Herndon High School uses a Standards-Based approach to Instruction and Grading.

What is it?

• Standards-Based Instruction (SBI) means teachers will intentionally plan their teaching and assessments based on prescribed curricular standards. 
• Standards are determined by: 
  • Virginia Department of Education
  • FCPS
  • College Board for AP
  • Participating Colleges for DE
• Learn more by visiting Herndon's Guide to Grading and Reporting

Formative Assessment Ground Rules

• Formative Assessments are still really important! 
• Not a completion grade
• Graded as if it was a summative
• Summative grades, if better, will replace formative grades

SBI College Admissions Letter

• Spring 2024 there was a request from parents for the school to draft a letter to colleges and universities regarding Herndon’s move to SBI.
• The letter was sent to every college and university any senior applied to.
• View a copy of the letter.
• If you want the letter included in your college application materials, email your student’s school counselor. 

School-wide lessons were delivered in all classes and in TA

Classroom Lessons

• Expectations and Routines
• What Learning Looks Like in This Class
• Achieving Individual Academic Success
• Building Community
• Setting a Foundation for Success

TA Lessons

• Student Rights and Responsibilities 
• Standards-Based Instruction and Grading
• Organization and Time Management
• The Learning Process
• Schoology and the Library
• Portrait of a Graduate
• Growth Mindset and Self-Advocacy

Student Services Schoology Course

• Seniors
• College and Career Center
• Parent Access is via ParentVUE Account

General Dates

• Oct-March
  • College Acceptances/Decision
  • Where: Your inbox or college portal
• May 1
  • College "Decision" Day
• May 5-16
  • AP Exams
  • Where: Herndon HS
• April 29-May 2 
  • Senior Survey
  • Where: Herndon HS
• May 21, 6:30pm 
  • Senior Scholarships/Awards Night
  • Where: Herndon HS
• June 6, 2pm
  • Class of 2025 Graduation
  • Where: GMU Eagle Bank Arena

College Information Dates

• Sept-Oct
  • College Rep Visits
  • Where: College and Career Center
• Oct 16
  • Alcanza College Fair
  • Where: Field trip to Eagle Bank Arena, GMU
• Sept 26, 7-8:30pm
  • Financial Aid Night (English)
  • Where: Herndon HS
  • Register
• Sept 26, 7-8:30pm
  • Financial Aid Night (Spanish)
  • Where: Herndon HS
  • Register
• Oct 20, 4-6:30pm 
  • FCPS College Fair
  • Where: GMU Eagle Bank Arena
  • Register
• Oct 21 & 22, 5-8pm
  • FCPS Virtual College Fair
  • Register
• Dec 1 (Opens)
  • FAFSA/VASA Applications
• Nov-Feb
  • FSA ID and FAFSA Workshops
  • Where: College/Career Center
• Various Options, TBD
  • College Access Fairfax's Paying for College Virtual Sessions
  • Where: Zoom

• Four-Year College or University
• Two-Year Community College or Junior College
• Military Service
• Apprenticeships
• Trade Schools
• Employment
• Gap Year (for students that are deferring admissions)

The FCPS College and Career Resources Website can only be accessed when Chrome is logged into a student's @fcpsschools.net account

• College Resources
• Financial Aid Resources
• Employment Resources
• Military Resources
• Gap Year Resources
• Training and Apprenticeships Resources

• Connect with Recruiters - monthly cafeteria lunchtime visits with each branch
• Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery Test (ASVAB)
  • November 19, 8:10 am, HHS Lecture Hall
  • Free to 10th-12th 
  • Registration Information Available in October 

Helpful Links

• ASVAB Career Exploration Program
• My Future
• Today's Military

• Job Corps
• NOVA Workforce
• FCPS Adult Community Education

• Accessible
• Cost Effective
• Variety of Programs Available:  Associates Degrees, Certifications, and Trade & Career Studies Certificates
• Guaranteed Admissions Programs
• NOVA/GMU ADVANCE Program

Admissions

• Accepts all high school graduates regardless of GPA
• No test scores required (SAT, ACT)
• No letters of recommendation
• No application fee

Placement

• Exemptions from some initial classes based upon overall GPA, highest math class, and SAT scores

Important NOVA Dates and Info

Application Window

Opens October 21 for  Fall 2025 

Application Workshops

• Multiple dates TBD
• College/Career Center

Information Session

• October 11; 10:30am 
• Lecture Hall 
• Sign-up on Naviance

Herndon HS NOVA Rep

Mr. Kevin Amaya

Admission Types

Early Decision (ED)

Binding legal agreement; usually a November deadline

Early Action (EA)

Non-binding; usually a November or early December deadline

Rolling Notification

Deadline usually by December; notification usually within 4-6 weeks from receipt

Regular Decision

Deadline usually by February 1; notification usually by April 1

College Admissions Considerations

First-Tier Factors

• Grades and GPA (focus on academic courses)
• Strength/rigor of academic curriculum (Honors, AP, DE courses)
• College Admissions Exams (SAT, ACT)***
• Personal Statement/Essays

**Due to COVID, while most schools continue their test-optional policies, please check college site for school specific details. More and more schools are transitioning towards test-optional policies, but may still require scores for specialty programs (e.g., honors scholars).

