Providence Catholic Students Have The College Advantage
Last year Providence Catholic graduates earned nearly $40 million in college scholarship offers and 100% of the class of 2018 are enrolled in college. “As a college prep school, parents and students expect the school to help them prepare for the college search,” said Rachel Ellingson, Director of Student Enrollment at the school. “Our families are counseled as early as freshman year to be proactive in their search for the right fit for college.”
The Counseling Department at Providence Catholic High School has many responsibilities that include providing information to students that enable them to make wise decisions essential to their spiritual, academic, social and emotional growth.
One of the things that sets them apart from other schools is the expertise and experience provided by the college counselors, Kyle Murphy, and Frank Palmasani who between them have more than 50 years of counseling experience.
This experience is evident when the school hosts its annual “Conquering College Costs” seminar by counselor Frank Palmasani who is the author of “Right College, Right Price.” Palmasani is a nationally recognized author and expert in college choice. He explains how to greatly increase scholarship and grant potential of students with a few important steps.
“We meet face to face with each junior and their parents to discuss their individual path to college,” said Kyle Murphy, long-time college counselor at the school. “We meet in small groups to provide them with strategies to choose the best college for their student academically and financially. These are important choices for the families and we do everything we can do to help them make informed choices in a timely manner.” Beginning with freshman year, all PCHS families are introduced to the Naviance student software for college planning. Naviance is a portal for students and parents which includes goal-setting, college search tools, career exploration and more.
Providence also hosts a Spring College Fair for students and families at which about sixty of colleges and universities attend. The counseling department also hosts Parent College Nights for parents of student from all four years. Each presentation is customized to the information pertinent that particular year of high school. “With a high percentage of PCHS students receiving college athletic scholarships, the department also hosts a College Athletic Information Night to discuss NCAA and NAIA rules and regulations for athletic recruiting and scholarships,” said Luke Senffner, Director of Counseling at PCHS.
A newsletter is transmitted to families to keep them abreast of all college-related information. Independent scholarship opportunities are included.
“Our students enjoy an advantage over other high school students,” said Ellingson. “We say we are college prep and we back it up with 100% of our graduates matriculating onto college when they leave Providence.”
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Kathleen E. Kennedy
Director of Communications