Maximizing the Impact of College Campus Visits
Campus Visits Jesse Carrillo Campus Visits Jesse Carrillo

Maximizing the Impact of College Campus Visits

As a counselor, one of the most exciting—and honestly, most enjoyable—parts of my job is attending college campus visits with my students. These trips are often the turning points in a student's college decision-making journey, giving them a tangible feel for what their future could look like. But as much as these visits are about the students, they also present a golden opportunity for us as counselors to expand our own knowledge, build connections, and gather resources that will benefit our entire student population. This guide will provide you with actionable strategies to make the most of your future trips.

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NCAA: Advising Student Athletes
Webinar Jesse Carrillo Webinar Jesse Carrillo

NCAA: Advising Student Athletes

Join us for an essential webinar designed to equip high school counselors with the knowledge and tools needed to help student-athletes navigate NCAA compliance. This session will cover the NCAA eligibility requirements, including GPA and core course standards for Division I and II, as well as recent updates on standardized testing policies.

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NCAA Recruitment
Jesse Carrillo Jesse Carrillo

NCAA Recruitment

College sports attract hundreds of thousands of fans and make billions of dollars for colleges and universities all over this country. None of this success would be possible without the hard-working student athletes that make up these beloved sports teams. But how did these student-athletes land a spot on these teams? How does NCAA recruitment work?

To be honest, it is a chaotic process that differs for each sport and each individual athlete.   As the parent of a now D1 athlete, the entire recruitment process felt like a blur; we were pulled in so many different directions and given so much varying advice.  But the one consistent component of the entire process was the academic piece. 

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NCAN 2024 Team Takeaways
Conferences Jesse Carrillo Conferences Jesse Carrillo

NCAN 2024 Team Takeaways

At this year’s NCAN conference in Anaheim, our team was inspired by the wealth of knowledge shared on everything from FAFSA changes to innovative postsecondary advising practices. Each session sparked new ideas and insights that will help us better support students and educators in their postsecondary journeys. Below, our team members share their key takeaways from the conference, highlighting important trends, tools, and strategies that can be applied in schools and districts across the country.

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4 Things You Might Not Be Doing In Your Counselor Letters, But You Should
Letters of Recommendation Jesse Carrillo Letters of Recommendation Jesse Carrillo

4 Things You Might Not Be Doing In Your Counselor Letters, But You Should

I’ll never forget my first interaction with my coworker when I became an Admissions Counselor at my alma mater, Pepperdine University.  It went something like this:

Co-Worker: “Welcome to the office!”

Me: “Thanks!  I’m really excited to work here.”

Co-Worker: “What were you doing before this if you don’t mind me asking?  Did you just graduate?”

Me: “Actually no.  I spent the past five years as a sports anchor at a television station in Texas.”

Co-Worker: “Oh that’s cool!  Wait, how old are you then?”

Me: “I’m 27.”

Co-Worker: “Oh…wow.”

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Transcripts, Course Selection  and  Career Pathways…Oh My!  
Course Selection, Transcripts Jesse Carrillo Course Selection, Transcripts Jesse Carrillo

Transcripts, Course Selection  and  Career Pathways…Oh My!  

It’s that season once again counselors. You know that season, we know all too well!  Teams and Zoom invites adorn our calendar and our College and Career Ready Centers and offices are all abuzz with college application, career exploration chats and of course, course selection requests, inquiries and pathways …oh my!

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Tune In, Take Away: Free Resource Share to Kickoff the School Year Strong
Advising, Webinar Rhiannon Killian Advising, Webinar Rhiannon Killian

Tune In, Take Away: Free Resource Share to Kickoff the School Year Strong

If it wasn’t for that binder of resources back in 2010 passed on to me by an expert counselor, I have no idea where I would have even started creating materials for my individual and group advising sessions! That binder must have been 1,000 pages long, filled with notes, resources and tools.

We might not have a binder for you, but the spirit is the same: come, see what we have and take all that you need and make it your own! Spend less time making stuff, and more time building relationships with your students and families.

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July 2024 CCMR Outcomes Bonus (OB) Updates
CCMR Jesse Carrillo CCMR Jesse Carrillo

July 2024 CCMR Outcomes Bonus (OB) Updates

This blog post will explore all things related to the College, Career or Military Readiness Outcomes Bonus. This includes sharing the latest Outcomes Bonus data release from Texas Education Agency (TEA), as well as sharing an Outcomes Bonus calculator that Contigo Ed created and has used with many of our district partners. We are excited to share it with you, too!

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Equipping Educators in San Antonio
Professional Learning Jesse Carrillo Professional Learning Jesse Carrillo

Equipping Educators in San Antonio

Counselors and advisors deserve high-quality, relevant professional learning opportunities. Having spent over a decade as a teacher and then the other half of my career as a college counselor, I can say that my experiences differed widely. When I was a teacher, my learning was often aligned to some standards, and had clear learning outcomes with activities designed to meet those objectives. Here at Contigo Ed, we believe school counselor and advisor training can be like that and so much more.

