By JAY WILSON
The Henry Cluster STEMM Foundation has continued to move forward despite the COVID-19 protocols related to schools. One of their ongoing efforts is presenting Zoom webinars to assist students applying to college.
The first webinar was held on Oct. 20, and it was presented by Kalos Chu. Kalos is a junior at Harvard University studying Educational Studies and a private college consultant/tutor in the San Diego area. A graduate of Patrick Henry High School, Kalos is deeply committed toward expanding college access for all students, especially those who come from low-income backgrounds or who are the first in their families to attend college.
His presentation was on how high school students can best prepare for the college admissions process. He gave critical information on how to apply to various colleges, particularly for underserved students and/or students who may be the first in their family to go to college.
Kalos stated, “We covered all aspects of college admissions, from picking classes, to standardized tests, to extracurricular activities. Among the attendees, there were two major areas of concern. The first was what colleges truly care about, and the simple — but difficult to accept — answer is: everything. Just having a good SAT score isn’t all that matters; colleges care about who you are as a person and how much you like to challenge yourself.
“The second concern was unique to this year, and that was how COVID-19 would affect college admissions,” he continued. “Many SAT test dates have been cancelled, high school grading policies have changed, just to name a few of the unique changes that have resulted from the pandemic. For the most part, however, colleges are being flexible; Harvard, for example is not requiring standardized test scores from applicants this year.”
Kalos also runs a tutoring and college prep business. You can learn more about it at kccollegeprep.com. He offers SAT Prep, academic subject tutoring, and college consulting services.
The second installment of the HC STEMM series on college admission was presented by the SDSU Chapter of Women in Science Society (WSS). It was a panel presentation on Nov. 10.
Check the HC STEMM Foundation website at HCSTEMM.org for information about future topics and dates.
— Jay Wilson writes on behalf of the Henry Cluster STEMM Foundation.
