Weekly News 03052018 to 03092018

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Lillie Henry - Magnet Coordinator

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Mar 3, 2018, 8:41:13 AM3/3/18

to McFatter Weekly Newsletter

Hello McFatter Family!

I hope all is well with everyone. As we begin March, there are a lot of varied activities coming up before spring break begins on March 26^th… For starters, FSA Writing will take place on Monday for all 10^th graders. Students will test in their first period class which will be extended through the morning. (see times below). This is followed by a Student Appreciation Day on Tuesday at lunch and resumed testing on Wednesday, with the SAT Day taking place for all 11^th graders.

On March 13^th, we have our final Parent Seminar scheduled for the year. We are excited to have Associate Director of University of Florida, Else Florido, coming in to speak on “Navigating the College Admission Process Early”. This workshop is about helping students in ninth through eleventh grade build their high school portfolio to increase their likelihood of admission to their dream college, no matter where it is. In a time where applications are increasing exponentially and spaces at each university remains constant, this is an opportunity to gain some early information into building capacity for our students no matter what grade. The link to RSVP will remain open until Thursday, 3/8. As always, dinner will be served promptly at 6… Go to https://preview.tinyurl.com/MTHS-PS-3-2018 to save your spot. We encourage you to attend this event with your student(s).

As always, there is a lot more information below…

Take care,

Lillie Henry

For any referenced attachments, please go to https://drive.google.com/open?id=1CshoGIsR7vw5WtexUMsBPT0Gs6TqfuYx

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Important Dates:

3/5 – FSA Writing Assessment (10^th Grade), 9:15 am – 12:25 pm

3/6 – Student Appreciation, Mall Area, HS Lunch Period

3/7 – SAT Day (11^th Grade), 9:15 am – 12:25 pm

3/8 – FSA Writing Assessment Make-ups, 9:15 am – 12:25 pm

3/12 – 3/16 – Spirit Week, HS Lunch Period (12:19 pm – 1:01 pm)

3/12 – 3/21 – Volleyball Tournament, ARC, HS Lunch Period

3/12 – PTSA Meeting at 6:30pm in the Bistro

3/13 – Parent Seminar (Topic: Building a Millennium Graduate), Cafeteria, 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm

3/19 – SGA Interclub Council Meeting, Room 411, 12:15 pm – 1:05 pm

3/19 – 3/22 – Mid-Term Exams, 9:15 am – 4:10 pm

3/22 – Early Release Day, 9:15 am – 2:15 pm

3/26 – 30 – Spring Break, No School

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Note from McFatter Culinary Arts:

The world famous McFatter “Patty and Tuna Melts” are now available 3 days a week on TUESDAYS, THURSDAYS & FRIDAYS in the Café!

Also, in very HIGH-DEMAND the Fresh pre-made salad containers will be available daily as well.

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Class of 2020 Ring Orders:

Confirmed dates with Herff Jones for initial and makeup ring order days for the Class of 2020 are as follows:

April 17-18 - Initial Ring Orders @ Lunch

April 24-25 - Makeup Ring Orders @ Lunch

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News from Ms. Lynn, BRACE Advisor (Multiple attachments):

Please call (754)321-5805 with any questions you may have regarding BRACE News.

We have some very exciting news this week. Andre Gomez received notification that he is a Finalist for the National Merit Scholars Program. Congratulations Andre! We are very proud of you!

Kids of Character - Yearly Nominations

Every year we are given the task to choose one student and one staff member to represent McFatter for the Yearly Sun Sentinel Kids of Character recognition program. We would like to congratulate K wolanne Felix and Mrs. Virginia (Ginger) Scheppa. K wolanne will be our student representative and Mrs. Scheppa will be out staff member of character. Congratulations to you both. You are very deserving of the award! Good luck on the next phase of this recognition.

Juniors - Broward county school day testing will be held on March 7th. The district is paying for all juniors to take the SAT on this date. The majority of you should have taken and received your PSAT results. Hopefully, you have linked your results to Khan Academy. This will give you a personalized tutorial based on your strengths and weaknesses. Khan academy will help you build your weaknesses in to strengths allowing you to get the best scores possible.

