Thursday Round Up

23 October

Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash
News from the Homefront: 

In School PSAT:
On 30 October we will be giving the school based PSAT exam for all students in grades 10 and 11. 9th and 12th grades will have alternate activities during this time. Students are automatically signed up for this. There is nothing extra that is needed.

​Star at UVA:
Star is a group of University of Virginia students who organize a semesterly enrichment program for 9th- to 12th- grade students from Virginia. On November 15th at UVA, undergraduates will teach one-hour seminars on topics ranging from public biology to supernatural history. This event is entirely free of charge and will include free meals, a day of educational courses, and personal development opportunities. We are running this event in cooperation with the University Police Department’s Office for Youth Protection. All volunteers will be background-checked. Sign ups are now open through this form.  Contact them or their executive board with any questions at [email protected].​

AP Exams
​Initial WAHS AP Exam Registration will be open from October 1, 2025 - October 31, 2025.  Families have to register for their exam no later than October 31 to avoid the late registration fee of $40.00 per exam.  Families who need financial assistance can request that on the registration form. This year, we will be accepting Exam Registration through MySchoolBucks, regardless of the method of payment.  Here is a copy of the AP Exam Schedule.  Please see our school website for all information regarding exams

Governor's School
It's that time of the year! Summer Residential Governor's School offers programming in the area of academics, visual and performing arts, and world languages. Programs are prestigious and highly selective. Albemarle County pays the tuition for the program (there are usually fees for each program which run about $200). Academic and VPA are 3 weeks long. World Language is 3 weeks long. Governor's School is only for students in 10th and 11th grades. I will be setting aside 2 warrior periods a week to meet with people who want help with applications. Please look for these sessions in Adaptive Scheduler.
Here are key dates you will need:
Virginia National Bank Opportunity
Virginia National Bank (VNB) is proud to announce that it is currently taking applications for its 2026 Finance Career and Leadership Academy (FCLA, Academy)!
 
The FCLA is an in-depth and challenging educational program that offers students in high school the training and skills necessary to understand and manage one’s personal finances, obtain employment and excel as a professional, AND potentially lay the groundwork for a promising career in the banking and finance industry. The Academy is open to high school juniors and seniors and is free to those that are accepted into the program.
 
The 2026 FCLA in-person, evening classes are scheduled for the weeks of January 19 through May 29, 2026 (first class on Tuesday, January 20th), at Virginia National Bank’s Pantops office. The FCLA application deadline is Friday, November 21, 2025. Up to ten students will be accepted into the program. Upon completion of the Academy, high performing FCLA participants become candidates for VNB’s College Program.
 
We will be holding two free informational presentations for interested parents and students. The location, dates, and times for the presentations are listed below.
 
                Charlottesville           
                November 6th (Th) or 10th (M)
                6:30 – 8:00 PM              
                __________________     
                Virginia National Bank            
                404 People Place, Basement Level
                Charlottesville, VA 22911     
 
Refreshments will be served. Seating is limited; therefore, an RSVP sent to [email protected]  from those interested in attending would be greatly appreciated. 
 
For more information regarding the Academy check out their page: www.vnb.com/fcla 
​Submit Your Work to the Myriad!
La Ofrenda de la Biblioteca de WAHS
Trunk or Treat is Saturday!
Get your club or friends together and design a trunk for this great community event! Want your club to sponsor a trunk? Fill out the form today! 
Have more fun after Trunk or Treat!
​College Visits:
Sign up in Schoolinks!​​​​​​​​​​
  • 29 October – Randolph Macon
  • 5 November – Roanoke
​
Tomorrow is a(n) A day 

​Upcoming Events:​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​
  • 25 October – Walk/Run for Breast Cancer
  • 25 October – Trunk or Treat
  • 2-3 November – Teacher Work Day and Professional Development Day (no school for students)
  • 13-16 November – Fall Show
  • 19 November – School Picture Make Up Day
  • 26-28 November – Thanksgiving Break
  • 7 December – Winter Band Concert
  • ​18 December – End of 1st Semester
  • 18 December – Winter Break
  • 5 January – Return from break
  • 19 January – MLK Day, No School for Students
  • 16 February – Teacher Work Day, No School for Students

Use Your Brain for Fun (&$)!

