Back in the Saddle

I feel like so much has changed since the last time I blogged and it’s hard to encapsulate all that in one post, but here’s the nitty gritty, Faithful Bleaders!

• While I don’t hold a lot of stock in Titles–I really believe it’s the quality of your work and the presence of your work ethic that makes a difference–I was very happy to receive the news that I’m now an Associate Director of Admissions.  Personally and Professionally I am just thrilled, and thought you all might be excited to know as well.
• Today is my second day back from a three week Staycation.  What do Admissions Counselors do on a staycation?  Well, I invite you to check that out here–I warn you, it involves lots, and lots of baked goods.
• We graduated the Class of 2011.  Words don’t do justice how I feel about this group–they’re amazing, wonderful young women and they will be missed dearly;  however, they are going to change the world, and I’m excited to see all the wonderful things they are going to do!
• The biggest change, however, is that I have taken over the event planning position here in our office.  This is going to mean a variety of different things, but the main things will be my travel is going to be downsized, and I will be planning all of the admissions events on campus, like our Fall Open Houses, Accepted Applicants Weekends and the like.

Lots and lots of big professional changes here, but I’m really excited to see what this year brings and the opportunity to meet the next batch of Sweet Briar Women.  Since a lot of my responsibilities here will be shifting and evolving, I hope you all will bear with me as I share some of that here on the blog.

Happy Tuesday from Sunny and Beautiful Sweet Briar!

Back to reality

I put my class ring on this morning for the first time in 19 days. I forget, when I don’t wear it for a while, how heavy it actually is. I remember vividly doing my “pinky exercises” in the weeks before my Junior Banquet to make sure my disproportionately-small-for-my-body hands would be able to carry the weight. It’s a big responsibility and honor to not only be a Sweet Briar Woman, but to bear our signature ring, the piece of jewelry that tells the world, I AM SWEET BRIAR! The night JGL sneaked attacked me with his awesome proposal, one of my first thoughts was, “Crud! I haven’t been exercising the other pinky!” It took months to get used to wearing it on the opposite hand, but as with most change, I’ve gotten used to it.

But I’m back, and ready to roll. I was envisioning being refreshed in an ethereal sort of way, but much like the weight of my class ring, my coming back isn’t as light and airy as I thought it would be when I left. I’m back with a vengeance, though–I’m recharged and ready to tackle the very big and important task of recruiting the class of 2015, and I’m excited about the twists and turns and changes I’m going to make this year to be the best counselor I can be for you all. This week is all about getting back into the swing of things, and next week we jump right in with new team members and a trip to Blacksburg to meet some awesome prospective students.

I would be remiss, however, if I didn’t pause and take a moment to thank an amazing team member who started a new journey this Monday. SD, my amazing across the hall neighbor of five years, was offered a very awesome professional opportunity, and her last day was while I was out on vacation. I don’t think I can even start to put into words what a profound impact her good work here at Sweet Briar has meant for our community and myself professionally. Her knowledge of admissions, her caring and compassionate demeanor, her constant friendship, and steadfast belief that the things that are true and right deserve to be fought for. She has been a constant for me professionally and personally, and as I watched her drive off Friday afternoon, it finally hit me that my Admissions Mentor was leaving.

My class ring felt heavy today, and I think it’s because of the same reason it felt so heavy that cold, snowy February day back in 2003–obligation, commitment, and pride. We have good, hard, and rewarding work to do this summer, and this year, and I wouldn’t be half the woman or counselor I am today if it weren’t for SD.

And for that (among other things), I will always be eternally grateful, and indebted her. Best of luck, my dear friend (and we’ll always have the Baltimore Aquarium!)!

Do I qualify?

With the New Year also comes the frantic rush to get the FAFSA filled out.  What is the FAFSA, you might ask?  It’s the Free Application for Federal Student Aid.  You can access it from the link above, and the FAFSA essentially  figures out a family’s demonstrated need and how much they contribute to their student’s college education.  After the Department of Education processes the form and comes up with a family’s EFC (estimated family contribution), they send those numbers to the colleges a student has indicated she’ll be applying to.

Many times, though, families think they won’t qualify for what is then called “Need Based Aid” because of a myriad of reasons, such as the following:

1. I make too much money to qualify
2. I just won the lottery
3. We have a good amount invested in…(land, Hershey Kisses, stocks, cars, etc) which means we have too much money in assets
4. Gramma got run over by a reindeer and the insurance money just kicked in–don’t you like our new cabana?
5. I don’t want everyone knowing my family’s financial business, thankyouverymuch, so we’ve decided not to file.

I just wanted to take this moment to clarify a few points, and then share some super exciting news on our financial aid end of things.  First of all, everyone,  no matter what your financial situation, should fill out the FAFSA.  You never know what you might qualify for until you fill it out.  Also, in the case that your situation changes, we have everything right on file to make that change QUICKLY.  Also, whether it’s your test scores, your personal story that you decided to share in your essay, or your financial information, we and our financial aid office are held to a strict code of ethics that includes confidentiality.  Your financial business is strictly used for creating that aid packet, and is kept very confidential.

“But seriously, we are not going to qualify for any money, GAL!”

Be that as it may, we’re super excited to offer a new scholarship for all of our families who fill out the FAFSA.  Regardless of if you qualify for need based aid or not, you will automatically be awarded our new FAFSA Grant just for filling out the FAFSA.  That’s right folks, if you just won the lottery and still fill out the FAFSA, we’ll give you $1,000.  If you are going to qualify for need based and fill out the FAFSA, you’ll still get $1.000.  AND the FAFSA grant is renewable all four years as long as you fill out the FAFSA every year.

Sweet Deal if you ask me

As we chug along with this semester, questions about financial aid are bound to pop up.  When you tackle these issues with your family, just let me know–I’m going to be more than happy to help when I can, and direct you to Bobbi and Wanda when I can’t

Being Greener

Much like my beloved Kermit said, it’s not easy being Green.  Making the conscious choice to live a greener lifestyle or create a greener work environment is a tough one–sometimes the easy thing to do is chuck something in the trash can instead of walking it over to the recycling bin; sometimes it’s easier to print out a document to read rather than reading it on your screen.  Thinking long and hard about what you use, how you use it, and how you might get rid of it takes time, effort, and energy.

With that in mind, I’m really excited to announce here on the blog that our office is taking another step toward being Greener–we are no longer printing our application to mail to you.  I say Greener because you can still choose to print our online application and mail that paper form to us, and we will send a paper application to students who may not have access to our online version.  I also say Greener because we mailed you a postcard announcing this change.

But it’s a step in the right direction, right?  Right!

There’s also another big change with our application–we are simplifying our process (and thus yours) by offering Responsive Admissions.

What the heck is that?

You must apply before the priority deadline of February 1st, but if you have you application complete and into us today, Sept. 9th, you will have an answer from us in one month.  That’s right, folks, you’ll hear from me by Oct. 9th.  Thirty days, 720 hours, 43,200 minutes, however you want to qualify that.  Quick, simplified, responsive.

Exciting, huh?  We’re tremendously excited to see what this means for you, and how this will hopefully make your lives easier.  Which means we would love to hear your thoughts and feedback and we venture forth on this new Greener, more responsive terrain.  Feel free to comment here, or e-mail at gloughhead@sbc.edu.

Want to apply right now?  Check out the following links for tools to our admissions process.

Application 101

Our PDF

Common App

Show me the Money (or at least an estimate)