CCR Update

The CCR Update is a weekly newsletter from the St. Charles North Office of College and Career Readiness. Our weekly update contains information to help navigate students through high school and into post-secondary options. A variety of links will be provided to assist students and families in making choices along this journey. For additional information students should reach out to their individual counselor.

• Students and parents can review the AP Student Exam Day document for test dates, arrival times, room locations, and more. See your AP teacher or Mrs. Gomez in the CCR Office with any questions. All AP exams will be given at St. Charles North High School.

• For morning "AM" exams: Students should report for morning exams at the beginning of first period at 7:15 a.m.

• For afternoon "PM" exams: Students should report for afternoon exams at the beginning of 6th period at 11:42 a.m. (M, T, Th, F) and at the end of 6th period at 11:45 a.m. on Wednesdays.

• Afternoon exams will run past the regular school dismissal time.

• Students may not be dismissed until an exam has officially ended; do not ask to leave early if you finish before the end of the exam.

• Afternoon exams will run past the regular school dismissal time. If you play a sport or have a job, it is your responsibility to inform your coach or employer of your AP Exam obligation. Additionally, alternative transportation arrangements should be made accordingly.

• And...

Seniors: If you missed the Senior Celebration on 4/30/25, please complete the Senior Exit Survey and Graduation Survey in Naviance. These surveys are used to send final transcripts to all colleges/universities, military branches, and future employers. Final transcripts cannot be sent until these surveys are completed.

• Log in to your Naviance account.
• Once on your account, go to your “About Me” tab, click “Surveys from your school”
• The Graduation Survey and Senior Exit Survey are under “My Surveys/Surveys Not Started”
• Final Transcript Request is the fourth question on the Senior Exit Survey
• Make sure to complete this very important step so we can send your transcripts to the proper destination!
• When senior grades are final in mid-June, all final transcript requests will be processed and sent.

Contact your counselor with any questions.

Senior Grad Group Meetings are scheduled for Monday, May 19th @ 2:20 p.m. Seniors will pick up your graduation programs and review important details about the ceremony. Room assignments were sent to Senior students on Friday 4/18/25 via the CCR Update: Senior FYI Edition. Attendance is mandatory. If you are unable to attend, you must schedule a makeup meeting with Ms. Gomez. Stop by the CCR with questions.

P. A. 101-180 requires all Illinois public high school students to complete either the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) or the Alternative Application for Illinois Financial Aid (Alternative Application) as a prerequisite to receiving a high school diploma. Additionally, high schools are expected to provide students and their families with any support or guidance necessary to comply with the requirement.

For students who choose not to file an application, a waiver may be completed by their parent. The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) makes available through their website a FAFSA Nonparticipation Form (English and Spanish) for this purpose. Check out our FAFSA Update for more information.

Juniors: ACT w/Writing scores were released by ACT last Thursday. If you did not use the student code shared through your English 11 class, you will not see your score report from the April test date. ACT created accounts for all students who did not use the code within two days of the test date. You can call ACT at 319-337-1270 to merge your existing account with the April account.

Freshman & Sophomores: Your scores should be released within the next couple of weeks. More details to come about when and how your paper score reports will be distributed.

All counselors will be available on Tuesday, July 29th to assist any student wishing to make a preferential change to the courses they requested in December and/or January. Counselor availability will be on a first come, first serve basis and will begin at 745 a.m. and end at 2 p.m. If you cannot make it on this day, please reach out to your counselor during the first 10 days of the semester to make preferential course changes.

Summer School registration opens March 5th!

Register Here!

In-Person courses

• Sessions will be held at Compass Academy
• Session I: June 9- June 26
• Session II: July 7 - July 24
• Monday - Thursday, 8:00 AM-1:00 PM
• *No class the week of July 4th*
• Registration for Session I and Session II is due by May 30, 2025
• $250 per course

Online Courses/Internship

• Session: June 9- July 24
• Registration for Online Courses is due by May 16, 2025
• $250 per course

Registration & Questions

• Students should see their counselor to register
• See the Summer School Brochure for more information and registration forms.
• Escuela de Verano para la Preparatoria
• Have any questions? Contact Alé Chavira, Administrative Assistant for Summer School, at 331-228-6638

Interested in taking Drivers Ed through D303 over the summer?! Please click the flyer below for more information!

• FAFSA - Scheduled to open December 1, 2024 for all

• Senior Honors Night on May 7, 2025 at 6:30 p.m. in the North Auditorium

• Cap & Gown Distribution on Monday May 12, 2025 and Tuesday, May 13, 2025 (during school day) in the North Main Foyer
• MANDATORY Group Graduation Meetings on Tuesday, May 19, 2025 at 2:30 p.m. - location TBD
• MANDATORY Graduation Practice on Wednesday, May 21, 2025 at 7:30 a.m. in the Main Gym
• Graduation! Thursday, May 22, 2025 at 4 p.m. at the NIU Convocation Center in DeKalb, IL

More details will be shared as we get closer to each event date.

Throughout the year, many college, career, and military representatives will come to St. Charles North to provide you with more information about your post-secondary options.

All college visits will be in the LRC (Think Tanks A & B), unless otherwise noted. Students must obtain a pass from the Office of College and Career Readiness at least one day prior to attending, if attending during a class period. This pass should be signed by the teacher of the class for that period you are missing. While we encourage students to attend these meetings, please note that what is happening in the classroom is more important. Teachers may deny the request to miss class if they feel it is in the student’s best interest to be in attendance. Students are encouraged to visit with College reps during their lunch period when/if possible.