Humanities & Social Sciences

Scholastic Arts and Letters awards open today. The competition is open to students in grades 7-12. This is a very prestigious competition.

Bennington Young Writers is open for submissions. This writing contest is for students in grades 9-12. Submit by 1 November

Black and Latino Men Read has an essay contest that is open to male identifying people who also identify as Black or Latino. Submit your essay by 31 October.

Omega Psi Phi has an International Essay Competition that is worth up to $5,000. Submit your entry by 31 October.

Hey policy folks! Check out the International Public Policy Forum's current contest. Get a team together and submit your essay and qualify for the competition. 

The Writer's Eye is happening even as we speak! Head to the Fralin to check out the artworks and get writing!

The International Writing Contest invites authors in grades 9-12 to submit their writing. Submit by 25 October.

STEM

Hispanic seniors planning to study green technology, computer science, or are active in community service can apply to the Hispanic Youth Heritage Awards. Due 2 November

Are you a woman identifying person who is interested and engaged in the computing world? NCWIT wants to give you a scholarship. Open to 9-12. Submit by 28 October.

Get in on the NASA TechRise Challenge! This is a team competition to place an experiment on a suborbital mission. Submit by 3 November

Join the Presidential AI Challenge! Do you have a plan for how AI could solve a community issue? Then you have a project! 

NASA invites you to their Student Launch Challenge. This is a 9 month challenge for those interested in aerospace engineering!

Programmers, get your plans in place for the Congressional App Challenge. WAHS has had a winner in the past so we can definitely do it again! Check the contest out!
Picture
Photo by Ari He on Unsplash

Visual and Performing Arts

Jack Kent Cook Young Artist Scholarship is open to students ages 8-18. It's worth $10,000 and open until 15 November.

Scholastic Arts and Letters awards open today. The competition is open to students in grades 7-12. This is a very prestigious competition.

Frame Your Future is taking submissions beginning today. Create a piece that envisions your future and submit it for a chance at a $2,000 scholarship

The Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist Award is given to students ages 8-18 for music. It's worth up to $10,000. Apply by 15 November

Save the Frogs is an art contest for students of all ages. Submit your artwork to them by 1 November

Debbie's Dream Foundation has an art contest for students in grades K-12. If you have been affected by cancer, submit your work by 30 October.

The Concerto Competition is open to students in 9-12 grades. Sponsored by the US Marine Band, it's worth $5,000 and due by 15 November.

Scholarships for Seniors

The Virginia Junior Chamber International Senate (VA JCI Senate), an affiliate organization of the Virginia Jaycees, is proud to continue to offer the future leaders of America an opportunity to earn scholarship money for the pursuit of higher education.  The application, requirements, and student checklist may be found on our web site at this link:
 
https://www.vajcisenate.org/scholarship  or here: https://usjcisenate.org/index.php/scholarship-program
 
Please note that in addition to scholarship funds for four-year colleges/universities, a scholarship offering for students planning to attend trade, vocational, or technical schools is also available.  Last year, there was only one applicant for this program from within Virginia and was an automatic winner.  We strongly encourage these students to apply.  Applicants should select “Vocational  Application” at the link provided above.
 
Application Instructions
Download and complete the application from the link provided above.
Students should assemble their application into a single PDF file ensuring that ALL attachments are included.  The pdf document should be no larger than 25 MB.  There are two methods of submitting the applications to me.  Students may email the completed application in pdf format to this email address by the deadline.  The second option is the send the hardcopy application via USPS or other delivery service such at FedEx.  In order to send hardcopy, applicants or their parents MUST email me at [email protected] for specific mailing instructions for hardcopy applications. Please see additional instructions at the Virginia JCI Senate website.  Emailed applications are not required but are appreciated.
 
Applications must be postmarked no later than January 12, 2026. 
The completed application in PDF format should be emailed [email protected]  by midnight January 12, 2026.
 
