First-of-a-kind opportunity for Coon Rapids HS students
by Peter Bodley
Managing Editor
For a group of Coon Rapids High School students it was a first-of-a-kind opportunity as they consider post-secondary education.
Sheila Otiso, Coon Rapids High School Admission Possible student.
Nineteen of them were among some 400 low-income students in the Admission Possible program that had exclusive access to over 170 college recruiters from public and private institutions across Minnesota and the nation during the Minnesota Independent Schools Partnership (MISP) college fair in Minneapolis earlier this month.
For many, it was their first time speaking with a college representative, according to Kayte McGuire, one of two coaches for the Admission Program at Coon Rapids High School.
This is the third year of the Admission Possible program at Coon Rapids High School, whose goal is to work with students from low-income families in preparing for and entering college.
There are 30 seniors in the program at CRHS this year and some 35 juniors, McGuire said.
Criteria for entry into the program includes a 2.0 grade-point average and a desire and motivation to go to college, she said.
The program is offered after school at CRHS twice a week.
The focus in the junior year is getting the students ready to take the ACT test, which almost all colleges require.
“Last year Admission Possible juniors raised their ACT scores by 23%,” McGuire said.
But Admission Possible does not only prepare the students to take the ACT tests, it ensures that the students have the opportunity to meet with college admissions officers.
In the case of the MISP college fair, Admission Possible students were given an hour after the fair had officially ended to meet individually with the college representatives.
That’s an important step in an increasingly competitive college admissions process, according to McGuire.
And part of the coaching provided to the Coon Rapids students was to help them overcome their nerves and feel at ease talking with the college officials, McGuire said.
“Our goal is to empower the students,” McGuire said.
“It is also an eye-opener for the kids as they find out about all the options for a college application.”
Sheila Otiso was one of the Coon Rapids High School students that went to the college fair.
Described by McGuire as a high-achieving student and a leader, Otiso scored 25 on the ACT.
She came to the United States and Minnesota with her mother from the African country of Kenya in 2000 and has lived in Coon Rapids since 2005.
Otiso heard about the Admission Possible program at the school and thought it would help her achieve her aspirations to attend college, she said.
She has appreciated the assistance and confidence that the Admission Possible program has given her in her goal to attend college, including preparing for the ACT test and the chance to attend the college fair, Otiso said.
Otiso has also made an individual college visit – to the University of Minnesota – and at the college fair, she visited with representatives from three colleges.
“It was really helpful to hear first hand about the different schools,” Otiso said.
Otiso has not yet determined which colleges she will send in her applications to, but she anticipates the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, being one of them, she said.
Her goal is to go on to medical school, Otiso said.
At Coon Rapids High School, Otiso is a member of the National Honor Society and the Amnesty International group, as well as being a member of the track and field team, as a pole vaulter.
Admission Possible coaches work with the students in all facets of the college admissions process, including the application process, resumes, writing of essays required by some colleges as part of the applications and getting recommendations.
According to McGuire, Admission Possible encourages its students to apply to a minimum of five colleges.
“We want them to apply to at least three before December,” McGuire said.
The students are also helped by their Admission Possible coaches in setting up their individual colleges visits, as well as obtaining financial aid through the filling out of the FAFSA college financial aid form as well as seeking individual college scholarships, McGuire said.
“Our goal is to have 100 percent of our students go to college, whether it be a four-year or two-year college,” she said.
And besides the coaches, Admission Possible students are also assigned mentors, volunteers in the community who stay in contact on a regular basis with the students to provide assistance, according to McGuire.
Admission Possible also continues its work with the students once they are in college through college coaches, McGuire said.
“This is another resource to help them succeed in college,” she said.
Launched in 2000, Admission Possible Twin Cities serves 7,600 low-income high school and college age students through its college access and completion programs.
Peter Bodley is at peter.bodley@ecm-inc.com
