IRISH WEEKLY

Counselor's Corner

College Credit Plus is a free program where students earn both high school and college credits at the same time, but students must meet specific guidelines and deadlines. If you missed the recent CCP Information Night held at school or have any questions about the application process, please contact Jessica Henry at jhenry@stvm.com as soon as possible.

Important CCP Scheduling Info

Students received the following information via email within the past few weeks:

The following links contain important scheduling instructions for all students currently enrolled in a CCP Course (either here at STVM and/or online). Students should schedule an appointment with their CCP Advisor ASAP unless they are only taking English at STVM with Mrs. Skovira.

Kent State University (KSU):

Current Students | College Credit Plus

University of Akron:

College Credit Plus : The University of Akron, Ohio

Stark State College:

The University of Akron Alumni Association Legacy Scholarship

The University of Akron Alumni Association offers a scholarship for students who are considered legacies of the University of Akron--the children, grandchildren or under legal guardianship of a University of Akron alumnus/a.

To be eligible for this competitive scholarship, applicants must meet a variety of criteria. Click here for information and an online application. Don't wait! The complete application package must be emailed or postmarked no later than Monday, February 9, 2026.

The University of Akron has a variety of grants and scholarship opportunities to make college affordable for many students. Please check out their scholarship page here.

HORATIO ALGER SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATIONS open on December 1, 2025.

The Horatio Alger Association is seeking students who display integrity and perseverance in overcoming adversity, and plan to pursue a bachelor’s degree. Students must have financial need and a determination to turn adversity into opportunity and pursue their American Dream. Visit their website linked above for more information.

Dayton Scholarship Deadline Extended!

The Office for Mission and Rector at the University of Dayton is still accepting applications for the Marianist Leadership Scholars Program. Application review and interviews have begun, so you are encouraged to apply ASAP. An application, short extended response and two letters of recommendation are required. This is a scholarship worth $5,000 per year ($20,000 over four years) offered exclusively to graduating seniors from Marianist high schools. Students who are selected enjoy being a part of a four-year faith, service and leadership group the minute they set foot on campus. Currently, six STVM graduates are in UD's MLS program. Visit this link to learn more and access the application. You can also contact Brother Mitch Schweickart, S.M at the University of Dayton with any questions. Be sure to also follow MLS on Instagram at @mls_udayton to see what this group is all about!

Student STEM Opportunity

The Perry Outreach Program is a free, one-day, hands-on experience to encourage youth to pursue careers in medicine and engineering. The program will be held on Saturday, February 7, 2026 at Akron Children's Hospital, where students will hear from leaders in these fields and try it for themselves by performing mock orthopaedic surgeries and biomechanics experiments. Participants should be in high school (Grades 10 and up) with a passion for science, medicine and/or engineering. Applicants should fill out the online application by the January 6, 2026 deadline. More information can be found here. Applications can be found by clicking here.

The counselors are forwarding scholarship and other post-graduation opportunities to the Class of 2026 via their school email and will continue to do so throughout the upcoming school year. We encourage students to look through this information regularly. We also will highlight some of the opportunities in this section of the Counselor's Corner.

Students should be visiting the Tuition and Financial Aid sections of the websites for the colleges they are interested in to learn about specific scholarships that the schools offer and the requirements for applying.

A completed FAFSA form is often required before a college will consider students for scholarships. Please visit the FAFSA website to learn more about getting this important form started.

The 2026 Jackie Robinson Foundation (JRF) scholarship application is now open! JRF Scholars receive grants of up to $35,000 over four years to supplement the financial aid they receive from their colleges or universities. In addition, Scholars receive extensive support services, including career guidance and internship placement, and they attend JRF’s annual multi-day "Mentoring and Leadership Conference" in New York City as well as other regional events throughout the year. JRF Staff will be hosting a handful of Q&A sessions starting in October to answer any questions you have about the application process. Check the website for updates once those dates have been finalized. Click here to for more information. The application closes at 5:00 p.m. ET on January 7, 2026.

