Podcasts about making caring common

Presented by Julie Busteed How do you define yourself? Is it by your family, the church you attend, or your job? What does it mean to be identified as a Christ-follower? We have looked at how we are made in God's image and how that defines us. We are also loved by God so deeply we can hardly grasp how wide and long and high and deep it is. And we are also chosen by him for his good purposes. We are also made for community—to be in community. And this community defines us. We were not created to live isolated lives. The first and best example is our Triune God—Father, Son and Holy Spirit. They are eternal and distinct, and yet they are one. Yes, not an easy concept for our minds to wrap around. But we see beginning in Genesis the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are at the creation of the world. They are in community with one another. We were not created to go it alone. A 2024 Harvard survey found 21% of adults in the U.S. feel lonely. They feel disconnected from friends and family. The data suggests it may be due to anxiety, depression and a lack of meaning and purpose.[1] Because we are made in God's image and he is One God in three persons, we are made to be not only in relationship with God but with each other. We need each other for encouragement, to love and care for one another, to be accountable to each other, to worship and praise God together. And in essence, learn about who we are—our identity. Paul also describes the body of Christ like our own body: For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others (Romans 12:4-5). We all belong to each other. When you don't show up for church or Bible study it doesn't just affect you. Your presence is missed whether you realize it or not. Showing up is huge! Let's remember each of us are a vital part of the body of Christ—it's part of who we are—for our own good and for his glory. --- [1] Batanova, M., Weissbourd, R., & McIntyre, J. (2024). (rep.). Loneliness in America: Just the Tip of the Iceberg? (Ser. Making Caring Common, pp. 1–14). Cambridge, MA: The President and Fellows of Harvard College.

Loneliness among young people has reached epidemic levels, with significant implications for their mental health and well-being. In this episode of the Where Parents Talk podcast, host Lianne Castelino speaks to Milena Batanova, Director of Research and Evaluation at Making Caring Common at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Batanova sheds light on the disconnect between parents and teens regarding emotional support and the overwhelming achievement pressure that exacerbates feelings of isolation. Drawing on recent surveys, she reveals that many adolescents prefer confiding in friends rather than their parents, citing a lack of understanding and empathy from adults. The conversation emphasizes the importance of fostering genuine connections and empathy in parenting, as well as the need for society to prioritize social infrastructure and public education to combat loneliness. Batanova encourages parents to model healthy relationships and engage in meaningful conversations with their children to help them navigate their emotional landscapes more effectively.Takeaways:The Making Caring Common project highlights the disconnect between parents' values and teens' priorities regarding caring and achievement.Loneliness among young people is a growing epidemic, exacerbated by societal pressures and achievement culture.Empathy is a crucial skill for parents to develop in order to effectively support their children.Social media contributes to loneliness, as teens feel pressured to present perfect lives online.Parents should model caring behaviors and prioritize genuine relationships over achievement to foster connection.Understanding different types of loneliness can help parents identify and address their child's emotional needs.

Is it true that you can't teach an old dog new tricks? Absolutely not; Research shows that people can and do make dramatic shifts at nearly every life stage. Sometimes that change is intentional and other times it happens without our awareness. In this episode, host Samantha Laine Perfas speaks with psychiatrist Bob Waldinger, educator Rick Weissbourd, and experimental psychologist Mahzarin Banaji about how embracing change can lead to a better life.

Today's guest is Rick Weissbourd, Professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and Director of the Making Caring Common Project, a national effort to make moral and social development priorities in child-raising and to provide strategies to schools and parents for promoting in children caring, a commitment to justice and other key moral and social capacities. Tune in to hear how college admissions intersects with these efforts.Bio:Richard Weissbourd is a Senior Lecturer at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and he also teaches at the Kennedy School of Government. His work focuses on moral development, meaning and purpose, mental health challenges among teens and young adults and effective schools and services for children facing risks. He directs the Making Caring Common Project, a national effort to make moral and social development priorities in child-raising and to providestrategies to schools and parents for promoting in children caring, a commitment to justice and other key moral and social capacities. He leads an initiative to reform college admissions, Turning the Tide, which seeks to elevate ethical character, reduce excessive achievement pressure and increase equity and access in the college admissions process. He is also conducting research on how older adults can better mentor young adults and teenagers in developing caring, mature romantic relationships. He is a founder of several interventions for children facing risks, including ReadBoston and WriteBoston, city-wide literacy initiatives that were led by Mayor Menino. He is also a founder of a pilot school in Boston, the Lee Academy, that begins with children at 3 years old. He has advised on the city, state and federal levels on family policy, parenting and school reform and has written for numerous scholarly and popular publications and blogs, including The New YorkTimes, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Psychology Today and NPR. He is the author of The Vulnerable Child: What Really Hurts America's Children and What We Can Do About It (Addison-Wesley, 1996), named by the American School Board Journal as one of the top 10 education books of all time. His most recent book, The Parents We Mean to Be: How Well-Intentioned Adults Undermine Children's Moral and Emotional Development (Houghton Mifflin 2009), was named by The New Yorker as one of the top 24 books of 2009. Follow Rick on LinkedIn.Visit our website at SignetEducationAccess free resources and learn more about Sheila and her team at Signet Education at signeteducation.com or on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/sheilaakbar/.

Loneliness crosses borders, troubles people all over the world, and poses a global health risk. The US authorities have already labeled loneliness and social isolation as an epidemic a while ago.. What dangers does loneliness pose for human bodies and entire societies? And how can we fight it?Guest:Milena Batanova, Director of Research and Evaluation at Making Caring Common in Harvard's Graduate School of Education Research. Článek a další informace najdete na webu Seznam ZprávySledujte nás na sociálních sítích X (Twitter), Instagram nebo Threads. Náměty a připomínky nám můžete psát na e-mail zaminutusest@sz.cz

Překračuje hranice, trápí lidi po celém světě a představuje globální zdravotní riziko - osamělost podle Světové zdravotnické organizace ohrožuje veřejné zdraví. Ve Spojených státech už úřady před nějakou dobou narůstající osamělost a sociální izolaci označily za epidemii. Co k ní vede? A jak proti ní bojovat? Host: Milena Batanova, ředitelka výzkumu a vyhodnocování projektu Making Caring Common na Fakultě pedagogického výzkumu na Harvardově univerzitě.Článek a další informace najdete na webu Seznam Zprávy Sledujte nás na sociálních sítích X (Twitter, Instagram nebo Threads. Náměty a připomínky nám můžete psát na e-mail zaminutusest@sz.cz

John MacPhee joins us for Episode 17!John MacPhee is the CEO of The Jed Foundation (JED), a leading nonprofit organization that protects emotional health and prevents suicide for teens and young adults. JED works across the country helping youth, families, schools, and community organizations to take actions to support youth mental health and reduce risks for suicide. Passionate about supporting young adults in their transition to adulthood, John advises several organizations including the S. Jay Levy Fellowship for Future Leaders at City College, Trek Medics, Opera Ebony, the Health Policy and Management Department at the Mailman School of Public Health, and HIV Hero. Learn more about The JED foundation: https://jedfoundation.org/ Programs mentioned during the episode: Set to Go: https://jedfoundation.org/set2go-jed-program/ Making Caring Common: https://mcc.gse.harvard.edu/ Listen to John's playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5fFXaRBFGiVcnL8HMeyZ6C?si=fd28e996a91e4ffe