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Reintroducing…Aspiration to Action
Professional Learning Jesse Carrillo Professional Learning Jesse Carrillo

Reintroducing…Aspiration to Action

We're thrilled to unveil the all-new Aspiration to Action course, designed to empower school counselors and advisors nationwide! Through our Professional Learning offerings at Contigo Ed, our hope is to simplify your work and make student interactions more meaningful. The revamped Aspiration to Action course is one of the ways we achieve this goal.

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Public Data Resources for Tracking FAFSA Progress
Data Series Jesse Carrillo Data Series Jesse Carrillo

Public Data Resources for Tracking FAFSA Progress

In today’s blog post, we will focus on what to do once you have overcome the hurdles and have had students complete the FAFSA. How can you track your progress? How does your district or campus compare to neighboring districts and campuses? How is the state of Texas doing compared to other states across the country? We will walk you through three public data sources that you can use to answer some of these questions.

Note: Unlike some other blog posts in this series, this post contains a lot of information that will be relevant to districts outside of Texas as well. None of the three sources include data on TASFA completion.

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Contigo Ed Creators + Creatives
Jesse Carrillo Jesse Carrillo

Contigo Ed Creators + Creatives

We are excited to introduce you to Contigo Ed Creators & Creatives! This is a talented group of educators, practitioners, and leaders from across the country. They have been and will continue to help Contigo Ed produce and share relevant content and valuable resources for educators.

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Bridging the Family-School Engagement Gap
Family Engagement Jesse Carrillo Family Engagement Jesse Carrillo

Bridging the Family-School Engagement Gap

The heart of a thriving educational community is the partnership between schools and families. With the invaluable insights gained from vibrant conversations with 128 families across 14 districts, Contigo Ed is excited to share strategies that emerged. These gems of wisdom are part of our collaborative Phase I consultation services we offer to districts. 

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Set your Juniors & Seniors up for Success in the New Year
Jesse Carrillo Jesse Carrillo

Set your Juniors & Seniors up for Success in the New Year

Think back to yourself in September 2023. If you ever said to yourself “Wow, I wish we would have done this last year!” then right now is the time of year to do that very thing.  

Before we look at the three themes here are some important principles that we would like to highlight: (1) your timeline should reflect your district or campuses vision, initiatives and priorities, and (2) families and caregivers should have every opportunity to be a part of transition planning.  

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College Enrollment Data Sources (NSC & THECB)
Data Series Jesse Carrillo Data Series Jesse Carrillo

College Enrollment Data Sources (NSC & THECB)

At the end of the 2022-2023 school year, we celebrated the class of 2023 as they walked across the stage and got their diplomas. Many of these students had aspirations to continue their education in college, and if you are wondering if they ended up pursuing these plans, data reports from sources like National Student Clearinghouse (NSC) and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) can help you to answer this question.

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A guide to TPRS: Our go-to source on Texas data
Data Series Jesse Carrillo Data Series Jesse Carrillo

A guide to TPRS: Our go-to source on Texas data

What data source does our data team use most day-to-day? The Texas Performance Reporting System (TPRS).

TPRS is where the Texas Education Agency (TEA) summarizes all the data districts submit through the Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS). Today’s blog post will focus on how you can maximize TPRS for your own work.

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Celebrating First-Generation Day!
Jesse Carrillo Jesse Carrillo

Celebrating First-Generation Day!

Education is often hailed as the great equalizer, a pathway to a brighter future that transcends socioeconomic barriers. For many, the journey toward higher education begins with uncertainty and unique challenges, especially for first-generation college students. Today, we celebrate First-Generation Day, a day dedicated to acknowledging and honoring the triumphs and accomplishments of first-generation college graduates. We also take this opportunity to spotlight the inspiring stories of three of our very own first-generation team members who have broken barriers and achieved remarkable success.

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4 Steps That Will Change Everything in Your Classroom or Group Advising Session!* 
Classroom Management, Group Advising Rhiannon Killian Classroom Management, Group Advising Rhiannon Killian

4 Steps That Will Change Everything in Your Classroom or Group Advising Session!* 

If you are a college counselor or advisor, you’ve probably started assisting your students on their college applications.  It’s about this time of year when we start hearing from counselors and advisors who have students in a group advising or classroom setting looking for promising practices for helping their students maximize their independent work time.  

As someone who taught and advised students for 12 years in a classroom, I finally (why didn’t I do this sooner????) devised a tool and approach that *changed everything* and helped students develop a mindset, knowledge and skill that would benefit them for life.  

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