Juniors - Questbridge College Prep Scholars program:

Questbridge partners with top colleges and universities who are seeking students who have excelled academically despite financial hardship. Students should also have strength in character and motivation to succeed. Awards for College Prep Scholars include: Full scholarships to college summer programs at Stanford, Yale, Penn, Emory, and more. Exclusive access to 40 top colleges at a National College Admissions Conference. Distinction as an outstanding candidate for admission to the questbridge partner schools. Personalized college essay feedback from trained coaches. Quest for excellence awards, such as laptops and all-expense-paid campus visits. The application is available at: www.questbridge.org and the deadline is March 21st. To date, we have had 4 Questbridge scholars who attended schools such as: Columbia, Colby, and the University of Chicago. I highly recommend our juniors to apply for this program.

Class of 2018 - Save the Date(s): May 7th - Senior Awards Ceremony & May 31st - Class of 2018 Graduation Ceremony - Details to follow

We would like to congratulate the following students who were offered admission to their various universities. John Burkholder - FIU & USF, Joshua Cooper Mendes de Oliveira - UCF, Brendan Jones - Fla Poly, Ronald Nelson - NSU, and Uriel Scatrut - FIU. Please make sure that you stop by my office to let me know and to put a flag pin on the college admissions map.

For those of you who did not get offered admission (or the offer that you would have liked) to UF, please do not despair. This was an extremely competitive year. They had over 38,000 highly qualified applicants. Although you are worthy and probably deserving of admission, they just cannot offer admission to everyone. I am confident that you will be successful at whichever institution you choose.

Seniors - Do you live in Hollywood, Dania Beach, Plantation, or West Broward? If so, come see me about possible scholarships (also attached).

Broward Schools has organized multiple sessions to help our families complete their FAFSA. See attached flyer for dates and details.

Check out the following article regarding changes to the Bright Futures Scholarship program: http://sunshinestatenews.com/story/senate-passes-permanent-expansion-bright-futures-scholarship-program.

Our sister school, Sheridan Technical High School, is organizing an Ivy League college tour, which is scheduled for next November. They are opening it up to McFatter, Atlantic, and Pembroke Pines Charter Schools. Check out the attached flyer for details.

FAFSA - Every year millions of dollars of grant money goes unused. As a way for our students to get the maximum amount of financial help, the district has tasked us with a FAFSA challenge. To date we have 70 of our 141 seniors who have completed their FAFSA. I urge our families to complete this FAFSA as soon as possible as many schools have priority deadlines. A common priority date for many schools is Dec. 15th. Students need to check with their individual schools to check their deadline. Keep in mind that completing the FAFSA is opening up the opportunity for students to get money to help with their educational expenses. The money that is offered could be free (grants and scholarships), borrowed (loans), or earned (work study). Families can always say no to what is offered (in particular loans). You don't know what you can get until you apply.

I encourage every senior to complete the Broward Education Foundation Scholarship application. It is probably one of the easiest applications. Broward Education Foundation - Deadline: April 2nd - Award: Varies

This is an extremely simple application that is available to graduating seniors. There are many scholarships under the BEF umbrella. Students can complete one application and be reviewed for multiple awards. The application and details can be found at: BrowardEdFoundation.org/apply. I have attached a document explaining the BEF essay requirements.

Transcripts - Some students are still confused over the transcripts request process. All transcript requests need to be made through Family Connection (see attached document). For schools that use the Common College Application, in addition to their own application, students need to indicate how they are applying to the school. If the student does not indicate this, we are unable to send transcripts to that school. For Common App schools: the counselor will upload the student's transcripts as part of their counselor recommendation. There are four schools in Florida: FSU, UF, FL Poly, New College, and FAU, that are using the SSAR (Self-reported Student Academic Record system). They do not want transcripts until they ask for them, which is after the student has been offered admission. All hard copy transcripts need to be picked up from Ms. Martin.

A student can check on the status of their transcript requests by going in to their family connection account. Click on the Colleges tab. Click on transcripts, which is listed on the left-hand side of the page. Click on view the status of all my transcript requests. The student will see the school name, the date the transcript was requested, and the date the transcript was sent. Additionally, there is a confirmation code that the student can use, when contacting the school. Keep in mind that while the eDoc process is more reliable, it takes longer to process. Many schools have stated that it can take 14 business days to process eDocs.

SAT & ACT Test schedules - Please see attached flyer for the 2017-2018 SAT and ACT test dates. Pay attention to the registration deadlines.