Tune in today to hear special guest, Dr. Bobbi Wegner, talk about the importance of raising a generation of feminist boys. Dr. Wegner is mom of three, clinical psychologist, lecturer at Harvard, author, international speaker, and cofounder/ceo of Groops. She's the author of the book, Raising Feminist Boys: How to Talk With Your Child About Gender, Consent & Empathy. And in this era of #metoo movement, countless mass shootings, gender bias, toxic masculinity, and general disconnect from others, I can't think of anyone better to guide us as we raise our kids.On this episode, we cover topics ranging from redefining masculinity to talking about sexuality and consent from an early age. To Connect with Dr. Wegner:(website) bobbi.w@joingroops.com(IG) @bobbiwegner Grab a copy of her book here:https://www.amazon.com/Raising-Feminist-Boys-Consent-Empathy/dp/1684036674/ref=asc_df_1684036674/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=564641475597&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=15841863647356820753&hvponeResources:(Groops) https://www.drbobbiwegner.com/groops(Making Caring Common) https://mcc.gse.harvard.edu(Recommended book) White Fragility by Robin DiAngeloFor more Socially Misguided, follow on IG https://www.instagram.com/sociallymisguidedpodcast/

Harvard professor Dr. Richard Weissbourd is currently a senior lecturer on education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and at the Kennedy School of Government. In our discussion today, we are particularly excited to hear about the Making Caring Common Project that he directs, and the Turning the Tide initiative, which is a national effort to reform college admissions that has engaged almost 200 college admissions offices in promoting ethical engagement, reducing damaging achievement pressure in high school and increasing equity and access for economically disadvantaged students. Listen in to get his take on the following questions: 1. Of all the things you could be doing with your time and expertise, you devote a lot of yourself to Making Caring Common & Turning the Tide. Why is this effort so important right now?2. you know from our previous conversations that I am a strong advocate of Turning the Tide, and many of my listeners are high school guidance counselors and other youth leaders. What can we be doing better to support ambitious teens today?3. Is it possible for college prep to be the catalyst to inspire teens to find their core values and become healthier rather than stressed out?4. What advice would you have for the ambitious 14 year-old listening in now?

https://time.com/6160337/hard-to-care-about-anything/ https://time.com/6165501/pandemic-changed-identity-research/ "The space between caring about stuff and taking care of people is a small one. Without caring in the first sense, it's hard to engage in what Richard Weissbourd, a psychologist who serves as faculty director of the Making Caring Common project at Harvard, calls “the harder forms of caring”—that is, action. Tellingly, happy people, rather than being complacent, are generally the ones engaged with the world. Sad people, generally, are busy with self-consciousness, self-awareness, self-focus. Research suggests that experiencing “negative affect”—a state that encompasses a range of bad feelings—makes people less likely to get up and do something. Even the motivation that comes from a negative feeling like righteous anger often only works if a basically happy person is hit with it, says Kostadin Kushlev, who leads the Digital Health and Happiness Lab at Georgetown. “Being happy and feeling more energized can actually have benefits for how people conduct themselves, being concerned with other people,” Kushlev says. In surveys, “those who experienced more positive affect in the past month were actually more likely to be concerned with a variety of issues and, most importantly, they were more likely to take action to do something about it.” So what manifests as a lack of engagement with the world may well be a symptom of an underlying unhappiness. And why might people have been unhappy at the dawn of the year 2022? Choose your own “duh.”" Join this channel to get access to perks: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSFVD7Xfhn7sJY8LAIQmH8Q/join https://odysee.com/@LukeFordLive, https://lbry.tv/@LukeFord, https://rumble.com/lukeford https://dlive.tv/lukefordlivestreams Listener Call In #: 1-310-997-4596 Superchat: https://entropystream.live/app/lukefordlive Bitchute: https://www.bitchute.com/channel/lukeford/ Soundcloud MP3s: https://soundcloud.com/luke-ford-666431593 Code of Conduct: https://lukeford.net/blog/?p=125692 https://www.patreon.com/lukeford http://lukeford.net Email me: lukeisback@gmail.com or DM me on Twitter.com/lukeford Support the show | https://www.streamlabs.com/lukeford, https://patreon.com/lukeford, https://PayPal.Me/lukeisback Facebook: http://facebook.com/lukecford Feel free to clip my videos. It's nice when you link back to the original.

By now, you've no doubt heard of the power of gratitude. Scripture tells us it's God's will for us to be thankful in all circumstances. And science has proven the benefits of a regular practice of gratitude for the mind and body. So in this week of Thanksgiving, we're pulling from our archives and adding to it. In this episode of the Do Gooders Podcast, hear highlights from our favorite episodes on living with a grateful heart. Hear from Dr. Rick Weissbourd, Harvard University's Faculty Director for Making Caring Common, who shared in Episode 05: Five Strategies for Raising Kind Kids. Hear from Dr. Robert Emmons, who's considered the world's leading scientific expert on gratitude, and who shared in Episode 27: What is gratitude and how can we foster it. Hear from Commissioners Doug and Colleen Riley, leaders of The Salvation Army in the western U.S., about the gratitude we find in Scripture from episode 68 How to find gratitude. Hear from Pete Greig, a writer and church planter who co-founded and leads the 24-7 Prayer movement around the world, and who shared in Episode 71 A simple guide for how to pray today. And finally, hear from our own Caring Magazine Managing Editor Hillary Jackson on the blessings of now. EPISODE SHOWNOTES: Read more. WHAT'S YOUR CAUSE? Take our quiz. STUDY SCRIPTURE. Get inside the collection. GATHER WITH CARING MOMS. Join the group. BE INSPIRED. Follow us on Instagram. FIGHT FOR GOOD. Give to The Salvation Army.

Harvard university created an initiative that has now been signed by all the Ivy League schools, MIT, Stanford, Duke, Michigan, Chicago, etc. and dozens and dozens of other top schools called "Making Caring Common."Making Caring Common is an attempt to refocus college admissions decisions away from things that require a certain income level or other significant advantages in order to fulfil, towards character traits that lead to a healthy campus and a good life.The truth is it is difficult to stay positive when all around you people gossip. If you don't make a sincere effort to rise about your environment, you will be unlikely to develop the kindness that your community needs. But with a tiny introduction to human psychology, and an understanding of how important kindness, empathy, and support are, you can choose to rise above the negativity around you. Learn about a student who got into an Ivy League School. Her admissions officer wrote her to welcome her to campus, and emphasized that the student's kindness was the character trait that really stood out for her, and got her admitted. And learn what you can do today to begin developing your own character. You'll be glad you did!Check out the Ivy League Challenge here: TILC.to/waitlistGet the course, Elite College Admissions Made Easy Starter Course here: https://ivy-league-prep-academy.mykajabi.com/ECAMEstarter-courseInstagram: @theivyleaguechallengeFacebook: TheIvyLeagueChallenge  or kongshantaiEmail me with questions: theivyleaguechallenge@gmail.com

In this episode of Catalysts for Change, Jill talks with Rick Weissbourd, Faculty Director of Human Development and Psychology at Harvard Graduate School of Education. The director of the Making Caring Common Project, Rick's work focuses on children's moral development, on vulnerability and resilience in childhood, and on how to encourage and prioritize caring, compassion, and companionship among children in and out of school. Making Caring Common is ​​a national effort to make moral and social development priorities in child-raising and to provide strategies to schools and parents for promoting caring, a commitment to justice and other key moral, emotional and social capacities. As part of the Making Caring Common project, Rick leads Turning the Tide, a national effort to reform college admissions that has engaged almost 200 college admissions offices in promoting ethical engagement, reducing damaging achievement pressure in high school and increasing equity and access for economically disadvantaged students. Rick is a founder of several interventions for children, including ReadBoston and WriteBoston, citywide literacy initiatives led by Mayor Menino. He has written for numerous publications, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Huffington Post, CNN, The New Republic, NPR, and Psychology Today. He is the author of two books including The Parents We Mean to Be: How Well-Intentioned Adults Undermine Children's Moral and Emotional Development. We talk to Rick about perceptions of caring, achievement, and happiness for children and adults, the need for emphasizing care in our lives, and much more about his work with Making Caring Common. If you would like to learn more about Rick's work and about the Making Caring Common Project, check out the links below. Rick Weissbourd Biography The Making Caring Common Project Website Making Caring Common on Twitter

