Wheeler High School Guidance Office

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is a form that can be prepared annually by current and prospective college students (undergraduate and graduate) in the United States to determine their eligibility for student financial aid. The FAFSA calculates what a student will qualify for in grants (money that does not have to be repaid), loans (money that does have to be repaid), and scholarship. Some colleges require students who qualify for scholarship money to fill out a FAFSA even if the family would not qualify for additional financial aid. High school seniors are required to file the FAFSA or actively opt out per state law (see FAFSA Requirement and Waiver) It is highly encouraged that all senior students fill out a FAFSA regardless of what the student plans to do after high school at this time. Plans can change and a student might decide to take college courses at the last minute. If no FAFSA has been filed for that academic year then the student will not receive financial aid to assist in paying for coursework. Past students have enlisted in the military and then been injured in boot camp and unable to finish so then decided to pursue college coursework. Students have planned on joining apprenticeship programs but then were not selected after the interview process and needed to change plans. Students have decided to go into the workforce but discovered that more training was needed to get a higher paying job. Filing a FAFSA does not commit a student and their family to taking out student loans. The FAFSA just allows a student to have funding reserved if they should decide to pursue college coursework.

If you can't make our Financial Aid Night, there is another opportunity to get your questions answered! College Goal Sunday is November 9 from 2 - 4 pm in person. It is hosted at locations across the state.

More info is available here: https://www.collegegoalsunday.org/information/

The closest locations in our area are:

Ivy Tech Valparaiso 3100 Ivy Tech Drive, Valparaiso, IN 46383

Ivy Tech Crown Point 9900 Connecticut Dr, Crown Point, IN 46307

IUN 3400 Broadway, Gary, IN 46408

PNW Hammond 2200 169th St, Hammond, IN 46324 – Student Union and Library Building 200

PNW Westville 1401 S US Hwy 421, Westville, IN 46391 – Technology Building, Room 219

Do you have questions about the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for your senior student? Filling out the FAFSA will allow your student to be considered for student loans, grants, and scholarships from college financial aid departments. The application is open and has a final state deadline of April 15. We are hosting a representative from INvestEd, a free expert resource in financial aid, who will give a presentation about the FAFSA process and answer specific questions you might have. The 2026-2027 FAFSA application will use your income tax information from 2024.

Students should be sure to attend WITH YOUR PARENTS. Don't just send your parents! Bring your school issued chromebook if you'd like to ask specific questions about your FAFSA so you can get on our school Wifi.

Students have to fill out part of the FAFSA themselves and will need to create their own login.

If you'd like to get ahead of the game you can create parent and student FSA IDs here:

https://studentaid.gov/fsa-id/create-account/launch

We will be taking junior and senior students to visit the Construction and Skilled Trades Day event at the Porter County Expo Center on November 18, 2025 from 10 am until noon. Fifteen trades and apprenticeship programs will be represented. Mock worksites and hands on activities will be on site so students can see what the trade requires. This is a good way to see what a trade is all about, ask questions, and find out what the application process is. Sign up here!

https://forms.gle/TmWaF4SU9hdhd1k36

Indiana University Northwest will be here on site on November 11, 2025. Senior students can apply and get an admissions decision in the same day! The application fee is waived for this event. IUN has an admissions requirement of 2.0 cumulative GPA. You can browse majors here: https://northwest.iu.edu/degrees/index.html#bachelorLinks to an external site.

Sign up to meet with IUN Admissions Counselor here:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdHaj9btXCssIVGvsj6if9cu3hG0ClZV2Pw5P9JERxBoz1NXw/viewform?usp=sharing&ouid=111576096798360038845

Once you submit your college applications you need to check the email you used to apply OFTEN. The primary way colleges will contact you is the email you provide. You should have used a personal email address for your college applications. If you used your school email you can update your email address by contacting the admissions office of the college.

*Each college you applied to will email you instructions to set up your portal. You will be able to see your application status, financial aid status, and next steps in each college portal.

*File your FAFSA! See info above!!!

*Once you have been offered admission be sure to check the financial aid/scholarship page for each college you applied to. There are scholarship opportunities you can apply for even if you are not committed to the college yet.

*You do not have to commit to a college now. You can wait and get financial aid packages and scholarship awards back before you decide. Commitment typically isn't required until housing contracts are due and orientation days are scheduled. Check your portals for due dates on housing, official admissions offers acceptance steps, required placement testing instructions, and orientation dates.

*Tell us where you've been accepted! Share your college admission offers, military signings, post high school career offers, and apprenticeship acceptance here!

https://forms.gle/B8Ku8GudbtVnChYw8

• Colleges award merit scholarships based off of your transcript and test scores when you apply. You are considered automatically for these scholarships. Most colleges have a scholarship consideration deadline of November 1.
• Once you have been offered admission to a college then you can search the financial aid page on the college’s website for other scholarship opportunities. Some are related to majors.
• National Scholarship Searches: You can use any of these but I would only use 1 or 2 of these since they pull from the same pool of scholarships. There’s a list at this link 10 Sites to Kick Off Your Scholarship Search | Paying for College
• College Board Opportunity Scholarships: Deadline February of your senior year https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/pay-for-college/bigfuture-scholarships
• Local scholarships that are advertised through our school are posted in the Class of 2026 Canvas page and on the Guidance Board in main hall. It’s a little slow in the fall but there will be more January through March.