Traditionally students take the SAT and or ACT for the first time during the spring of their junior year and a second time during the fall of their senior year. Both of these tests are college entrance exams. Schools will accept these tests equally. It is recommended that students take both the SAT and ACT. This way they will be able to determine if they have a strength on one test over the other. Keep in mind that most schools look at the scores that are most favorable to the student. At the time of registration, students are able to send their scores to 4 schools for free. If students wait until after testing to send these scores, they will have to pay $12.00 to have their scores sent. It is the student’s responsibility to have their scores sent to the various schools. Schools will only accept official score reports which are sent directly from these testing agencies.

Free and Reduced Lunch - There are many benefits to qualifying for free or reduced lunch, other than the meals themselves. Students who qualify for free/reduced lunch are eligible to receive SAT and ACT fee waivers for both their junior and senior years (1 per test, per year). Additionally, seniors who have taken a test using a fee waiver are able to receive college application fee waivers. If a student were to take advantage of all the fee waiver offers, they could save over $500. It is well worth the time to complete an application to see if you qualify.

Fee Waivers are now available in the BRACE office for students who qualify for free or reduced lunch.

On Campus Events: College visits are open to juniors and seniors.~ All students must have a college visit pass to attend.~ The student must sign up through Eventbrite (http://www.eventbrite.com/o/brigitte-lynn-8407916290) to get a college visit pass/ticket.~ Space is limited.~ Students must have their teacher's permission to attend. ~ It is between the teacher and the student whether it is appropriate for the student to miss class time to attend the college visit ~ Students should check Eventbrite often as visits are constantly being added.

Mar. 7th - SAT On-campus school day testing for All Juniors (paid for by the School Board of Broward County)

Mar. 13th - (Rescheduled) Broward College Senior Application Day #2 - by appointment (10:00, 11:00, or 1:30) ** Must register through Eventbrite @ http://www.eventbrite.com/o/brigitte-lynn-8407916290

May 7th - Senior Awards Ceremony - Details to Follow

May 31st - Class of 2018 Graduation Ceremony - Details to Follow

Off Campus Events:

Mar. 12th - Florida A & M University Presidential Tour

When: 9:30 am

Where: Bailey Hall, Broward College Central Campus, 3501 Davie Road, Davie, FL 33314

What: Meet one-on-one with FAMU recruiters, alumni, and leaders.

RSVP @ Division of student affairs (850)599-3183 or (850)599-3147

March 22nd - FAFSA Nights at Broward College Central Campus

Time: 5:00 - 7:00 pm

For registration and information go to: http://www.broward.edu/admissions/JumpStart/Pages/default.aspx

Scholarships: One of the best resources available to our students is Family Connection. In addition to great college and career resources, there is a wonderful scholarship section. It is listed at the bottom of the student's college page. Attached is an information sheet (Naviance Quick Guide) on how to access Family Connection.

The Robert "Bob" Elmore Honors College/Scholarship - Deadline: Rolling on a Space Available Basis - Award: 2-year (60 credits)

Graduating Senior. Plans to attend Broward College. Must meet one of the following: 3.5 unweighted GPA, 1250 SAT (minimum 650 evidenced based reading and writing and 590 Math), 22 ACT Composite (minimum 21 English, 21 Math, and 22 Reading), or PERT Scores (113 Reading, 123 Math, 123 Writing). Students complete online application @http://www.broward.edu/academics/honors/Pages/Prospective-Student-Application.aspx. Students will be called in for an interview and asked to complete a writing sample.

The Cooperative Living Organization - Award: Affordable Housing

Students planning on attending the University of Florida or Santa Fe College. Affordable and convenient housing. $400 per month includes: lunches and dinners (Monday - Friday, No Holidays), internet, fully furnished room, computer labs, etc. For details see flyer and go to: www.cloliving.org.

GFWC Plantation Woman's Club, Inc. - Deadline: March 23rd - Award: up to $3,000

Plantation resident. Graduating senior. Minimum 3.5 GPA. Plans to attend a Florida Public College/University. Application attached and available in the BRACE office.

Johnson Scholarship Foundation - 2 scholarships with different criteria and deadlines.

