School & College Counseling

At CCHS, we take pride in knowing who are students are and helping them to make the decisions that empower them to become the best version of themselves.

There are three areas of support we provide as they navigate their early high school experiences:

1. Academics (skill development & goal setting)
2. Extracurricular Involvement
3. Social connections

For many students getting to the level they want in each of these areas is a process that requires both time and experiences.

Part of the learning process involves learning from successes as well as reflecting on disappointments.

School Counselors hold seminars with each freshman homeroom to discuss developing study skills and setting challenging yet realistic goals.

Additionally, we educate first year students about Grade Point Average (GPA) and the components of a CCHS transcript.

School Counselors schedule one-on-one meetings with all.

We look forward to expanding our relationships with the freshman class.

Sophomore Year is an important year for students to build on their successes, define new pathways, and strengthen relationships.

Sophomores take the PSAT in the fall. The results offer a baseline of where they test well and areas to strengthen over the next couple of years. They will take the PSAT again in October of their junior year.

During the Sophomore Seminar held in the first semester, School Counselors meet with students to teach and discuss goal setting and study skills. Additionally, sophomores will be updating information on their Naviance account and completing a survey regarding their school experiences to that date.

In the second semester, sophomores complete personality and career focused assessments that help students identify their interests and discover career clusters that contain careers that might interest them. Additionally, the feedback provided helps students make the most of the sophomore student career fair.

We expect students to take advantage of opportunities and evolve their thoughts regarding potential paths to explore in college and beyond.

CCHS offers a Career Exploration Fair, which offers the opportunity for students to attend career-focused presentations by a professional in the field, ask specific questions, and make connections with a current professional.

The college exploration process begins in earnest during a student's junior year at Central Catholic.

Juniors have the opportunity to attend CCHS sponsored college conferences with higher educational professionals in the fall and the college exploration process officially kicks off in January.

Juniors prepare for and take standardized tests, including the PSAT and the SAT. The PSAT, taken in the fall, provides an outstanding indication of how prepared students are for the SAT’s.

Each spring CCHS hosts a Jesuit college fair exclusively for our junior students that provides an excellent opportunity to connect with college admission professionals representing colleges from east to west coast.

Before the end of the junior year the school counselors hold a college application seminar in which all students request a letter of recommendation, create a Common Application account, and learn how to best respond to college application writing prompts.

The Counseling Office conducts several seminars and parent nights throughout the year to ensure students and families have the information and support they need to succeed.

The Counseling Office empowers seniors to navigate the college application season with confidence and success.

Programs that support both students and their families with all aspects of their college selection process include:

• Apply Yourself webpage: an interactive resource to help students effectively complete college applications, navigate college related requests, complete the financial aid process, identify applicable scholarships to continue their education, and access other information related to college application initiatives.
• College Application & Scoir Senior Class Assembly
• The Write Stuff: College Essay Review Day
• College Conferences @ CCHS - college admissions professionals from across the country visit CCHS to talk with students
• Senior Parent College On-Demand Videos & Resources
• Financial Aid Night

As students begin receiving acceptances to colleges, we ask them to post their success on a mural in the School and College Counseling Office. For our hard-working students, it is a feel-great moment for sure!