Volume 5, Issue 3

Spring 2018
It’s time to FINALIZE!
It’s finally “your nalize your plans! In
year”! You’ve got this issue, you’re going
just a few short to find information
months until you are about Bright Futures,
walking across that the Free Application
stage and receiving for Federal Student
your diploma. Time Aid and gener al in-
is flying! At this formation to help you
point in the year, you plan out the rest of
may have some unan- your senior year. Take
swered questions: some time to read this
Where am I going to information. As al-
college? What classes ways, if you have
will I take? What is questions, see your
my major going to counselor. We are here
be? The biggest ques- to help!
tion of all is most
likely: How am I go-
ing to pay for it!?
Have no fear! The
School Counseling
Class of 2018

Office has several

ways to help you fi-

Turn in Scholarship Documentation!!!

If you have received a TURN IT IN! ceremony, as well as
scholarship award letter, looking to get an accu-
Turning in a copy of
please turn in a copy of rate total count for the
the correspondence,
the letter to your Arts letter is a graduation Class of 2018!
Director. Even if you do requirement.
not plan on accepting the
money or going to that In addition we will
specific school, please highlight your achieve-
ment during our awards

Inside this issue:

Spring Senior Points to Ponder
Bright Futures Information 2
 Have you confirmed with a college yet?
Getting your BF money 2
 Keep aiming for that dream school! Stay
FAFSA Information 3 focused!
FAFSA Help 3  What is your Plan B?
How to apply for federal aid 3
 Have you applied for Bright Futures?
How to request transcripts 4
 Have you submitted your FAFSA?
Scholarship Web Site Searches 4
Bright Futures Facts and Information—READ ME!
Fun Facts about Bright Futures
IMPORTANT INFROMATION
Yes—FUN!
1. Funded through Lottery dollars
 The district uploads your information twice. Once in January and again
2. Community service hours are in June
required for all 3 award levels  Your application on Florida Student Financial Aid is for various grants
3. To maintain Bright Futures in and scholarships, not just Bright Futures.
college, students must meet
GPA and minimum credit hour  The monetary amount you receive from Bright Futures is based on a
requirements fixed cost per credit hour.
4. If you have already applied  Students MUST APPLY BEFORE GRADUATION! If you haven’t al-
for Bright Futures, you can ready, go to Floridastudentfinancialaid.org! Apply NOW! All your
check your award status at
floridastudentfinan- friends are doing it!
cialaid.org. If you need to  Students have up to 2 years after graduation to access available funds if
apply and need directions, go
to: they return to Florida from an out of state school and have maintained
the eligibility GPA (but they must apply before graduation this year).
douglasandersonguidance.blogspot.com
 Turn in your community service hours to the school counseling office

Lock in to Bright Futures before January 29th

If you meet the GPA, SAT/ACT & community service requirements now, you can lock in your scholarship.

The next transmission from district to Bright Futures begins January 29th. This is when district uploads your
GPA, SAT/ACT scores and community service hours for Bright Futures. If you are holding on to community
service hours, turn them in to the school counseling office before Monday, January 27th.

Please note: If you are not eligible now, you should still apply NOW and you will have until the end of 4th
quarter to earn a qualifying GPA and the community service hours. You also have up until the last admin-
istration of the SAT/ACT test in June 2018 to qualify with the needed test scores.

Getting Your Bright Futures Money

The Florida Department of Education will:
Begin funding your scholarship during the Fall term following your high school graduation. The academic
year begins in the fall and ends in the summer. Scholarship recipients are not eligible for funding during
the summer term immediately following high school graduation. Summer disbursements are only made if
funds are available. Check the website each year for summer funding information.
Then, they will send the funds to the eligible Florida postsecondary institution of your choice prior to the
beginning of each term. The money will then be applied to your account after the last day of the drop/add
period at your postsecondary institution.

