ACADEMICS

Opinion: The SAT Is A Rich Man’s Game

by Catherine Stautz, Highland Park High School Bagpipe (Dallas, TX)

In March of 2019, the news had broken that 53 successful tycoons, including “Full House” star Lori Loughlin and her husband, Mossimo Giannulli, paid a large sum of money to a college counselor named Rick Singer, to secure their already fortunate children spots at top universities.

Singer started off coaching students to prepare for the college admission process. He later went on to open many different college test prep centers, where he would offer both the side and back door services to families...

Redwood students should (and are able to) ACT on their own

by Cameryn Smith, Redwood Bark (Redwood High School - Larkspur, CA)

As a junior in high school, when I listen in on my classmates’ conversations, the topic of college is almost always brought up. A wave of stress rushes over me as my peers share information about their Advanced Placement (AP) classes, extracurricular activities and grade point averages (GPAs). Within these academic conversations, a frequent topic that prompts anxiety is college counselors. 

With many students headed on a path to college, private counselors have become a popular part of the preparation and admissions process…

Demarginalizing the college admissions essay

by Karina Rower, West Linn High School Amplifier (West Lynn, Oregon)

*Names have been changed to protect students’ identities*

“You know, you’re lucky you have something to write about in your essays,” Alex said. “I just don’t have anything to be discriminated against.”

A second passes. Did they really just say that?

Sitting in AP English Language and Composition, a class in which students were challenged to use personal anecdotes to write essays that explored complex research topics, I didn’t feel like my identity gave me a leg up on the assigned writing prompts.