COVID-19 Points to Remember for High School Students

In the wake of the COVID-19 crisis, things are obviously not running as smoothly as normal. As students wind down one academic year and begin to look ahead to another, there is the opportunity for a lot of things to fall through the cracks. So, rather than my traditional piece, I thought I’d just review a handful of miscellaneous points that students and families need to keep in consideration.





For students with more high school left to go:


--Take time to consider the courses you want to take next year and make sure you have conveyed those thoughts to your school.


--Make sure that you finish this school year strong, even if school feels different right now.


--Inquire about any fees or fines you might have at your school and clear those prior to the end of the school year.


--Make an effort to return things like books or technology you might have borrowed from your school to avoid fines in the future.


--Maintain good study habits. These days, schedules are altered, different people are home at different times and with those changes it might be easier to put school work on the back burner. Don’t let this happen. Developing poor academic habits now will make it harder to approach school the right way down the road.


--In addition to habits, think about skills. Watch out for the summer slide. If ever there was a summer to read a book or find some games involving math online, this is it.





For students headed to college:


--Ensure your final transcripts make it to your college. If you mentioned to your counselor in February that you might be headed to State College, that doesn’t count. Most schools have a formal way, close to graduation, where you tell them where you want your final transcript sent. Be sure to follow up on this.


--Stay in communication with your college. Teenagers are notoriously bad at checking email regularly but this is likely a primary way colleges will communicate with you.


--Be aware of changes that could impact an orientation you might be scheduled for over the summer.


--Familiarize yourself with your intended major’s course sequencing guides. You should be able to find this somewhere on your college’s website. Reviewing this would likely be an emphasis of your orientation, but it is unclear what orientations will look like right now.


--Make some decisions about housing. If you planned to start school in the summer and all summer classes are going to be online anyways, do you really need to pay for housing if you’re able to continue to stay with your parents? What if school doesn’t start back in the fall?


--Make an effort to get along with your parents. There’s a chance both of you were looking forward to a break from each other. You might be spending even more time together right now. You guys might even have more time together going forward if you were supposed to be headed to college, but campus is closed indefinitely. Make the best of it, and both of you will do better if you can reach compromises and try to keep the peace.