The guidance department at PA Leadership recognizes the importance of providing information, support and training to our parents and students. This includes, college and career readiness, NCAA information, parent workshops and much more. Below is an overview of some of the supplemental supports available.
Financial Aid – The guidance department hosts financial aid sessions for students and their families to educate them on the different types of aid and to offer tips on how to apply for financial aid.
The regional PHEAA (Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency) representative is available to work with families as they complete financial aid applications.
PALCS is a testing site for both the PSAT in October and the SAT in December and March.
Students are encouraged to create a Collegeboard account early in their high school career so they can take advantage of the resources available to them, such as test taking tips, the ability to take practice tests, and college and financial aid search tools.
To create an account, students should go to https://www.collegeboard.org/.
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), is an organization that establishes rules for eligibility, recruitment and scholarships for Division I and II sports at the college level. Students who wish to participate in Division III sports should contact the coaches and colleges regarding their policies on athletic participation. Although eligibility requirements have recently changed, they continue to include the successful completion of a curriculum of courses taken at the college-prep or higher-level. There are no minimum requirements for GPA, SAT or ACT scores.
It is important that students choose from the list of PALCS approved courses provided by the NCAA. This list can be accessed at https://web3.ncaa.org/hsportal/exec/hsAction and enter PALCS High School Code 391441.
High School students must also notify their guidance counselor if they intend to play an NCAA sport during course selection so that the counselor can assist with placing students into NCAA approved courses. It is the student’s responsibility to be familiar with the NCAA’s eligibility requirements and to make sure that PALCS is aware of their intentions to play NCAA sports for course placement purposes.
For information on registering with NCAA and any other questions you may have – please visit their website at http://www.ncaa.org/student-athletes/future/educational-resources.
The Pennsylvania Student Assistance Program (SAP) is a team process used to leverage school and community resources to remove barriers to learning.
SAP is designed to assist in identifying issues including alcohol, tobacco, other drugs, and mental health issues which act as a barrier to a student’s success.
The primary goal of the Student Assistance Program is to help students overcome these barriers so that they may achieve, advance, and remain in school.
The Guidance Department organizes educational opportunities to help empower parents as they work with their students.
Some of the topics covered in the workshops are online safety, supporting students who have been bullied and tips for communicating effectively with our students.
Some examples of topics covered are:
- Internet Safety and Cyber Bullying
- College Essay Writing
- Financial Aid
- Parenting Summit
- Power of Parents