Second-Tier Factors

• Activities
• Leadership
• Recommendations
• Legacy
• Specific Talents
• Diversity

College Goals

Reach, target, and safety schools are common terms used in college applications to describe the odds a student has of getting accepted at a particular institution. 

• Reach - Your academic credentials fall in the lower end or even below the school’s average range for the cohort of students accepted the previous year.  The Dream School!
• 50/50 - Your academic credentials fall well within the school’s average range for the most recently accepted class.  There are no guarantees, but it’s not unreasonable to expect to be admitted to a 50/50 school.
• Safety - Your academic credentials exceed the school’s range for the average first-year student.  You should be reasonably certain that you will be admitted to your safety school.

Naviance

Accessed via Schoology

• Accessed via Schoology main page
• Research schools
• Determine fit
• Sign up for admissions rep visits
• Review and access scholarship applications
• Log volunteer/service hours (X2VOL)
• Mark favorite schools (ones you are applying to)

Naviance Student

Find your fit, research colleges, apply to college, and find scholarship and money opportunities. You can do a search in Enrichment programs (Camps, internships, specialty interest events)

Scattergram (JMU)

• Graphical representation of GPA and SAT/ACT from recent Herndon High School applicants and their admissions status (accepted, waitlisted, or denied) in the past three years
• Tool to determine reach, target (50/50), and safety schools.

College Visits

Colleges are continually registering - go to Naviance for most current listing and to sign-up to attend. Register for visits in Naviance, screen print your registration to use as a pass to show and get permission from your teacher to attend.

College and Career Center

• College Rep Visits
• Virginia College Application Week
• Hornets4NOVA
• Naviance Student 
• x2VOL 
• Scholarships
• Military/ASVAB
• George Mason University  Direct Admit 
• Financial Aid/FAFSA and VASA
• Weekly Newsletter
• Student Jobs/Job Fair 
• Apprenticeships/Trade Opportunities 
• Career speakers

George Mason University Direct Admit

• HHS Seniors with 3.25 GPA and above
• Fee waived
• No recommendation or essay required
• Separate GMU application link will be provided - do not use the Common App
• Certain programs will require additional information (honors, nursing, 
  engineering, performing arts)

Virginia College Application Week

• October 21 - 25, 2024
• Application Fee waived for Virginia (private and public) colleges/universities
• All Herndon HS seniors eligible for the fee waiver code.
• Must submit the CA application between Oct 21-25 during HHS workshops.  
• Stay tuned for more details

Connect with Colleges

• FCPS College Fair
  • Sunday, October 20th, 4-6:30pm 
  • Eagle Bank Arena
  • Go to the FCPS College and Career Planning page for more information
  • Register
• FCPS (virtual) Post-Secondary Planning Event
  • October 21 & 22
  • Go to the FCPS College and Career Planning page for more information
  • No registration required
• NACAC Virtual College Fairs
• Coalition for College Events
• Peach State Virtual Tour 
  • Georgia Tech, Augusta, Georgia State, U of Georgia
  • Wednesday, Sept 18, 6pm
  • Register
• Harvard, Princeton, UVA, Wellesley & Yale Virtual Admissions Event
  • Choose from three dates: Sept 8, Sept 15, or Oct 6
  • Register

Responsibilities During the Application Process

Student

• College Application
• College Application Fee
• Sending Official SAT/ACT Scores
• Teacher Recommendations
• Transcript Request Form
• Consent for Release of Student Records
• FAFSA
• Adding “Colleges I’m Thinking about” to Naviance

Counselor

• Counselor Recommendation***
• Submit Official Transcript
• Submit School Profile
• Submit Secondary School Report Form

*** If using Common App, send counselor and recommender requests to @fcps.edu address

Visit the Student Services Course -> Senior Class Folder -> College Applications.

• Consent to Release Student Records 
• Transcript Request Form
• More information

Consent to Release Records Form

• The Consent to Release Records form must be signed by all students.
• If under 18, parent/guardian must sign as well. 
• The consent form grants FCPS/HHS permission to send student transcript to colleges and scholarship sponsors
• Signed form must be returned electronically or (for paper submissions) to your counselor and Ms. Das.  She is located in M169.