This is SO not a fun topic to talk about.  It's messy. And that's what we're all about here at The Messy Bun! So, let's dive into this topic with our teens and learn all about sexual harassment - what it is, how to respond to it, and how to report it. ⁠ ⁠ Making Caring Common, a project lead at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, conducted a national survey of 18- to 25-year-olds in which 87% of respondents reported they had been the victim of at least one form of sexual harassment.  Yet, 76% of survey respondents reported that they never had a conversation with parents about how to avoid sexually harassing others or being harassed themselves. "As parents, we need to do better. We need have specific conversations with our teens about what misogyny and sexual harassment mean, why they are so harmful, and how to combat them." (Alison Cashin and Richard Weissbourd) Definitions and Examples Misogyny Sexual Bullying Sexual Harassment Sexual Harassment vs. Flirting Sexual Harassment vs. Sexual Assault How to respond How parents should respond How your daughter can respond if she is harassed How your daughter can respond if she sees harassment How to report Steps to take in reporting harassment Resources given below if you need to take legal action   Resources: Katie Hurley, LCSW,How to Talk to Teens about Sex and Sexual Harrasment,  https://www.psycom.net/talk-to-teens-about-sexual-harassment Kids Health, Sexual Harassment and Sexual Bullying, https://kidshealth.org/en/teens/harassment.html  Richard Weissbourd and Alison Cashin, Sexual Harassment Among Teens, https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/parenting/wp/2017/10/16/sexual-harassment-among-teens-is-pervasive-heres-how-parents-can-help-change-it/  Richard Weissbourd with Trisha Ross Anderson, Alison Cashin, and Joe McIntyre, Making Caring Common, Harvard Grad School, https://mcc.gse.harvard.edu/reports/the-talk,  Full Study (Making Caring Common from above): https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5b7c56e255b02c683659fe43/t/5bd51a0324a69425bd079b59/1540692500558/mcc_the_talk_final.pdf Lauren Holter, Bustle, Don't Conflate Flirting With Sexual Harassment — Women Know The Difference, https://www.bustle.com/p/flirting-sexual-harassment-are-two-entirely-different-things-women-know-that-do-men-6746759 What to Do if Your Child is Being Bullied and Resources, https://www.stompoutbullying.org/what-do-if-your-child-being-bullied-and-resources Notice of Harassment Kit, http://www.documatica-forms.com/bullying.php Jeremy V. Jones, Teens and Sexual Harassment, https://www.focusonthefamily.com/parenting/teens-and-sexual-harassment/ Understanding Harassment - definitions, your rights, and how to report and take legal action, https://www.equalrights.org/issue/equality-in-schools-universities/sexual-harassment/  What to Do When Sexual Harassment Target Teenagers, https://www.eandblaw.com/employment-discrimination-blog/2019/09/12/sexual-harassment-targets-teenage-workers/  Reporting Resources, https://www.brandeis.edu/investigate/teen-sexual-harassment/resources.html

The premise of holistic admissions suggests that admissions officers consider the whole applicant. But how can intangibles like character or compassion be judged alongside empirical data like grades or test scores? Amy and Mike invited Glenn Manning and Brennan E. Barnard to describe how this challenge is being addressed by the Making Caring Common Project. What are five things you will learn in this episode? What is the Making Caring Common Project and how did it get its start? What do admissions deans have to say about showing caring during the current crisis? Can character be measured or quantified? How can a student show character or caring? How can students and educators get involved with these programs? MEET OUR GUESTS Glenn Manning is a Senior Project Manager at Making Caring Common. He formerly served as a high school Wellness Coordinator, English teacher, and professional firefighter. Glenn leads MCC's school-based initiatives where he supports a variety of research efforts, helps school systems gather and use data to guide their programming and practice, develops and assesses evidence-based strategies to promote ethical capacities in young people, and consults with districts and schools to create positive changes in their cultures and climates. He is particularly interested in translating research into practice, mobilizing the energy and wisdom of educators and students, and coaching caring school leaders. Glenn earned a Master of Education in the Learning and Teaching program at Harvard Graduate School of Education and a Bachelor of Arts in English from Saint Michael's College. Brennan Barnard, M.Ed is the Director of College Counseling and Outreach at The Derryfield School, an independent day school in Manchester, New Hampshire and at US Performance Academy, an on-line independent high school for elite athletes. He is also the College Admissions Program Advisor with the Making Caring Common project at Harvard Graduate School of Education. During over two decades in education Brennan has worked as a teacher, coach, dorm parent, admission officer, counselor and administrator at a number of independent high schools and colleges. He has counseled Olympians, thespians, artists, cadets, social workers, engineers, philosophers, doctors, writers, lawyers and everything in between. He is co-author of the book, The Truth About College Admission: A Family Guide to Getting In and Staying Together. A native of suburban Philadelphia and practicing Quaker, he is a graduate of Westtown Friends School. Brennan earned a bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Spanish from Franklin & Marshall College and a master’s degree in Higher Education and Student Affairs Administration from The University of Vermont. This father of two lives in Hopkinton, New Hampshire where he is a volunteer firefighter. Find Glenn and Brennan at https://mcc.gse.harvard.edu/ or on social media. LINKS The Character Collaborative Youth Advisory Board Turning the Tide College Admissions Campaign — Making Caring Common For Educators: Writing Character-Conscious Letters of Recommendation College Admission Deans Care In Crisis New Research Finds That Character Counts In College Admission Assessing Ethical Character In College Admission RELATED EPISODES LETTERS OF RECOMMENDATION: GOOD VS. GREAT BUILDING AN A+ EXTRACURRICULAR RESUME COLLEGE ADMISSIONS DURING A GLOBAL PANDEMIC ABOUT THIS PODCAST Tests and the Rest is THE college admissions industry podcast. Explore all of our episodes on the show page.

Join us for a conversation with Trisha Ross Anderson and Brennan Barnard. Trisha is the College Admissions Program Director for Making Caring Common, a project of the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Trisha has spent over a decade supporting a wide variety of schools and non-profits. Her work centers around social and emotional learning and character development, the promotion of positive school climate, and intervention development and evaluation. Brennan is the co-author of the new book, The Truth about College Admission: A Family Guide to Getting In and Staying Together and the director of college counseling and outreach at The Derryfield School in New Hampshire. He is also the College Admission Program Advisor at Making Caring Common. Brennan writes about college admission for the New York Times, Washington Post, Forbes.com, HuffPost, Concord Monitor and Journal of College Admission.

For our second episode of our two-part series on civic engagement, we spoke with Greear Webb ’23 of Raleigh, co-founder of Young Americans Protest (YAP!) and the NC Town Hall. At Carolina, the scholar serves on the Commission on Campus Equality and Student Equity and as co-chair of the political action committee for the Black Student Movement (BSM) at UNC-Chapel Hill. This summer, Greear was selected by Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education to participate in the Making Caring Common program as a Voter Mobilization Ambassador. If you haven’t already, you’ll want to catch our previous episode on voting, featuring John Sides ’96, a political scientist at Vanderbilt University and a publisher for The Monkey Cage via The Washington Post.On your mobile device, you can listen and subscribe to Catalyze on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. For any other podcast app, you can find the show using our RSS feed.Catalyze is hosted and produced by Sarah O’Carroll for the Morehead-Cain Foundation, home of the first merit scholarship program in the United States and located at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. You can let us know what you thought of the episode by finding us on Twitter or Instagram at @moreheadcain or you can email us at communications@moreheadcain.org.The music for this episode is by scholar Scott Hallyburton ’22, guitarist of the band South of the Soul. 