#1 - Deadline has passed.
#2 - Deadline: April 1st - For children of UPS employees or retirees who live in Florida

Information letter attached

Hallandale Scholarship Fund, Inc. - Deadline: April 1st (to Ms. Lynn) - Award: varies

There are three levels within this scholarship program. All levels require student to be residents of Hallandale Beach from before July 1st of preceding year. Proof of residency. 300 - 600 word essay. Seniors receiving a regular high school diploma.

Cum Laude Scholarship - requires minimum 3.5 weighted GPA and 1240 SAT or 26 ACT.
College Incentive Scholarship - requires minimum 3.0 weighted GPA and 1060 SAT or 21 ACT
Education Advancement Scholarship - Requires minimum 2.5 GPA and 860 SAT or 16 ACT

Applications were handed out to Hallandale residents, but they are also available in the BRACE office.

Broward Education Foundation - Deadline: April 2nd - Award: Varies

GFWC Woman's Club of West Broward - Deadline: April 6th - Award: $500

For young women who make the community and world a better place. Application attached.

Hollywood Florida Scholarship Foundation - Deadline: April 6th - Award: Varies

Graduating senior. Resident of Hollywood or Dania Beach Florida. Demonstrate financial need. Minimum 3.2 unweighted GPA. Minimum test scores: 1070 SAT or 23 ACT. Exceptional community service. Must be accepted at an accredited 4-year college or university. Application attached.

Broward County Gator Club Scholarship - Deadline: April 11th - Award: Varies

Graduating senior. Broward County resident. Proof of acceptance to the University of Florida. Proof of community service hours. Essay. Letters of recommendation. Application must be typed. No handwritten applications will be accepted. Application available on website:www.browardcountygatorclub.com.

American Muslim Alliance of Florida, Inc. Scholarship - Deadline: April 25th - Award: $500 - $1000

Open to students of all faiths and race. Graduating senior from within the state of Florida. Entering college as a full-time student. Minimum 3.0 GPA. Letters of recommendation. Essay. Application attached.

Mahi Shriners Scholarship Program- Deadline: April 30th - Award: Varies

Senior at a public high school. 1000-word essay on "The History of Shriners International" or "The History of Shriners Hospitals for Children." Application attached or available in the BRACE office.

Southern Scholarship Foundation, Inc. - Deadline: Ongoing - Award: Low-cost housing

Rent free housing for students admitted to FSU, UF, FAMU, or FGCU.~ Motivation demonstrated through awards and activities.~ Financial need.~ Minimum 3.0 GPA.~ Information and application available at: http://www.southernscholarship.org

Interesting Websites:

Following are a couple of free test prep websites.

PERT prep - Go to Broward.edu.~ Click on Student Resources, then click Testing center.~ When you click the PERT link it opens up to offer you a PERT study guide and practice test.~ They also have links to YouTube tutorials.~ You can also register for a free 4 - week on line college foundations course.

March2Success~ - www.march2success.com
Website includes test prep for the ASVAB, SAT and ACT.~ They also offer help with high school math and verbal skills.~ There is a high school science hub to help with Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Earth Science.~~~ Additionally they offer a college readiness online course.~ There is a Spanish option for this website.~

[ http://www.maldef.org ]www.maldef.org - MALDEF (Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund) Scholarship List.~ This list is an informative resource for students, parents, and educators.~ MALDEF is not a direct provider of the scholarships on the list, with exception of the MALDEF Law School Scholarship Program. (This can be a good resource for students who have residency issues.

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Advanced Placement Exam Review:

We are pleased to announce that Broward County Public Schools will provide AP Exam Review sessions on April 6^th and 7^th at South Plantation High School for the Advanced Placement (AP) exam(s) offered in May. The District’s review sessions will be led by some of Broward’s best, most highly qualified AP teachers. These sessions will provide students with critical test-taking tips and practice questions designed specifically for the AP exam. As you know, most universities will grant college credit for AP courses if your child obtains a 3 or better on the AP exam. This may save you and your child hundreds (or even thousands) of dollars in college tuition and allow your child to finish college earlier.

There is a $12.00 registration fee for each review session the student attends. Students should only sign up for one session per subject. Registration for the event will open on February 26, 2018.

Friday, April 6, 2018 – Register at: http://tinyurl.com/APReviewFriday2018

Session will run from 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm

Saturday, April 7, 2018 – Register at: http://tinyurl.com/APReviewSaturday2018

Session One will run from 8:30 am – 10:30 am
Session Two will run from 10:45 am – 12:45 pm
Session Three will run from 1:30 pm – 3:30 pm

Breakfast and/or lunch will be available on Saturday only for students to purchase from various student organizations on site.