Page 2 C L A S S O F 20 1 8
 How do I apply for federal student aid?
1. Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) at www.fafsa.ed.gov.
Federal student aid comes from the federal government—specifically, the U.S. Department of Education.
It’s money that helps a student pay for higher education expenses (college, career school or graduate
school expenses). This aid covers expenses such as: tuition, fees, room and board, books and supplies,
and transportation. There are three main categories of federal student aid: grants, work-study, and loans.
2. Review your Student Aid Report (SAR) After you apply, you’ll receive a Student Aid Report or SAR.
Your SAR contains the information reported on your FAFSA and usually includes your Expected Family
Contribution (EFC). The EFC is the number used to determine your eligibility for federal student aid.
Review your SAR information and make any corrections or changes, if necessary. The college(s) you list
on your FAFSA will get your SAR data electronically.
3. Contact the schools you might attend. Make sur e that the financial aid office at each school you’re
interested in has all the information needed to determine your eligibility. If you’re eligible, each school’s
financial aid office will send you an award letter showing the amount and types of aid (from all sources)
that the school will offer you. At this point, compare the award letters from the schools where you ap-
plied and see what aid you can receive from each school.

How do I request mid year transcripts?

THINK ABOUT YOUR DEADLINES
ONLY NEED TO DO IF REQUIRED BY THE
COLLEGE: Mid Year Tr anscr ipts can be r equest-  The college will post your status on
ed through NAVIANCE. your application screen. Always
follow up to make sure they have
Request transcripts for ALL College/University received your documents!
through your NAVIANCE account:
For colleges that do not accept
 School Counseling office will send transcripts eDocs submissions, you will see a
electronically at no cost to your college/university “stamp” logo next to the school
for schools participating in Naviance eDocs sub-
mission.
name.

 Transcript requests for colleges where students

are applying via Common App will be sent by
counselor through student’s Common App ac-
count.  Pick up hard copies of the transcript
in the School Counseling office. The
 The college will process your transcripts which first three are FREE. Each one
can take up to 3-4 weeks. Electronic does not after that is $2.00.
mean instant.
 Personally mail them off.
 Most colleges want official SAT and ACT scores
sent directly from those organizations.

NEED HELP?
StudentAid.gov 1800-4-FED-AID (1800-433-3243)
A college financial aid office 1800-730-8913 (toll free for hearing impaired)
[email protected]

VOLUME 5, ISSUE 3 Page 3

 Your School Counselors

KATHY ANDERSON
School Counselor, 9-12, A-F,
ext. 119
[email protected]
Douglas Anderson School of the Arts
2445 San Diego Road
Jacksonville, FL ALLIE ARMSTRONG
School Counselor, 9-12, G-M,
Phone: 904-346-5620
ext. 117
Where Art and Academics meet in [email protected]
excellence!

SHANEKA FERRELL
School Counselor, Department Chair
9-12, N–Z ext. 116
[email protected]
Looking for a scholarship?
Check out these
HAVE YOU VISITED OUR website database searches!
COUNSELOR CORNER BLOG RECENTLY? www.zinch.com
www.fastweb.com
IF NOT, HERE ARE A FEW THINGS www.duvalschools.org/scholarships

YOU ARE MISSING OUT ON: www.collegeboard.com

www.collegenet.com
www.scholarships.com
$$$$ LOCAL, STATE & NATIONAL SCHOLARSHIPS $$$$ www.scholarshipmonkey.com
PRE-COLLEGE PROGRAMS www.scholarshipFly.com
COLLEGE FAIRS
Want to see reviews on these web sites?
FREE SAT/ACT PREP Check out this link for more info!
STUDENT LEADERS PROGRAMS www.usnews.com/education/blog

COMMUNITY SERVICE OPPORTUNITIES

Career and College Search Tools
www.bigfuture.collegeboard.com
MAKE SURE TO VISIT US HERE: www.floridashines.org
HTTP://DOUGLASANDERSONGUIDANCE.BLOGSPOT.COM/ www.naviance.com