Brennan Barnard, M.Ed. is the College Admissions Program Advisor with the Making Caring Common project at Harvard Graduate School of Education. He is also the Director of College Counseling and Outreach at The Derryfield School, an independent day school in Manchester, New Hampshire and at US Performance Academy, an on-line independent high school for elite athletes. Brennan is a co-author of the new book, "The Truth About College Admission: A Family Guide to Getting In and Staying Together".

Tuesday on Lake Effect : We hear from some of the organizers of the ongoing protests in Milwaukee and why they plan to keep marching. Then, the Milwaukee Public Library gives us a list of book recommendations for adults and kids to learn more about racism. Plus, we look at research that shows that even though parents say they want diverse schools, they often don’t make it a priority. Guests: Khalil Coleman, protest organizer; Mariah Smith, protest organizer; Destiny Monae, protest organizer Hermoine Bell-Henderson, coordinator of business, technology, and periodicals at the Milwaukee Public Library Richard Weissbourd, director of ‘Making Caring Common’ project at Harvard’s Graduate School of Education; Eric Torres, PhD student at Harvard’s Graduate School of Education

When everything in the present is turned upside-down, how can students manage current challenges while working towards long-term goals like college admissions? What will colleges even want from next year’s high school graduates? Amy and Mike invited author and college counselor Brennan E. Barnard to share insight into college admissions during a global pandemic.  What are five things you will learn in this episode? What reassurance can be found in the global nature of a worldwide crisis? What elements of the application rise and fall in value during a global pandemic? Will application essays about your pandemic experience be well-received? How can students learn about colleges when campuses are closed? What can we learn from an unexpected crisis about when students should work on showing colleges who they really are? MEET OUR GUEST Brennan Barnard, M.Ed is the Director of College Counseling and Outreach at The Derryfield School, an independent day school in Manchester, New Hampshire and at US Performance Academy, an on-line independent high school for elite athletes. He is also the College Admissions Program Advisor with the Making Caring Common project at Harvard Graduate School of Education. During over two decades in education Brennan has worked as a teacher, coach, dorm parent, admission officer, counselor and administrator at a number of independent high schools and colleges.  He has counseled Olympians, thespians, artists, cadets, social workers, engineers, philosophers, doctors, writers, lawyers and everything in between.   Brennan is a member of the Advisory Board for the New Hampshire College and University Council’s New Hampshire Scholars Program and on the Executive Committee for the Character Collaborative. He presents regularly on character, athletic recruiting, mindfulness, discipline and other topics in college admission.  He has written about college admission for the New York Times, Washington Post, Forbes.com, HuffPost, Concord Monitor, Journal of College Admission and other publications.  He has also been featured in articles in the Wall Street Journal, Boston Globe and Associated Press and an occasional featured guest on New Hampshire Public Radio. He has been interviewed about college admission by New England Cable News and ABC News. Brennan was a New England Association of College Admission Counselors Professional of the Year for 2017. He is co-author of the book, The Truth About College Admission: A Family Guide to Getting In and Staying Together. A native of suburban Philadelphia and practicing Quaker, he is a graduate of Westtown Friends School.  Brennan earned a bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Spanish from Franklin & Marshall College and a master’s degree in Higher Education and Student Affairs Administration from The University of Vermont. This father of two lives in Hopkinton, New Hampshire where he is a volunteer firefighter. LINKS The COVID College Choice: How To Pick A College During A Global Pandemic The Truth About College Admission: A Family Guide to Getting In and Staying Together Virtual College Tours (Episode #73) ABOUT THIS PODCAST Tests and the Rest is THE college admissions industry podcast. Explore all of our episodes on the show page.76. 

In this episode you will hear: (10:45) In this week’s news segment, an article from Wall Street Journal, “How to Fix College Admissions”, by Melissa Korn. Korn interviews several groups in the world of college admissions – admissions officers, counselors, parents, students - to identify ways in which the admissions system could be fixed. We continue by discussing points 4-7 the author makes. Next week we will finish the article by discussing points 8-10.     (50:09) We are in Chapter 105 of 171 Answers and Mark shares financial aid questions that single, divorced, and remarried parents might have. Mark and Anika also discuss, how financial aid works for parents who never were married, couples who co-habit together, same sex parents and other living arrangements.   (59:47) Our bonus content this week reviews Turning the Tide II: How Parents and High Schools Can Cultivate Ethical Character and Reduce Distress in The College Admissions Process. This major report is the work of the “Making Caring Common” team. It is an outgrowth from the Harvard Graduate School of education. We discussed part 1 of this report about a year ago. When Part 3 (the final part) is released we will include a discussion of these findings as well. The findings are being embraced and at least partially implemented by over 130 college admissions deans and several organizations such as, The Coalition and the Common Application.   (01:19:22) Mark continues his interview with Lieutenant Colonel Rob Kirkland in -What you need to know about the ROTC scholarship, Part 2   (01:28:44) Mark’s recommended resource of the week is . Mark explains why he trusts Wikipedia and he explains how he uses it in the college process.   (01:40:15) College spotlight: Santa Clara University   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: questions@yourcollegeboundkid.com If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful! We are excited to give our listeners a chance to play a role in shaping what topics we discuss, as well as what guests we have on our podcast. You can let your voice be heard by completing this survey. Just put the following link in your browser and give us your honest feedback. We thank you in advance. Every episode of Your College-Bound Kid will align with a chapter from the book 171 Answers to the Most-Asked College Admission Questions. To get a copy go to Amazon and click:   If you want to place a bulk order, you will save money by purchasing this book at 171answers.com. Every penny goes to The Atlanta Mission, a Christian organization that helps over 1000 homeless residents every day.  If you want to see what future episodes will discuss in the book chapter section,  just go to 171answers.com and then click the red button "See exactly what 171 Answers covers"

Episode 85 – Rick Weissbourd & Stephanie Jones: Stress and Self-Management in Education goodathleteproject.com On today's episode we are joined by Rick Weissbourd and Stephanie Jones with a special guest appearance by Stephanie's son Henry. Stephanie is the Gerald S. Lesser Professor in Early Childhood Development at Harvard's Graduate School of Education. Her research, anchored in prevention science, focuses on the effects of poverty and exposure to violence on children and youth's social, emotional, and behavioral development. Rick is a senior lecturer on education as well as the faculty director of the Human Development and Psychology program also at Harvard's graduate school of education. His work focuses on vulnerability and resilience in childhood, the achievement gap, moral development, and effective schools and services for children. In addition to their roles as professors, Rick is the faculty director of the Making Caring Common Project where Stephanie serves as a senior adviser. Stephanie is also the Director of The Ecological Approaches to Social Emotional Learning (EASEL) Laboratory. Find out more about Making Caring Common at their website: https://mcc.gse.harvard.edu/ Find out more about the EASEL Laboratory at their website: https://easel.gse.harvard.edu/ Today's Episode brought to you by Remind Recover. You can find them at Remindrecover.com and on Twitter and Instagram: @ReMindRecover. Use the code: GoodAthlete at checkout for a discount on your next order. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram: @Coach4Kindness Follow and like us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/coach4kindness/

If we want our children to be moral people, we have to raise them that way.  Yet Harvard researchers found the majority of youth in a study said their parents were more concerned with their achievement or happiness than whether they cared for others.  And that’s exactly what Dr. Rick Weissbourd is out to correct.  As he says, it’s most important that we help teach kids to be kind.  It’s what he studies as Harvard University’s Faculty Director for Making Caring Common—looking at how adults can mentor children’s moral and ethical development.  He’s a psychologist and lecturer at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and the Harvard Kennedy School, and two-time author, including “The Parents We Mean to Be,” which was named one of the best books of its year by The New Yorker.  He consults with schools and organizations across the country and has advised on family policy and school reform at every level of government.  In this episode, Dr. Weissbourd shares five strategies to raise moral, kind and caring kids. Because, as he says, our primary role as parents should be growing good citizens who care.     Find show notes for this episode and more at caringmagazine.org/podcast.

