October Senior Newsletter

CURRENT GRADUATION STATUS

1. Discuss together: Do you know if you are for sure on track to graduate? It is important that if mentees do not know, you investigate together.
2. Log into your school portal. Sometimes you can check grades, where you are at with credits, and graduation requirements on your portal. If it is still unclear, find the main advisor’s email. Write an email together that states a desire to set up a time to meet during the school day to confirm graduation status.
3. Follow up after the meeting to confirm status.
4. Update your Mentoring Specialist on mentee’s current status.

CAREER EXPLORATION

Begin the career exploration process. The career path you would like to take can dictate what steps will be needed this year.

We recommend watching this helpful video. After you watch the videio:

• Discuss what areas of interest mentees would like to pursue, type of lifestyle you would like to have, and other questions brought up in the video
• Note that the video did not discuss taking a “gap year” after graduating; that is also an option. It can be good if you would like to work, save a bit of money, and take some time to explore what options would be the best fit for you.
• The Military was also not mentioned and we will have more info on that path next month.
• Reminder: There are many options and there is plenty of time to discuss them in the coming months.
• There are several programs and resources we will connect you to that make options affordable, including up to $2500 scholarship/semester provided by Save Our Youth.

PERSONALIZE CAREER EXPLORATION

We are excited to partner with Willow Education for their personalized career exploration tool! Each month, you’ll receive a quick, ready-to-use guide designed to help you integrate the Willow platform into conversations. 

Step 1: MENTORS, you can create your own “staff” account and Willow will connect you to your mentee’s account on the back end (SOY already provided your names to them). Navigate to app.willowed.org. If you have a Gmail associated with your mentor account click “Continue with Google.” If you have another type of email (Hotmail, etc.), click “Create Staff Account.” Access step-by-step directions, as well as a platform overview guide here.

Step 2: MENTEES will create their account (some may have already at the Senior Kick-off event) and take the Willow Personality Quiz . Use the one-page results you receive to guide conversation about your strengths and how these might connect to future careers. By reflecting on unique strengths, students can begin to see how personality traits influence career interests, school pathway decisions, and long-term goals. Note: Your may have started, but not yet completed their quiz. When you log in, the quiz will restart where you left off.

Resources: Click here to access the step-by-step directions for accessing the Willow platform (for students), completing the quiz, and here for the personality quiz conversation guide. 

ACT/SAT REGISTRATION

If you desire to attend college, it may be important to retake the ACT or SAT. This depends on the range of schools you want to attend.

Many colleges in Colorado are now “test optional.” Research the schools you are thinking about attending; confirm their ACT/SAT requirements.

• ACT test date: There are test dates every two months and you need to register about a month ahead of time. Talk to your guidance counselor at school to get registered.
• SAT test date: There are monthly test dates (but not in Jan., Feb., or April). and you need to register about a month ahead of time. Talk to your guidance counselors at school to get registered.

TIP: If you need to have your fee waived to retake either test: ask the school for a waiver. If they do not provide one, reach out to your Mentoring Specialist.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES & REMINDERS

• School Resources: If you are unsure what your school offers for post-secondary planning, log into your school portal and email a guidance counselor together.
• Colorado Free Application Dates Oct 7-9, 2025: If you are considering applying for college, this could be a great way to get a jump start on things. However, if you are not ready to yet, no worries as most schools do waive fees for financial hardship as well. More Info
• Our December newsletter will dive into more application support.

The high dollar amount scholarships often have deadlines September – November so it can be worth starting to look into those:

Main Search Engine Sites

• Fordham.edu
• Forbes.com

Local Listings

• Denver Scholarship 
• Prosperity Denver Fund (not updated for 2025/26 school year yet, but many should still be accurate)
• Daniel’s Fund (offers full-ride scholarships but the deadline is Oct. 17)