Two scholarships for college/university and one vocational scholarship will be awarded by the Virginia JCI Senate.  Winners are eligible to compete for additional scholarships from the US JCI Senate and will be notified with instructions for forwarding the completed hard copy application with original signature to Cindy Kinney, Virginia JCI Senate Scholarship chair.  

The NC State University Park Scholarship application is now available.  This is a full tuition/room and board scholarship to NC State University.  If you believe you’re qualified for the Park Scholarships based on our selection criteria of scholarship, leadership, service and character, we welcome you to apply. The application processes for Park Scholarships and NC State undergraduate admissions are separate, so be sure to follow the instructions below. The application for 2025-2026 is now open! 
​Eligibility Requirements: To be eligible for the Park Scholarships program, candidates must:
  • Have a minimum unweighted GPA of 3.8.
  • Be a United States citizen, permanent resident of the U.S., or graduating from a high school located in the U.S. (regardless of citizenship status).
  • Apply for fall, first-year admission into a baccalaureate program at NC State.
By 11:59 pm ET, November 1: The Park Scholarships application requires:
  • Two recommendations
  • Information about advanced coursework completed
  • Two essays
If you have any trouble accessing the application after following these instructions, please email park [email protected] and request that we have Admissions add an application to your wolfPAW portal.       https://park.ncsu.edu/apply/

The Elks Most Valuable Student Scholarship:
Eligibility: US Citizen
Judging Criteria: Academics, Leadership, Service, Financial Need.
Applications can be found here
Awards between $4,000-$30,000
Deadline: Nov. 12th.

The Flusche & Fitzgerald Undergrad Scholarship Contest Award: $500 scholarship
Deadline:  November 30, 2025
Where to Apply: The Flusche & Fitzgerald Undergrad Scholarship Contest
Self Care:
​Scholarships
Do you need money to make post high a reality? Start with these two databases!
Hagan Scholars receive up to $7500 per semester through all of their college time. Other perks include workshops and study abroad. Apply by 1 December

Dell Scholars receive $20,000 for their education in college. Submit your application by 15 December. 

Jack Kent Cook Young Artist Scholarship is open to students ages 8-18. It's worth $10,000 and open until 15 November.

Regeneron Talent Search is looking for your work. You must apply by 6 November. It's worth up to $250,000 for college.

The Elks' Most Valuable Student Scholarship is worth up to $50,000. Apply by 12 November

The National Space Foundation Keynote Scholar application is open for submissions. The winner gets up to $20,000. Apply by 17 November.

The Voice of Democracy is worth up to $35,000. There is a specific prompt to respond to. Complete this by 31 October.

Become a Chick-fil-A Scholar and bring in up to $25,000 for college or post high learning. Submit your application by 28 October.

The Stamps Scholarship is a full ride (tuition, room and board, and fees) scholarship that partners with various universities in the US. You must go through the partner institutions.

Dr. Pepper has a scholarship sweepstakes worth up to $10,000. 

The Jack Kent Cook Scholarship awards artists up to $10,000 for college. It's open to people 8-18 so get your fall app in! It's due by 15 November

Do Good Things for People

Looking for volunteer hours? Arts in Western Education (AWE) is hosting an Arts Night Out for local elementary students at Crozet Elementary School on Friday, October 24. We are looking for several volunteers who can help support small groups of students as they participate in art related activities. The time of the event is 4:45- 8:30pm, and you can sign up here.

Support the CASPCA this weekend with their Fall Fest

"The Best School" and "The Best School for You" should be one and the same. You're not buying a pair of shoes. You're going to school for four years. Just because it's a good brand name, doesn't mean it fits you or that you're comfortable there. 

College Corner

Berry College

Go to PVCC

College is costly. This is clear to all. Four years at a private college without aid will run you close to $400,000. That is a house. That is like buying a brand new Rivian every four years. Even in-state you’re looking at close to $160,000 if you do not qualify for aid. 