If you have a conflict with a college visit, please email Kathy.McCoy@d303.org for the college rep's contact information.

For the full listing go to the College Visit page on the CCR Website.

May 6, 2025

National Louis University - in Cafeteria Foyer due to AP testing

Elgin Community College is offering a series of College & Career events for the fall and spring semesters. Session topics include The Start of College Decisions, Financial Aid 101, Early College Credit options, Professional Etiquette, Discovering Careers, Career Clusters & Opportunities, Successful Interviewing and more. All events are free and open to the public. Events will be held virtually over Zoom on Tuesday evenings from 6 to 7 P.M. unless otherwise noted. For more information and meeting links, please visit https://elgin.edu/community/college-transitions/ccr/

Upcoming Events:

Mastering the Art of Interviews/Winning an Interview

Date: Tuesday, May 6, 2025

Time: 6:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m.

Location: Virtual

Registration Required - CLICK HERE

Join us on Friday, May 9, at Elgin Community College for a celebration of student creativity and innovation at ECC’s first-ever Manufacturing Student Showcase! This is an open-house event that welcomes people of all ages to explore the sustainable manufacturing concepts designed and fabricated by ECC’s talented manufacturing students. See how traditional manufacturing practices are shaping the future of the industry and discover how ECC’s tailored curriculum aligns with the needs of the local economy.

Help us celebrate the end of the spring semester and kick off summer with delicious summer picnic favorites like burgers and hot dogs. Don’t forget to enter the raffle for your chance to win a prize! Bring your family and your friends to discover the incredible work happening in ECC’s Manufacturing programs. We can’t wait to see you there! Registration is recommended.

• Explore Student Innovation: View impressive projects highlighting sustainable manufacturing concepts designed by ECC’s talented manufacturing students.
• Enjoy Free Food: Kick off summer with picnic favorites.
• Win Prizes: Enter our free raffle for a chance to win a prize.
• Tour the Facilities: Get a behind-the-scenes look at ECC’s advanced manufacturing spaces.
• Connect with Experts: Chat with faculty and staff about programs and opportunities.
• Sneak Peek: Learn about ECC’s state-of-the-art manufacturing training center, opening in Fall 2026.

Date: Friday, May 9, 2025

Student Showcase: 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.

Location: Spartan Drive Campus

Registration Recommended - CLICK HERE

Have you ever thought about a career as an electric lineman, firefighter, police officer, lab technician, or in tree maintenance, or IT/Networking? These are all individuals, and many more, who are employed by the City of St. Charles.

The City of St. Charles is offering a career pathway job shadow program to St. Charles high school students interested in exploring a career in municipal government. You may schedule up to three different job shadow experiences per school year, during which you can explore work sites, ask questions, see demonstrations, and learn about education and certifications. Students will be responsible for transportation to and from the City. The date, time, and length of the job shadow will be scheduled outside of school hours directly with the City’s job shadow program coordinator.

Please return your completed registration form to Ms. Gomez in the College & Career Office.

Senior Students & Parents! Naviance currently has numerous scholarships available for Senior students to access and apply for.

To do so, students should log on to their Naviance account, select "Colleges" from the top banner and click on "Scholarship Search". Please reach out to your counselor if you have any questions!

Additionally, numerous local and national scholarships can be found on our CCR Scholarship page by clicking here!

LTI Seal of Biliteracy Achievement Scholarship

The theme this year is: Language Is an Asset

Language is more than just a means of communication—it’s a powerful asset that unlocks opportunities, fosters connections, and broadens perspectives. Reflect on this theme by sharing how you plan to leverage your Seal of Biliteracy—whether in education, career pathways, or community engagement. Your students will have a chance to win one of the three awards: $500, $300, and $200.

Nominations should have two parts:

1. Teacher/mentor perspective of what the student has achieved as they’ve worked to attain the Seal of Biliteracy (no more than 300 words or 1 minute of video).

2. Student’s response to this year’s theme (1-2 minute video submission).

Nominations should directly respond to this year’s theme. The deadline to submit your nomination is May 30, 2025 at 11:59PM Eastern.

Abbott & Fenner are committed to continuing our efforts at helping those who have the desire and ambition to succeed. The A&F Scholarships are available to all high school juniors and seniors as well as all students currently registered in any accredited post-secondary institution. To apply for this $1,000 scholarship you will need to write an essay on the topic below. The essay should be between 500 and 1000 words. Your submissions must be sent by email to: scholarships at abbottandfenner.com

Essay Topic: Describe your educational career and life goals. Explain your plan for achieving these goals. Include your degree/major, why you selected it, and how this degree/major will help you achieve your goals.

The winner(s) of this annual scholarship will receive their award within 2 weeks of the listed deadline. All applicants should include their full name and mailing address with their submissions as well as the school they are currently attending. The application deadline is June 10, 2025.

P.E.O. is a philanthropic organization that supports educational opportunities for women. THE PEO local chapter MW of St Charles is looking for qualified applicants to select one senior woman for the Star Scholarship. Interested senior women should complete the linked application and send a copy of your transcripts to Ms. Sharon Anderson at andersonschmal@gmail.com. The Scholarship amount is $2500 and the application deadline is June 30, 2025.

College & Career Readiness Team

255 Red Gate Road, St. Charles, IL, 60175

331-228-6290