May 12th, 2025

The National Down Syndrome Congress (NDSC) Convention will be held at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas on July 24-27, 2025. The convention is an opportunity for people from across the country to learn from world-renowned experts and for individuals with Down Syndrome and their families to come together each year. This is a great opportunity for Dallas-based schools and individuals to get involved.  Let’s show NDSC that we do everything BIG in Texas, especially volunteering.

We would love to have Reedy students, faculty, and families volunteer at this event.  Volunteers must be 16-years old by July. All volunteers will receive a free t-shirt, free parking, and service hours. Volunteers are free to attend any of the sessions on the day they volunteer after completing their shift. 

We are at the planning stages and recruiting volunteers for the Convention.  We have many volunteer opportunities available and something for everyone, whether it is a few hours, one day, or a 3-day commitment. Both hands-on roles working with children and adults with Down syndrome and back-of-house roles are available. We have over 90 shifts and 1000 volunteer roles at the Convention that we need to fill, so there is a perfect spot for everyone to participate this year. Many of the opportunities are also good for groups to work on together.

Below are two links where people can learn about the various roles and sign up to volunteer.  Volunteers can sign up for multiple shifts during the Convention if they would like.

One-Day Opportunities

https://volunteer.bloomerang.co/web-admin/app/#/join-party?k=6nxdwqdoureh3o

3-Day Opportunities

https://volunteer.bloomerang.co/web-admin/app/#/join-party?k=87isx0lvsn4yl1

I would appreciate it if you could share this email and the links within the Reedy Community. NDSC would love to engage your students and faculty during the Convention.  Feel free to share this with your network as well.

I have the honor to serve as our Volunteer Coordinator for the Convention and live in the Dallas area.  If you or anyone else has any questions, I can be reached at kimberly@ndsccenter.org or 214-762-5986.

Thank you for attending the Coffee with the Counselors this week. Below we have placed important links form this presentation and a recording from our Jumpstart Juniors session.  

We will continue to meet with students and support you and your senior during the college admissions and graduation process. Thank you for your time.

Summer Checklist: We highly recommend completing this checklist!

Recording:

Presentation Link

Important Links

Senior Tile

Reedy Counseling Newsletter

Rec Letter Link – student must log in to access. A parent google form is sent after your student submits their form.

Parchment transcript instructions

Students wishing to take summer school will need to follow the below steps and meet the deadlines listed. In many cases, summer school is not needed for acceleration. You can always meet with a counselor to ensure your pathway is correct before signing up to pay for a class in the summer. Counselors will also reach out to students who need to attend due to course failure.

Frisco ISD Summer School for Acceleration or Recovery of a failed course

FISD Summer School Website  (details about registration, courses offered, payment)

Registration begins April 3rd and closes May 30th

Payment is due by June 1 at 11:59pm.

Review the website for course availability and how to register.

Correspondence Courses outside of Frisco ISD

These courses require counselor approval by completing this form

The permission form opens April 3rd and closes May 30th, students are responsible for the information in the permission slips, including course completion deadlines and transcript turn in deadlines. Please read the permission form carefully to ensure you are meeting all requirements.

Most courses are available online; some are completed by mail.  “A” at the end of a course number signifies first semester and “B” at the end of a course number signifies second semester.  Must pass the semester exam to earn credit.  Note: Plano Eschool is no longer accepted.

·         Texas Tech, University of Texas, Texas Virtual School Network

Did you know the peak of scholarship season is January - March of your senior year? This means more scholarship applications are open, and you need to be applying. To help you navigate this busy season, I've created a list of scholarships application tips and tricks to help you be more efficient with scholarships!

Scholarship tips:

• Create an account on Going Merry to get matched to vetted scholarships.

• Apply to scholarships using a dedicated professional email. EX - firstname.lastname@gmail.com

• Check your email! Most scholarship providers take 4-6 months to let you know you were selected, and often have acceptance windows.

• Focus on scholarships that give you better odds of winning - Local, college specific, and essay scholarships often receive fewer applicants.

• Small award scholarships are far more common and easier to win.

• Write a couple of essays based on the most common prompts, and reuse them

• Scholarships are a numbers game. You need to apply to more than you think. On average, students are eligible for 50-100 opportunities, but typically apply to less than 5.

How to get your Reedy High School Transcript

Transcripts must be ordered through Parchment at the link below. 

https://www.parchment.com/u/registration/5829745/account

All students will receive an email with their access code. This is sent at the beginning of each year. Search your email for “Parchment” as you will have one that gives your access code. Do not create multiple accounts. If you can not find your access code please contact Shanna Stalder stalders@friscoisd.org 

If you are needing help with the ordering process, please visit the Parchment Support page for the step-by-step instructions. Click the “home” tab at the top of the support page for several helpful click sheets. We have also linked click sheets below. 

• How to order a self view

• How to order a transcript- general 

Do not submit Common App transcripts to Parchment. You will need to add your counselor as a recommender to Common app and she will upload the transcript there. 

Once you have set up your account, you MUST add a personal email address to your account. This will ensure that you always have access to this account, even after graduation. 

Our registrar is alerted through Parchment for every transcript ordered. The whole process can take from 3-5 days during high processing times. Please be sure to plan accordingly to be sure you take this delay into consideration for approaching deadlines. 

Should any issues arise, please contact Shanna Stalder at stalders@friscoisd.org 

If you need help with technical issues, you must contact Parchment Support directly, or visit the links below 

Helpful Links and How to: 

Place an order 

Add a school to your account 

Update an email address

Update and Store a Self View Copy 

Contact Parchment Directly 

How to order a transcript and HOLD FOR GRADES (done during the end of the grading periods) 

How to order a transcript

Unofficial Transcripts: 

You can view/print the self view transcript that is stored in your Parchment account. Be sure to update this periodically as the view you see is only from the last time YOU updated it, not necessarily the last time WE updated your transcript. Make sure to pay close attention