Legacy Foundation’s Universal Scholarship Application is now open. Applications must be SUBMITTED by January 15, 2026.

Students can check out the website & apply here: https://legacyfdn.org/scholarships/apply-for-scholarships/ With one online application, students can apply to all scholarships for which they meet the eligibility requirements. The Legacy Universal Scholarship application asks specifics questions regarding the eligibility for each of the scholarships. The system will automatically determine which scholarships they qualify for. You can view the Scholarship Booklet HERE which details eligibility requirements for each scholarship.

ANY MAJOR and ANY COLLEGE!

• The John W. Anderson Foundation Scholarship - One (1) scholarship to a Porter County senior for $10,000 a year ($40,000 total)
• Peoples Bank Scholarship – Two (2) $1000 awards, One (1) $500 award
• Schrage Family Enrichment Scholarship – One (1) $2000 award
• Crossroads Chamber Scholarship – Three (3) $1000 awards

Major - Specific Scholarships

• Dream Catcher Scholarship - senior who will be studying the STEM Field (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) – $3000 renewable ($12,000 total)
• Arts & Music Scholarships- minimum award of $1000
• Scott Campion Special Education Teacher – student who wants to become Special Education teacher – one (1) renewable for $4,000 ($16,000 total)

Share your college admission offers, military signings, post high school career offers, and apprenticeship acceptance here!

https://forms.gle/B8Ku8GudbtVnChYw8

Are you interested in taking career focused classes with the Porter Country Career & Technical Center? Current 10th and 11th grade students: The Porter County Career & Technical Center CTE Program Applications for the 2026-2027 school year is OPEN! The priority deadline to be considered for your first choice program is February 2, 2026. Students who are currently in career center courses and plan to return next year need to fill out the application by December 5, 2025. You can browse programs here: https://pccte.org/programs/

Fill out your application here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf0yjVHmK5nu-_zMwJp9sunAeQh23FUJE4Ichvpe9gQty4u6g/viewform

Open Houses will be held December 2, 2025 and January 22, 2026, 5:30 pm to 7 pm. More details will be shared when we get closer to the open house dates but mark your calendars! Students and parents should plan on visiting if a student is applying!!!

Students can view PSAT scores by logging into their College Board account at www.collegeboard.org , by checking the Big Future app, or by requesting a PDF from their school counselor. If students provided a mobile number on test day, they should have received a text message with instructions to download the BigFuture School mobile app and sign in. 11th grade students can use these PSAT results to get an idea of what they need to focus on to prepare for the SAT that they will take during the school day in March. www.khanacademy.org has the official practice partnered with the College Board. The Blue Book app that students have downloaded to their Chromebooks have full length practice tests available.

170 10th & 11th grade students took the PSAT in October. 39% of our testers met or exceeded both Math & English benchmarks. Our 8th & 9th graders took the PSAT 8/9 and 43% met or exceeded both benchmarks. Our results are higher than both state and national averages!! You can click the picture to see more detailed results.

Tutoring will run from 2:45–3:15 PM, with scheduling based on their availability. Volunteers can earn service hours and receive a letter of recommendation. There is a call out meeting on October 20, 2025 at 2:45 pm in the middle school commons. It will be a short meeting! Contact Mr. Hanaway with questions at ahanaway@union.k12.in.us

Join the Band app to get announcements, events, and schedule for tutoring!

https://band.us/n/a2a6b8N6Q03fI

WeBuildNWI.com is a resource for students interested in union trade careers. This website links to all the union apprenticeship programs so you can check out application dates and deadlines, union trade descriptions, and program requirements. Did you know many of the apprenticeship programs offer an associate's degree from Ivy Tech in partnership with your training?? You can walk out of your apprenticeship program as a trained union worker WITH a degree!

Student athletes who are interested in playing their sport in college must register with the athletic eligibility association that governs that school. NCAA would like their prospective athletes registered by the end of junior year at the latest. NAIA is more flexible with registration. Many students wait until they are sure they are playing for an NAIA school before they register.

NCAA: Register Cost $100 The NCAA has very specific academic eligibility requirements based on what division you plan to play in. Please see the Academic Eligibility Brochure

NAIA: Register Cost $100 Students with a 2.3 GPA are eligible or must meet 2 of these 3 requirements:

• 2.0 GPA
• Class rank top 50%
• 970 SAT score or 18 ACT score

Your student can submit athletic interest forms or prospective athlete questionnaires to colleges they would like to play for. This gets your students name out to the coaches for the programs.

You can find these forms by visiting the college's athletic page and entering Prospective Athlete or Interest Form in the search bar. These forms can sometimes be hard to find so reach out if you have trouble!

Exploring Engineering at Purdue October 20, 2025 Program for high school juniors, seniors, and their parents

Introduce Engineering Day at Purdue February 21, 2026 Program for 9th & 10th grade students interested in careers in Engineering

Purdue University Youth Programs

Purdue Summer Courses for High School Students Application opens in December

Boiler Vet Camp

Seminar for Top Engineering Prospects (STEP) Purdue This program is for the summer between junior and senior year. Application will open in January

Saturday Morning Astrophysics from Purdue Learn about astrophysics topics from home!

Purdue University Northwest Summer Camps This list will update in the spring

IUN Arts on Campus IUN hosts art shows and theatre productions. Upcoming events are listed here

Valparaiso University Summer Camps Camps for youth and high school students