gillis, assistant vice president for enrollment management and executive director of admission at the University of Miami, and Martha Pitts, senior consultant for higher education at the College Board.
College-Bound Seniors 2010 — Highlights from the Western Region
Found in Western News
Sept. 2010
More students in the class of 2010 in Western Region states participated in the college-going process by taking the SAT®, led by an increase in the number of minority students taking the test across the region.
Nationwide, student performance underscored the critical role that course-taking patterns and academic rigor play in college readiness. Students in the class of 2010 who reported completing a core curriculum — defined as four or more years of English, three or more years of mathematics, three or more years of natural science, and three or more years of social science and history — scored, on average, 151 points higher on the SAT than those who did not complete a core curriculum. Students who reported taking the most demanding honors or AP® courses and those who took the PSAT/NMSQT® generally performed better on the SAT.
Enrollment Leadership Academy Offers Professional Development Opportunity
Found in Western News
May 2012
The Western Region’s Enrollment Leadership Academy (ELA) offers a professional development opportunity for a select group of professionals within College Board member institutions of higher education.
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