Preparing students for success in college, career, and in life is written into our DNA at DSST. However, the colleges our graduates ultimately attend can either serve as a launchpad into a fulfilling career, or a frustrating roadblock to excellence. It’s why we take extra care to ensure that our students have the opportunity to choose a college that will support their academic, social, emotional, and financial needs. This spans from college fairs and college visits to using individual student and college data to help students craft their college list. Across the network, students have been participating in various activities to help find their perfect fit, because we understand that while college acceptance is a celebrated first step, it does not always mean college success.
More than 30 DSST seniors have already taken advantage of the DEEP (DSST Early Exposure Program) program, where they visited colleges across the country. Diego, a Senior at College View High School puts it's simply: "the DEEP program is a program that lets you fly to different cities across the country to look at schools... and it's all paid for." Diego was one of a number of students who went to LA earlier this month to look at schools like Occidental College, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, and Howard University. College visits are an opportunity for students to learn more about the college campus and its people. Students tour the campus, observe classes, and interview with students and admissions officers. The more students know about the college they are considering, the more informed their decisions will be when creating their college list and choosing which to attend.
DEEP is just one of many programs that staff and students alike participate in to prepare for college success.
In fact, there have been many activities across our network to help nurture college success. College View High School held a Financial Aid Night on October 3rd, where seniors and their families either completed or started their FAFSA. To continue the excitement around choosing a college, 10-12th graders attended two college fairs, one featuring a wide range of universities across the nation, and another showcasing 35 colleges across Colorado and the central and western United States. Fourteen college reps from some of the most popular senior choices have also visited College View this month, including Worcester Polytechnic Institute, University of Puget Sound, Fort Lewis College, and Seattle University.
College View 11th graders also got a chance to go out and visit University of Northern Colorado, UCCS, or School of Mines, depending on their academic, career, and extracurricular interests.
Across town, over half of the GVR HS senior class and their families participated in a College Application party on Tuesday, October 30th. Our Directors of College Success encourage students to apply to an average of 6 different colleges to help them choose a best fit and have a variety of options. We understand that simply applying to college can be a big financial burden on families, so it was no coincidence that the party was on Free College Application Day - where students applied to all public universities and several private ones for free.
Want to hear more about the lives of our seniors? Check out some videos on Facebook where College View and Stapleton seniors give us a glimpse into their college success journey.
If you want to see our high schools in action and have the opportunity to ask our leaders about college success, register for an Open House or Family tour of one of our 6 high schools!