Luckily for us, our local community college is pretty terrific! Piedmont Virginia Community College charges only $5,000 for an entire year of education if you do not qualify for aid. If you do qualify for aid, it can be 100% free for you. In other words, in-state tuition to a four year institution is almost eight times what PVCC costs. 

PVCC has a high number of faculty with PhDs (not always true of other community colleges) because UVA attracts folks whose spouses are often academics as well. This means that your education at PVCC is being taught by someone with the exact same credentials as a professor at William and Mary or UVA have. And PVCC’s classes are significantly smaller than classes at an R1 school like UVA. Think 25 people in that biology class, not 250.

With the direct transfer option, PVCC allows you to get your general education credits done in small classes with well trained faculty for a fraction of the cost of a four year school. After students complete their two years, as long as they have maintained the correct GPA for the school they want to transfer to next, they are guaranteed a spot there for their last two years. This means they will graduate with the same BA from a school where families paid 40K for all four years. One of my husband’s former students who is a professor now with a PhD from Emory and an MBA from Wake Forest did this. Financially the decision can’t be beat!

There are other reasons to love PVCC as well. Students who are not quite ready to go away for four years get the experience of college but the safety net of staying local. Since the pandemic really affected our growth (and I do mean all of us!) many students have missed out on a year’s worth of autonomy that in school classes tend to promote. PVCC is a gentle start to college for kids who are still feeling insecure or unready.

For students who are interested in heading into the workforce, PVCC also has multiple programs that are meant specifically for them. Folks who want to work in health care without becoming a doctor or nurse have several options there including EKG tech, MRI, mammography, practical nursing, pharmacy tech, and sonography, as well as training to become a paramedic. Other programs for kids interested in heading off to work include accounting, networking, solar tech, cybersecurity, horticulture and landscape design, and programming. And, due to our location, they have a robust program in viticulture, enology and tasting room management. While we generally think of the workforce part of a community college being about trades, PVCC offers a rich array of options for people who want to go into the working world without having to have a four year degree.

Classes at PVCC are flexible and can meld with students’ schedules. There are classes online and in the evening. They have services for students who have special needs, a writing center, a math center and academic coaching. They also have an honors program which many of our students will qualify for. The honors option includes seminar based classes that push students to use their critical thinking skills. And even more fantastic, several universities offer entrance right into their honors programs if a student is in the honors program at PVCC. Mary Washington, JMU, and VCU are among the schools that will take students from PVCC’s honors program and give them guaranteed entrance to their honors programs.

Moreover, although we don’t talk about it much, many kids are not successful at a four year school the first time they go. Social life can take over and that means some kids make poor decisions. Many of these students find that they end up at PVCC anyway. One former student of mine started at Longwood and then after he had made some wrong choices, ended up at PVCC. After two years he transferred to JMU directly and is finishing his degree there. He is now a straight A student (something that he was not in high school, mind you!) and is having a lot of success.

Like all colleges, PVCC offers clubs, sports, arts, and more. Sports are recreational rather than D1, but they still fulfill the same basic role: to promote an active and healthy lifestyle, while having fun. Golf, tennis, basketball, and volleyball are all options at PVCC. Plus because it’s a community college, there are workout webinars for anyone interested in taking advantage of them, including us.

The same investment, anime, French, music, theater, and STEM clubs serve to fulfill student interests. Plus there are a series of specialized groups that are of particular interest. The rocketry program is excellent and so is the Film Series. Students can learn important leadership skills in the student government as well as the community service groups like Roteract and People Empowering People clubs. 

Finally, PVCC serves our community. That means it serves everyone. There is no better way to learn about the world than to take classes with a grandmother, a career changer, a member of the military, and folks their own age. Students learn crucial soft skills that are highly desirable to employers when they have experiences with this sort of diversity. Community colleges are some of our most diverse institutions.

Is PVCC for you? It’s for everyone. Literally. For many families it makes good economic sense to go there. But for other folks, there are plenty of great reasons to attend. It’s hard to go wrong with a school that offers as much as PVCC does in the two years you spend there.

On the Town

Photo by Jared Sluyter on Unsplash
Events:​​​​