Early registration is recommended, as sessions will be filled on a first-come, first-serve basis. Upon receipt of registration and payment, admission tickets and directions to the site will be emailed. Students must provide their own transportation to the event. There will be no refunds after March 30, 2018.

For more information please contact Bob McKinney, Advanced Studies Coordinator, at 754-321-2119.

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McFatter Storm PTSA:

Do you wish you knew more about what is happening at School? Do you wish you had more of a voice? You can have all this and more when you join the MCFATTER TECHNICAL HIGH SCHOOL PTSA.

PTSA Meeting:

McFatter’s PTSA meets from 6:30PM - 8:00PM in the BISTRO of our Culinary building. Please join us to keep abreast of activities that impact your students on the following dates:

March 12

April 16

May 15

See the attached “Joinus” document for more information.

Broward County Council of PTA Legislative Alert:
The Florida legislature is considering several measures on school safety and violence prevention.

We must use our collective voices to demand change to eliminate gun violence. School and child safety, a crucial component of effective learning, is one of PTA’s core tenets.

PTA believes that the protection of children in all school settings is a fundamental right and has made it the utmost priority for our work and advocacy.

Currently, the two bills moving through the legislature are HB 7101 AND SB 7026. They contain a provision known as the school marshal program which would give school personnel, including teachers, the opportunity to go through training to carry a gun on campus and act during the threat of an active shooter.

PTA opposes this provision and we ask you to call your legislator and have them remove this language before final passage of the bill. In addition, please email Governor Rick Scott, Speaker Richard Corcoran and Senate President Joe Negron.

We encourage you to contact as many legislators as you can.

Talking points are provided below for you to construct a message.

PTA opposes arming teachers in our schools.

PTA supports recurring sustainable funding for School Resource Officers (SRO) for every public school in Florida. Funding should be provided for more than one resource officer per school.

PTA supports securing our school facilities to create the safest learning environment for our students and teachers. We urge lawmakers to allocate all funds needed to maintain school campuses and to keep our students safe.

We believe SRO's are the appropriate personnel to protect our children and teachers on school campuses.

Thank you for your commitment and your advocacy on behalf of children.

For questions or further information please contact:

Latha Krishnaiyer,
BCCPTA/PTSA Legislation Chair
kri...@bellsouth.net

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Assessment Schedule--Spring 2018:

Please see attached schedule for testing this spring.

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Broward College Dual Enrollment Update:

There have been several changes in the BC Dual Enrollment process in the last few weeks. Please review the DE GUICE TO APPLY ONLINE JAN 2018 document attached. Also, you can go to www.broward,edu/dual for the most up to date information as it unfolds. They are continuously working on updates on their website. Registration for summer opens on March 12^th.

For current students their Spring Break is March 5^th-12^th. BC will be closed from March 5^th to March 9^th. Dually Enrolled students will not go to BC but will still attend school here coming this week, and during our BCPS Spring Break, DE students attend school there while we are closed. As usual, the two events do not coincide.

Also, effectice immediately, students who now place high enough on the math portion of the ACT, SAT or PERT can be eligible to take the CLM (College Level Math) Exam which will determine if they can take a course higher than MAC1105. In the past, students would have to go to the math department to determine this information so this is a very welcomed addition. Please go to the Broward College testing center website at http://www.broward.edu/admissions/testing/Pages/testing_table.aspx to see the scores students need as well as the courses they could possibly place into.

Just in case it is confusing, a student needs the following in math to be eligible to take the CLM exam:

PERT – 135-150

ACT – 22-36

Old SAT – 510-800

New SAT – 27-40

For more information and clarification, please speak with your grade level counselor.

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Sponsorship Letter for Annual Scholarship Foundation Event:

High School Parents: Attached is a copy of our Sponsorship letter for this year's Foundation event. Over the years many of our parents have chosen to be sponsors; this includes in-kind donations; merchandise, gift certifications, vacation homes, and hotel stays. If you would like to donate, please contact Lynn Goldman.

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Reminder:

For any referenced attachments, please go to https://drive.google.com/open?id=1CshoGIsR7vw5WtexUMsBPT0Gs6TqfuYx