Touch Podcast is co-hosted and produced by Ryan Clark along with Nathan Novero and Shannon Ethridge. What do you do when you sense your child is being manipulated by a boyfriend or girlfriend? How do we help our kids through breakups? Ryan speaks with LeAnn Gardner about the Harvard Study, “Making Caring Common and how a parent can create an environment where their child can come to them or another trusted adult when they don’t know what to do? LeAnn talks about how to start talking to your kids even if they’re already a teen.

Trisha Ross Anderson is the Senior Project Manager at Making Caring Common, an organization at the Harvard Graduate School of Education that seeks to encourage the younger generation to express compassion and, as the namesake indicates, make caring common. Trisha discusses the Turning the Tide report, an initiative that seeks to promote a healthy college admissions process for both colleges and applicants. Colleges have been changing their admissions criteria, and what used to be considered important has now shifted to another set of standards.  This news is so important to share with everyone, especially high school students, and I’m so excited that Trisha and I could extend this valuable information with you all! SHOW NOTES: https://juliekimconsulting.com/podcast/ BOOK A STRATEGY SESSION: http://juliekimconsulting.com/now 

The Family Brain is a podcast about how the mental well being of one family member affects the entire family system. This is a supportive community to share research, resources, stories, and life hacks for keeping the family brain healthy. Hosted by Megan Gipson, LCSW, Ed.M Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rick Weissbourd, faculty director of Making Caring Common, discusses the launch of the Caring Schools #CommonGood Campaign.

goodathleteproject.com For today's episode we sat down with Dr. Rick Weissbourd. Dr. Weissbourd is a senior lecturer and the faculty director of the Human Development and Psychology master's program at Harvard University. In addition to his work at Harvard, Dr. Weissbourd directs the non-profit Making Caring Common. Making caring common is an organization dedicated to helping “educators, parents, and communities raise children who are caring, responsible to their communities, and committed to justice.” You can learn more about Making Caring Common at their website: https://mcc.gse.harvard.edu/. Today's Episode brought to you by Remind Recover. You can find them at Remindrecover.com and on Twitter and Instagram: @ReMindRecover. Use the code: GoodAthlete at checkout for a discount on your next order. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram: @Coach4Kindness Follow and like us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/coach4kindness/

Author of The Gift of Failure, Jessica Lahey, speaks about the value of letting children experience failure as a necessary part of learning and growing, both at home and in the classroom. For more information on topics in this podcast click below: http://www.jessicalahey.com "Parenting, Not for the Moment, but for the Long Haul": https://parenting.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/06/10/parenting-not-for-the-moment-but-for-the-long-haul/?src=twr&_r=0 The Stinky and Dirty Show: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmJfAiKifuI Carol Dweck, Mindset: https://www.amazon.com/Mindset-Psychology-Carol-S-Dweck/dp/0345472322 Tim Harford, Success Always Starts with Failure: https://www.amazon.com/Adapt-Success-Always-Starts-Failure-ebook/dp/B004OA62UO/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1488867085&sr=1-1&keywords=adapt+by+tim+harford Michele Borba, Unselfie: https://www.amazon.com/UnSelfie-Empathetic-Succeed-All-About-Me-World-ebook/dp/B010MH9V64/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1488867110&sr=1-1&keywords=unselfie Making Caring Common: http://mcc.gse.harvard.edu Dan Pink's Drive: https://www.amazon.com/Drive-Surprising-Truth-About-Motivates/dp/1594484805   Michael Thpmpson's Homesick and Happy: https://www.amazon.com/Homesick-Happy-Time-Parents-Child/dp/0345524926   www.theotherfwordpodcast.com

Our world has become increasingly unkind and many of us are struggling to teach empathy to our students. Our guests offer some sage advice. Follow: @bamradionetwork @raepica1 @benjamingilpin @lubafeigenberg @myers_Berkowicz #edchat #edreform #ece #earlyed #AskingWhatIf Luba Falk Feigenberg is a developmental psychologist who studies social, emotional, and ethical development with a particular focus on how schools can best support children’s healthy development. She is the Research Director for the Making Caring Common project at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Jill Berkowicz Ed.D. co-authored The STEM Shift with Ann Myers, Ed.D. and together they write a blog Leadership360 for Education Week. Ben Gilpin is the principal at Warner Elementary School in Spring Arbor.

Our world has become increasingly unkind and many of us a struggling to teach empathy to our students. Our guests offer some sage advice. Follow: @bamradionetwork @raepica1 @benjamingilpin @lubafeigenberg @myers_Berkowicz #edchat #edreform #ece #earlyed #AskingWhatIf Luba Falk Feigenberg is a developmental psychologist who studies social, emotional, and ethical development with a particular focus on how schools can best support children’s healthy development. She is the Research Director for the Making Caring Common project at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Jill Berkowicz Ed.D. co-authored The STEM Shift with Ann Myers, Ed.D. and together they write a blog Leadership360 for Education Week. Ben Gilpin is the principal at Warner Elementary School in Spring Arbor.