Transcripts

• NAIA National Association of Intercollegiate Athletes (smaller version of NCAA)
• Most of the colleges to which your student is applying use Common App or Coalition App to process applications. These two options allow you to streamline your application. 
• Common App and Coalition App allows students to apply to multiple colleges through a single portal. What's the difference between Common and Coalition? Some schools partner with one over the other, so take a look at the options depending on the schools to which you are applying. Most Virginia schools are on Common App. The advantage to using these two options is that you only have to enter some of your information once for the portal instead of once per school. Counselors do not have individual Coalition accounts so the status of documents will not be updated here. Students will need to check their accounts at each school. 

Letters of Recommendation

• Check with each college to which you are applying regarding their policy
• Each school will explicitly state how many letters of recommendation they require, who they must be from, and the maximum amount the applicant is allowed to send.
• Virginia Tech does not accept any recommendations – No Exceptions!
• JMU will only accept one recommendation

Counselor Deadlines

**Deadline to reflect winter break. 

College App Lab

• Opportunity to have focused time to dedicate to college applications, personal essays, and scholarship research with counselors and our career/college specialist
• Dates and signup info coming soon

College Essay Resources

• Herndon HS Writing Center (coming soon - Mid-October)
  • See Ms. Rigby or Mr. Headon or sign up in room A139
• How to Write Your College Essay: The Ultimate Step-by-Step Guide
• College Essay Guy

College Application Tips

• Only set up one account for Common Application and one account for College Board
  • If you cannot remember your account information, do NOT create another account. Contact either College Board or Common App by phone or live chat.
• Use your personal email for all college and scholarship applications and communications
• Check your email often!
• Check your college portal to ensure all documents are received

Common App Tips

• CEEB Code - 471065
• Graduation Date - June 6, 2025
• Class Size- 590
• GPA Scale - 4.0, Weighted
• Class Rank - None, FCPS does not rank
• Course Scheduling System:  Semester, 
  not Block

After You Submit Your Application...

• Thousands of seniors are applying to college! It takes colleges time to process your documents, even if it is sent electronically. A paper file is still made on each student.
• Remember to check your email! Colleges will communicate primarily through email regarding your applications. Make sure your email address is appropriate and mature!  Please, use a personal/professional email address.
• When in doubt, the applicant, not the parent, should pick up the phone and call the admissions office! You will get a quicker response to your question. The admissions email box fills up quickly! 

• Three Primary Means
  • Scholarships and Grants (Free Money!)
  • College Work Study (Student Works for Tuition)
  • Student Loans (Must Be Paid Back)
• Apply for FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) 
• VASA (Virginia Alternative State Aid) -  available to students not FAFSA eligible
• FAFSA and VASA open December 2024 (we hope!)
  • New simplified format
  • Don’t wait; some schools will review for 
    need based on a first “in” basis.
  • Check each individual school’s website for their 
    FAFSA/VASA deadline - they are all different!
• CSS Profile:  Some schools require additional in-depth 
  financial information; CSS Profile is open now - don’t wait for FAFSA.
• FCPS Resources
  • Financial Aid Night (September 26) - Learn about FAFSA and VASA (English and Spanish presentations); joint with SLHS at Herndon HS.
  • FAFSA/VASA Workshops (November – February in the College/Career Center)
  • College Access Fairfax – Financial Aid Resources & Recordings, Seminars and financial aid champions for FCPS high schools.  
  • Herndon HS Financial Aid Champion – private (virtual) assistance completing FAFSA.  Contact Mrs. Kristin Mahieu for a virtual 1x1 meeting
  • Mrs. Peirce!!!
• Net Price Calculator
  • Useful tool to estimate cost of attendance at different 
    schools 

Scholarships

• Use Naviance to search for scholarships
• Herndon only, local, national, college scholarships available 
• Start now! Do not wait until you’ve been accepted to college!
• Deadlines are final on scholarships
• Marianne Ragins Scholarship (virtual) Workshop - Free; hosted by Reston Community Center, September 26th at 6:30pm - 8:30pm.  Register by 9/19.
• Watch for emails from Mrs. Peirce!

FCPS Free/Reduced Meals Application

• Not  just for lunch!  Qualifies you for waivers/reductions for:
  • College application fees
  • Senior class dues
  • Class material fees
• Apply online
• Contact info for questions help:  Food and Nutrition Services Office, 703.813.4800

• FCPS College/Career Resources - Chrome must be logged into student's @fcpsschools account to view
• Virginia State Council of Higher Education for Virginia
• Financial Aid (FAFSA)  
• Financial Aid (VASA)
• College Access Fairfax
• ECMC
• 2024-25 Virginia Colleges Opportunities Guide (PDF)
• Common Application 
• Coalition for College 
• The College Board
• Virginia Education Wizard
• Career One Stop
• Virginia View
• College Scorecard
• ONet Online