This link to College Now lists several scholarship opportunities. Please scroll all the way through and to the bottom to explore scholarships for which you may be eligible!
This page on Stark State's website offers several scholarship opportunities for Northeast Ohio students. These are OUTSIDE scholarships that may be applicable to students attending any higher education institution or vocational training program. Click here to find the ones for which you meet the criteria.
The Akron Community Foundation provides scholarships from forward-thinking donors to help local students pursue their educational dreams. Please click here to visit its website and locate scholarships for which you may be eligible.
StudentScholarships.Org is a great resource for external scholarships. Please click here for a list of scholarships currently accepting applications. Also, please click here to sign up for the newsletter.
Scholarships.com has valuable information as well as application links to all types of scholarships. It's worth checking out often to see if you might be a fit! You can also sign up for email alerts.

Check out The College Tour, an award-winning series TV series that tells the stories of colleges and universities around the world. The latest episode features Southern University at New Orleans (SUNO), a proud HBCU. Visit their website to see other colleges and universities featured on the show.

There are several opportunities to take the ACT and SAT over the upcoming months.

For ACT dates and details, please click here.

For SAT dates and details, please click here.

Please check out these links shared by The University of Pennsylvania with tips for writing essays and listing activities on college applications, including through the Common App.

College Visit Opportunities & Application information

*The following information was sent to STVM's counseling department by these universities/colleges and forwarded to students in the Classes of 2026 and 2027 Please note that this list is not exhaustive. Students and parents should also register to receive admissions updates from any colleges you are interested in and/or visit their websites for more information about campus visits and events, scholarships and the application process.

Case Western Reserve University is test-optional.

There are no exceptions to their test-optional policy. No testing is required for any of their 100+ programs of undergraduate study. Application information can be found here.

No testing is required for the Pre-Professional Scholars Program (conditional admission to medical or dental school).
No testing is required for any of scholarship or financial aid programs.
If students take a standardized test, they choose whether to send their scores or not.
40 percent of students enrolled in CWRU’s Class of 2029 were test-optional candidates.

OHIO Regional Promise Program

Qualifying fall 2026 Ohio University regional campus applicants can earn a degree for free. The four-year renewable OHIO Regional Promise Program Award will cover the full cost of tuition and mandatory fees to attend an Ohio University regional campus, for Pell-eligible students with a minimum 3.0 high school GPA.

Ohio University Athens Campus: Students interested in Ohio University should visit the OHIO Freshman Experience webpage to learn more about student life at OHIO's Athens campus, to review important dates and deadlines and to schedule a visit.

College Summer Programs for High School Students

The following are opportunities that have been shared with STVM for high school students to participate in college programs over the summer months. These programs are often a great way to show "demonstrated interest" in a school during the college admissions process.

The University of Notre Dame offers a variety of pre-college programs for students interested in various academic areas, leadership opportunities and even travel. These programs give high school students a chance to engage with ND faculty and spend time on campus. Financial aid for these programs is also available. Visit the link above for more information.

The Rice University Precollege Program offers an excellent opportunity for students to strengthen key skills early in the year and explore academic interests through online programs and courses in subjects such as aerospace, engineering, or psychology, applying these core skills in engaging contexts. Please click here for more information on how to apply for this program.

High School Student International Travel Opportunity through BGSU!

Did you know that high school students can earn college credit while traveling to discover Spain's rich culture, history and language at the same time? During the two summer sessions on June 7 to June 20, 2026 and June 28 to July 11, 2026, participating high school juniors and seniors live with a host family, travel to gorgeous cities and gain confidence in their Spanish language skills. Click here to learn more.

NAVIANCE UPDATE

As noted during Curriculum Night, all students will work in Naviance, which is an educational data management platform used by STVM to help manage the college application process, including sending transcripts and letters of recommendation and building a student resume. Naviance is linked with students' Common App accounts and other platforms used in the college application process.