Hopefully, you have finished your 10 summer assignments designed to expand and then investigate seriously the colleges on your teenager’s long summer list of college options. So, let’s review what those 10 assignments were: First, you expanded your teenager’s long summer list of college options. Next, you checked out four key admission standards for the colleges on that list--namely, average high school GPA, high school class rank, SAT or ACT scores of admitted and/or enrolled freshmen, and both required and recommended courses to be completed in high school. After that, you looked at each college’s undergraduate enrollment, broken down by part-time vs. full-time study, gender, race/ethnicity, and place of residence. Then, you checked out the student-to-faculty ratio and class sizes for each college on the list. You went on to look at the type of community each college is located in and what it has to offer off campus. Next, you found out what kind of core curriculum requirements--if any--are in place at each college. Then, you checked out the types of campus housing available at each college and what some of its security measures are. Then, you examined the way each college divides up its academic year into terms--both the traditional and the innovative ways. And finally, you took one last look at some categories of colleges you might have overlooked or you might have thought were not right for your teenager the first time around--namely, faith-based colleges, HBCUs, HSIs, and single-sex colleges. You will recall that our original challenge when the summer started was to do these assignments for 50 colleges--one from each state. But even if you did it for just half that many colleges, congratulations. And, as we said right before the Labor Day break, we hope you did it for at least 20. Now the time has come to start narrowing down that list--finally! As the first deadlines approach for Early Decision and Early Action admissions--mostly around November 1—you and your teenager will want to skinny that list down to a manageable number of colleges, perhaps 15 or so. It seems likely to us, however, that if your teenager is interested enough in a college to apply under an Early Decision plan or interested enough in one or more colleges to apply under an Early Action plan, then you have already skinnied your list down substantially. That doesn’t mean, however, that you don’t need a few colleges still on the list to apply to if the Early Decision choice or the Early Action choices are unsuccessful. So, we are going to help you with that narrowing process starting next week. This week, we want to make a few comments on a subject that we believe in strongly and that we have talked about in two of our summertime Facebook Live chats--and that is community service. Today’s episode, however, addresses community service through the lens of the college application essay, which we hope all of you are starting or maybe even already editing this month. Watch our Facebook Live chats on community service here and here. 1. Community Service: The Background Let’s start with some background. Some months ago, back in Episodes 61 and 62, we took a look at a new report that grew out of a meeting hosted by a Harvard Graduate School of Education project called Making Caring Common. The meeting brought together college admissions deans, high school folks, and others to discuss the state of college admissions. The report is entitled Turning the Tide: Inspiring Concern for Others and the Common Good through College Admissions. We have referenced this report from time to time in subsequent episodes as well. The list of “endorsers” of the report included every Ivy League institution plus an impressive list of about 50 more higher education institutions, including some of our nation’s best small liberal arts colleges, best public flagship universities, and best private universities. The question we have asked about the report and its endorsers is this: How much do they mean it? The jury is still out on that and might be for some time to come. But without getting into the politics of all that, which we believe are quite significant, one thing that is addressed strongly in the report is the value of community service. Four of the 11 recommendations in the report revolve around community service done by high school students, and personally I think that these might be the most sincere recommendations in the report. Let’s listen again to just the first of these recommendations: Meaningful, Sustained Community Service: We recommend that students engage in forms of service that are authentically chosen—that emerge from a student’s particular passions and interests—that are consistent and well-structured, and that provide opportunity for reflection both individually and with peers and adults. We also recommend that students undertake at least a year of sustained service or community engagement . . . . This service can take the form of substantial and sustained contributions to one’s family, such as working outside the home to provide needed income. Just as important, it’s vital that the admissions process squarely challenges misconceptions about what types of service are valued in admissions. Some students seek to ‘game’ service by taking up high-profile or exotic forms of community service, sometimes in faraway places, that have little meaning to them but appear to demonstrate their entrepreneurial spirit and leadership. The admissions process should clearly convey that what counts is not whether service occurred locally or in some distant place or whether students were leaders, but whether students immersed themselves in an experience and the emotional and ethical awareness and skills generated by that experience. (quoted from the report) Here’s what that probably means: that the service should be something that your teenager is actually interested in and invested in; that the service should be something your teenager thinks about, talks about with other kids and with adults, and learns from; that the service should last at least a year; and that the service may be something that your teenager does in order to support or help your own family, such as working at a paid job if financial help is needed or taking care of a younger sibling or an elderly relative if that kind of family support is needed. As we have said before, Marie and I saw kids at the high school we co-founded in New York City with substantial family responsibilities, which made it very difficult for them to engage in the other kinds of service that students without such responsibilities had the free time to undertake. I think that the report’s notion that the service last at least a year is also significant. The report is talking about sustained interactions over time that would speak to the genuine concern that a student had for whatever the community service project was. In other words, the college might not look so favorably on “high-profile” and “exotic” one-week community service projects in “faraway places”--unless perhaps a student did those projects summer after summer in some structured way and perhaps during other school vacations as well and/or had some other kind of follow-through during the rest of the year. 2. Frank Bruni’s Op-Ed Piece Enter Frank Bruni’s excellent and though-provoking op-ed piece in The New York Times on August 13, 2016, provocatively titled “To Get to Harvard, Go to Haiti?” I would like to read you the entire piece, but The New York Times might be slightly annoyed by that. So, let me offer a few quotations that are likely to send you off to read the full piece yourself, and you should absolutely do that. Here is how Mr. Bruni begins the piece:   This summer, as last, Dylan Hernandez, 17, noticed a theme on the social media accounts of fellow students at his private Catholic high school in Flint, Mich. ‘An awfully large percentage of my friends--skewing towards the affluent--are taking ‘mission trips’ to Central America and Africa,’ he wrote to me in a recent email. He knows this from pictures they post on Snapchat and Instagram, typically showing one of them ‘with some poor brown child aged 2 to 6 on their knee,’ he explained. The captions tend to say something along the lines of, ‘This cutie made it so hard to leave.’ But leave they do, after as little as a week of helping to repair some village’s crumbling school or library, to return to their comfortable homes and quite possibly write a college-application essay about how transformed they are. ‘It rubs me the wrong way,’ Hernandez told me, explaining that while many of his friends are well intentioned, some seem not to notice poverty until an exotic trip comes with it. He himself has done extensive, sustained volunteer work at the Flint Y.M.C.A., where, he said, the children he tutors and plays with would love it ‘if these same peers came around and merely talked to them.’ ‘No passport or customs line required,’ he added. Hernandez reached out to me because he was familiar with writing I had done about the college admissions process. What he described is something that has long bothered me and other critics of that process: the persistent vogue among secondary-school students for so-called service that’s sometimes about little more than a faraway adventure and a few lines or paragraphs on their applications to selective colleges. It turns developing-world hardship into a prose-ready opportunity for growth, empathy into an extracurricular activity. And it reflects a broader gaming of the admissions process that concerns me just as much, because of its potential to create strange habits and values in the students who go through it, telling them that success is a matter of superficial packaging and checking off the right boxes at the right time. That’s true only in some cases, and hardly the recipe for a life well lived. (quoted from the article)   Well, Mr. Bruni and Mr. Hernandez, it bothers us here at USACollegeChat as well. And I suspect it bothered the endorsers of the college admissions report, too. We know that it is tempting to pursue some community service option that looks spectacular on your college application, but it seems that those spectacular options are meeting with more and more skepticism by the college admissions officers. That problem is compounded when a student writes the all-important college application essay on such a community service experience. Here is what Mr. Bruni said about that:   ‘The running joke in admissions is the mission trip to Costa Rica to save the rain forest,’ Ángel Pérez, who is in charge of admissions at Trinity College in Hartford, told me. Jennifer Delahunty, a longtime admissions official at Kenyon College, said that mission-trip application essays are their own bloated genre. (quoted from the article)   “Their own bloated genre”--that’s quite an indictment, I think. What that means is that kids have to be careful when they undertake to write their primary application essay about a mission trip or about other community service work. While Mr. Bruni says that he and Pérez and Delahunty don’t doubt that many students doing this kind of community service “have heartfelt motivations, make a real (if fleeting) contribution and are genuinely enlightened by it,” he also tells a number of rather surprising anecdotes in the piece about upper-income parents who can and do buy short charitable experiences for their kids just so their kids have something to write about. Those are the essays that college admissions officers are on the lookout for--essays that don’t appear to come from some genuine and long-term interest on the part of the kid. Looking at the other side of the issue for a moment, we can sympathize with kids who are faced with community service requirements from their high schools or who believe they are faced with community service as a necessary aspect of their college applications--even it that is not their essay topic. We know that kids have lots of demands on their time, including after-school clubs and sports and SAT prep and music lessons and dance lessons and the very real family responsibilities that many kids have. We know that community service can become just one more thing to do—not for its own sake, but for the sake of the college application. And, as Mr. Bruni writes, “Getting it done in one big Central American swoop becomes irresistible, and if that dilutes the intended meaning of the activity, who’s to blame: the students or the adults who set it up this way?” So, who’s to stop that cycle? My vote would be you, parents. It is your responsibility to ensure that any community service activity that is undertaken by your own teenager is done for the right reasons and is carried out with genuine interest on his or her part and with respect for those being served. That is not the high school’s or the colleges’ responsibility. And your responsibility for this doesn’t start when your teenager is a senior. It starts much earlier, perhaps even in middle school, if we are to take into consideration what the new report says--that is, that colleges should start looking for “at least a year of sustained service or community engagement.” Mr. Bruni has a great ending to his piece, thanks in part to the words of Mr. Hernandez. Here it is:   There are excellent mission trips, which some students do through churches that they already belong to, and less excellent ones. There are also plenty of other summer projects and jobs that can help students develop a deeper, humbler understanding of the world. Pérez told me that his favorite among recent essays by Trinity applicants came from someone ‘who spent the summer working at a coffee shop. He wrote about not realizing until he did this how invisible people in the service industry are. He wrote about how people looked right through him at the counter.’ Helicopter parents, stand down! Pérez’s assessment doesn’t mean that you should hustle your teenagers to the nearest Starbucks. It means that whatever they do, they should be able to engage in it fully and reflect on it meaningfully. And if that’s service work, why not address all the need in your own backyard? Many college-bound teenagers do, but not nearly enough, as Hernandez can attest. He feels awfully lonely at the Flint Y.M.C.A. and, in the context of that, wonders, ‘Why is it fashionable to spend $1,000-plus, 20 hours traveling, and 120 hours volunteering in Guatemala for a week?’ He wonders something else, too. ‘Aren’t the children there sad, getting abandoned by a fresh crop of affluent American teens every few days?’ (quoted from the article)   That’s a stunning question from a 17-year-old. It makes me doubly proud of the work that some of our local teenagers do at Adventures in Learning, the nonprofit after-school program for low-income kids that we talked about in one of our Facebook Live chats. Maybe it isn’t as glamorous as going to Costa Rica to save the rain forest, but it’s something real that high school students can do, and they can see the results of their work in the lives of those kids every day. One last word: Mr. Bruni writes, “A more recent phenomenon is teenagers trying to demonstrate their leadership skills in addition to their compassion by starting their own fledgling nonprofit groups rather than contributing to ones that already exist--and that might be more practiced and efficient at what they do.” Agreed, Mr. Bruni. It’s hard to create a nonprofit organization, especially one that has significant impact. So, teenagers, think about finding one near you and lending your support to it. And do that over time, not for a week. And look for ways to be a leader in that context—recruit other teenagers, make presentations at local community events, spearhead a fundraising campaign. We mentioned in one of our Facebook Live chats that Heifer International is a wonderful organization to volunteer with and that it offers suggestions on its website for volunteers leading their own activities. Kids, there’s plenty of work to be done. Do some of it and then consider how to write about it thoughtfully in your college application essay. Be reflective. Be specific. Be persuasive. And be thankful that you had the opportunity to serve. The Kindle ebook version of our book, How To Find the Right College, is on sale for $1.99 all summer long! Read it on your Kindle device or download the free Kindle app for any tablet or smartphone. The book is also available as a paperback workbook. Ask your questions or share your feedback by... Leaving a comment on the show notes for this episode at http://usacollegechat.org/episode91 Calling us at (516) 900-6922 to record a question on our USACollegeChat voicemail if you want us to answer your question live on our podcast Connect with us through... Subscribing to our podcast on Google Play Music, iTunes, Stitcher, or TuneIn Liking us on Facebook or following us on Twitter Reviewing parent materials we have available at www.policystudies.org Inquiring about our consulting services if you need individualized help Reading Regina's blog, Parent Chat with Regina

Welcome back to our summer series, entitled The Search Begins. Again, this series is dedicated to those of you—primarily the parents of juniors—who are starting a focused college hunt now. However, today’s episode is going to be useful to all high school parents as kids gear up—or wind down—for the summer. A note to families with younger high schoolers: It might be time to get a jump on preparing for college applications. Long ago in Episodes 15 and 16, we talked about extracurricular activities, internships, volunteer service, and part-time jobs that students might undertake after school during the school year in order to give a boost to their college applications. Whether your child will be completing The Common Application (which is currently used by over 600 colleges), the Universal College Application (which is currently used by about 45 colleges), or an individual college’s own application (when a college does not use either one), we said then that there will likely be a section that asks your child to make an elaborate list of activities that he or she participated in while in high school (though there are some exceptions to this, especially among community colleges and some less-selective colleges). Having something to say in the activities section of the application is important in order to show that your child is a well-rounded individual, who is likely to contribute to the college community outside of the classroom. We will talk more about activities during the school year in an upcoming episode. But, as we mentioned back in Episode 18, many college applications also ask the applicant to detail what he or she has done each summer while in high school. Knowing this now will help you work with your child to plan significant summer activities, which are useful not only in filling out college applications, but also in making your child’s out-of-school life richer and more meaningful. If your child needs to work in the summer to help support your family, then that has to come first. But, hopefully, there will be some time when he or she can also engage in some activities designed primarily for academic or personal enrichment. If your child is looking at a selective college, then summer should not be viewed as a time to rest and fool around, but rather as a time for your child to pursue some interest or perfect some talent or learn something new or do some good for others—at least part of the time. Here are some broad categories of activities you should talk through with your child immediately since some of these opportunities will be closed very soon. 1. High School and College Study Some high schools and school districts offer summer courses that allow students to take more advanced courses or different courses from those they take during the school year. Accelerated or enriched high school study in the summer is a time-honored tradition and would be a very reasonable summer activity, from a college’s point of view. But, even better, would be study at a college. U.S. colleges have more summer programs than you can count for truly interested and/or reasonably bright high school students. You can’t scroll through Facebook these days without seeing sponsored ads from a variety of colleges for these programs, including from some of our nation’s top-ranked colleges. Some courses are part of full-time residential programs on the campus; others are not. Some college programs are not academic at all, but rather sports related. Unlike taking free public high school courses, programs at a college can be expensive; but, fortunately, scholarships are often available. How do you find such a college course? Well, Google it, of course, or resort to the old-fashioned way of reading the newspaper. Colleges in your hometown likely advertise in the newspaper (even in hometowns as big as New York City). Your child’s high school should have information and brochures as well. Out-of-town colleges that your child might be interested in attending are also a great idea, because a summer course there is one way for your child to get to know the campus—even if not the college and its students—like an insider. One final note: If your high school does not offer students the opportunity to take college courses of any kind during the school year (perhaps through an Early College or dual credit arrangement), then a course taken at a college in the summer—especially one that earns college credit—would be a particularly attractive option for your child. Being able to say on a college application that you have already taken and succeeded in a college course somewhere at some time is, obviously, an advantage for an applicant. For families who are interested in sending students outside the U.S. to study in the summer, there are certainly programs to be had. Just Google them. This is almost an irresistible summer combination—college study and seeing the world. Great for college applications and great for life! 2. Family Travel Quite a few students have close family connections in other countries, often in the country that their parents emigrated from. Many of these students go home to these countries during the summer to visit relatives for several weeks or more, often making it difficult for students to engage in summer programs set up by their schools or in their local communities. Students can take advantage of these family trips—for example, by keeping up with a native or second language, by visiting cultural sites, or by working in a family business—and find something interesting to write about on their college applications. Other families might take a short trip to a different part of the U.S. or to a different country near or far. As always, giving students a close look at important historical sites or art museums or architecturally magnificent buildings or geologic wonders makes it possible for them to write in more detail and more interestingly about these summer activities on their college applications. 3. Internships and Volunteer Work We have made the case several times that engaging in internships and/or volunteer work lets a college know that a student is responsible and dependable, takes initiative, and, depending on the assignment, cares about others. From the student’s side, an internship or volunteer assignment helps the student explore career interests and potential college majors. Summer is also a great time to think about politics—especially this summer, of course. Local, state, and national office-seekers can use plenty of extra hands to stuff envelopes, put up posters, and get voters to declare their intentions. Media-savvy teenagers can often reach out to voters in ways that older adults do not entirely understand. A summer in a political campaign is a powerful way to learn about American government and political science firsthand. Summer is also a great time to pursue a volunteer assignment in a hospital or nursing home. Many high school students—and indeed college students—interested in attending medical school and/or pursuing a career in health care look for these volunteer opportunities, so interested students should pursue this kind of assignment right away. Summer internships—in which a student has a chance to try out a future career field, under the mentorship of a successful individual already working in the field—are even harder to get than volunteer assignments, so students should have already been looking for those. Parents, remember that high schoolers will be in competition for internships with college students—and, more and more, even college graduates—which makes an aggressive search even more important.   As we said back in Episode 18, summer is also a great time to talk with local church youth groups about mission trips to nearby or far away urban or rural areas in or outside of the U.S. where teenagers can do a host of volunteer jobs for the young, the old, the sick, or the homeless—from cleaning up a park to repainting a house to playing games to serving a hot lunch to reading aloud. Having teenagers do work that helps others, while under the supervision of caring adults, is a win for everyone. 4. The New Report In Episodes 61 and 62, we looked at a new report that grew out of a meeting a year ago hosted by a Harvard Graduate School of Education project called Making Caring Common. The meeting brought together college admissions deans, high school folks, and others to discuss the state of college admissions. The report is entitled Turning the Tide: Inspiring Concern for Others and the Common Good through College Admissions. While we have been critical of the actual commitment of the many excellent colleges that endorsed the report to see their recommendations through to implementation, the report does interestingly take an in-depth look at the importance of community service for high school students. Here are two recommendations from the report: Meaningful, Sustained Community Service: We recommend that students engage in forms of service that are authentically chosen—that emerge from a student’s particular passions and interests—that are consistent and well-structured, and that provide opportunity for reflection both individually and with peers and adults. We also recommend that students undertake at least a year of sustained service or community engagement . . . . This service can take the form of substantial and sustained contributions to one’s family, such as working outside the home to provide needed income. Just as important, it’s vital that the admissions process squarely challenges misconceptions about what types of service are valued in admissions.       Some students seek to ‘game’ service by taking up high-profile or exotic forms of community service, sometimes in faraway places, that have little meaning to them but appear to demonstrate their entrepreneurial spirit and leadership. The admissions process should clearly convey that what counts is not whether service occurred locally or in some distant place or whether students were leaders, but whether students immersed themselves in an experience and the emotional and ethical awareness and skills generated by that experience. (quoted from the report) So, what does it all mean? As we said back in Episode 61, it means that the service should be something that your teenager is actually interested in and invested in; that the service should be something your teenager thinks about, talks about with other kids and with adults, and learns from; that the service last at least a year; and that the service may be something that your teenager does in order to support or help your own family, such as working at a paid job if financial help is needed or taking care of a younger sibling or an elderly relative if that kind of family support is needed. I think that the report’s notion that the service last at least a year is particularly significant. In other words, the college might not look so favorably on a one-week community service project in the summer—unless perhaps a student did several of those projects summer after summer. Authentic, Meaningful Experiences with Diversity: We encourage students to undertake community service and engagement that deepens their appreciation of diversity. (quoted from the report) While the report goes on to talk about its own notion of what meaningful experiences with diversity are, the basic idea is clear: work in and learn from activities conducted with racially, ethnically, and nationally diverse groups of kids, classmates, and/or adults.   So, what if that “meaningful, sustained community service” that includes “authentic, meaningful experiences with diversity” could happen this summer—and just as important—summer after summer to build up to the year-long recommendation the report makes? And, better still, what if summer volunteer work could be combined with volunteer work after school during the year to build up to the year-long recommendation the report makes? What might that look like? 5. Spotlight on After-School Programs Here is an example. For many years, I served on the board of an after-school homework-help and enrichment program for low-income kids, including many new arrivals to the U.S., who would otherwise have gone home to empty apartments. This is a shout-out to you, Adventures in Learning in Manhasset, New York, with its one-of-a-kind executive director Diana Holden. Teenagers from local high schools and adults in the community volunteer in the afternoons to work with Adventures’ elementary-school-aged kids—to improve their reading and writing and arithmetic skills, to get their homework done correctly, to offer them special science and arts programming, and to provide them with the other after-school things that the families of kids in their classes at school provide routinely for their own kids—from Scouts to sports to tap dancing. In the interest of full disclosure, my daughter Polly is doing her master’s degree internship program at Adventures this summer, and my son Bobby did a high school internship there a decade ago. If you ask either one of them, every minute they spent at Adventures is and was worth it. I read an article recently that proved what I have always believed about after-school programs like these. A study of 6,400 children in England was reported in The Edvocate in mid-May in an article entitled “After-School Activities Help Disadvantaged Students in the Classroom.” Let’s take a look at a few paragraphs from the article: An academic increase was . . . observed for disadvantaged students who attended after-school programs. They attained higher scores in science, math and English at the end of primary school, lessening the attainment gap between poor students and their more affluent peers. Academic improvements are not the only benefit documented for children participating in after-school activities. Improved social, emotional and behavioral skills were observed from students who participated in organized activities, in comparison to their peers who did not. With there being so many advantages to participation in activities including sports, music, language, tutoring and arts classes, many schools are offering school-based clubs as an affordable alternative for poorer students. For disadvantaged students who do not have access to formal out of school activities, after school programming is imperative. The research could have an impact on policy makers concerned with education, as well as implications for after-school childcare programming. It is clear that the structure and delivery of after-school activities have a positive impact on disadvantaged students. The importance of exposure to these experiences [is] even more significant for poorer students who may not typically have the opportunity to participate unless the program is offered after hours via their public school. (quoted from the article) Or, I would say, unless the program is offered after hours via community-based organizations that make up for what some public schools don’t do or can’t afford to do. Having your child volunteer to work with younger students in such a program—both during the school year and during the summer, when those programs offer summer activities, as many do—is a way for your child to make an actual difference in the academic, social, and personal futures of the kids who are enrolled. And it is a way for your child to make a statement on his or her college application about a long-term commitment to helping all kids succeed. Feel free to have your child quote the same article I did here if your child chooses to write about this kind of volunteer work in an essay on a college application. People who think that having higher schoolers volunteer in after-school and summer programs like these is just an easy thing to do that looks good on an application couldn’t be more wrong. It is much more than that. Show them the proof. So start looking around for a program like this near you. Your teenager doesn’t have to be a genius to help younger kids do their homework. And, your teenager can offer his or her own talents, too—music, art, sports, or something else. When your teenager wants to play all summer, have them listen to this episode. Because it will be time to do college applications sooner than you think. Hear about firsthand experiences with community service in this week's Facebook Live video.   Ask your questions or share your feedback by… Leaving a comment on the show notes for this episode at http://usacollegechat.org/episode79 Calling us at (516) 900-6922 to record a question on our USACollegeChat voicemail if you want us to answer your question live on our podcast Connect with us through… Subscribing to our podcast on Google Play Music, iTunes, Stitcher, or TuneIn Liking us on Facebook or following us on Twitter Reviewing parent materials we have available at www.policystudies.org Inquiring about our consulting services if you need individualized help Reading Regina's new blog, Parent Chat with Regina, or checking out our book, How To Find the Right College, which is now available for sale as a Kindle ebook or as a paperback workbook