Naviance is not a program new to STVM -- we have used this platform for many years to manage the college application process. What is new this year is that all students, including freshmen, will begin to be familiarized with this program so that by the time they are seniors applying for college, they are well acquainted with how it works. Here are some of the highlights on how students will be working in Naviance over their time at STVM.

Freshman Year

Naviance Account Login (students)
Career and college exploration
Resume profiles

Sophomore Year

College exploration
College majors exploration
Trades exploration
Resume building - service and leadership

Junior Year

College fair
Career fair
Scholarship searches
Begin letters of recommendation considerations
Fine tune resumes
College visits

Senior Year

Common App is completed as part of English classes (beginning of school year)
Resume Brag Sheet created in school
Letters of recommendation
Applications and transcripts

Suicide Prevention Resources

If you or someone you know is in crisis, free and confidential support is available 24/7 through the following resources:

988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: Call or text 988 to connect with a trained crisis counselor. You can also use the online chat service.

Crisis Text Line: Text TALK to 741-741 to connect with a trained crisis counselor.

Veterans Crisis Line: Veterans can press 1 when calling 988 or text 838255.

Please visit the National Alliance on Mental Health (NAMI) - for more resources and information.

MEET OUR COUNSELING STAFF

Ms. Jessica Henry, College & Career Counselor

jhenry@stvm.com or 330-253-9113 Ext. 136.

Ms. Henry has a Master of Arts Degree from the University of Akron and is a licensed School Counselor as well as a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor. She has worked at the high school level for her entire career in the education field and loves being able to help students navigate the college/career process and everything that comes after high school. Ways that Ms. Henry can help students includes, but is not limited to, the following:

Planning and pursuing post-high school plans, including college, job placement, armed forces or other opportunities.
Supporting the creation and management of Naviance and the Common Application accounts for college-bound students.
Reviewing transcripts and providing documentation necessary for college applications.
Notifying students about scholarship opportunities and providing support as necessary.
Notifying students of college visit opportunities and student programs.
Assisting students in identifying resources and meeting requirements needed to pursue post-secondary education, including ACT/SAT testing, essay development, letters of recommendation and other college requirements.
Assisting students in researching college options.
Guiding students through CCP (College Credit Plus) applications/guidelines/questions, etc.
Helping students with AP (Advanced Placement) information/guidance/questions, etc.
Helping student-athletes with NCAA Clearinghouse registration and questions.

Ms. Tara McCants
Health & Wellness Counselor, 330-253-9113 ext 131 or by email at tmccants@stvm.com (Serves families with last names A-L).

Tara has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Master of Arts in School Counseling, both from Walsh University. She has been working as a school counselor for 11 years, with the majority of that time being at a school in Washington, D.C.

Mrs. Amy Gay
Health & Wellness Counselor, (330) 253-9113. Ext. 182, email agay@stvm.com. (Serves families with last names M-Z).

Amy has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology with a Minor in Applied Conflict Management, a Master of Education in School Counseling, and an Educational Specialist Degree in Counseling, all from Kent State University. Amy has more than 12 years of experience working with youth and more than ten years of experience working in a school setting.

Health & Wellness Counselors

In our commitment to educating the whole person, the Health and Wellness Counselors at STVM support all students' social, emotional, and academic needs. They are available during the school day to meet with students individually or in groups and conduct classroom lessons.

Working with students to communicate with parents, teachers, and administrators.

Helping advocate for the individual needs of students and families and assist them in advocating for themselves.

Working with students to help assess abilities, interests, and achievements to help them make decisions about their future.

Providing professional assistance and support to a student or small group of students during times of transition, heightened stress, critical change, or other situations impeding student success.

Recognizing and responding to student mental health needs and assisting students and families seeking resources.

Sharing strategies that support student achievement with parents, teachers, other educators, and community organizations

Providing referrals for students and families to school or community resources for additional assistance and information.

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