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Gallatin County Board of Education Special Meeting
College Student Focus Group
January 3, 2012 6:00 p.m.
High School Library

Purpose of meeting was to hear experiences from former Gallatin County High School Graduates.  No action was taken at this meeting.  Board member Becky Burgett and Larry Vaught were present.  Students present were:
Joseph Ackermann, Rebecca French, Courtney Jones, Shaina Sample, Damien Mains, Ashley Jones, Jesse Walker, Hannah French and Alyson Davis.

Questions and responses were:

1.	What experiences did you have in our high school that most prepared you for college?
College classes (Advanced Biology	AP classes – independent study basically	ACT	Extracurricular activities	Cell video in Mrs. Parker’s class. Helped with biology in college	College Now classes	College Now classes	Advanced Biology Class	Harder classes	
Teachers who demand more	Extracurricular activities	College Credit Classes	Time management				High demanding teachers such as Parker/Hale in Physics		
No study guides for test (they don’t like that in college	Beta/Science club								
	Writing formal papers								

2.	Where did you feel unprepared?
Writing research papers	I wasn’t prepared for all for the studying and homework	All the preparation for college, didn’t know about FAFSA and all the rules	Going away from home	Writing research papers	Curriculum was more demanding	Amount of homework	Time management	Physics	
Professor		Amount of homework	New people	Amount of homework	More study time needed	Time management	Study skills	Time management	
		Time management skills			More out of class assignments			Calculus	
								Had to have tutoring	
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3.	What subjects were you most/least prepared for in college?

Most
Other sciences

Least
Chemistry
Economics
English	Most
n/a

Least
Calculus
English	Most
Literature

Least
American Government and Math	Most
English
Math

Least
Science 
History	Most
Speech
Comm.

Least
Writing	Most
English
Spanish

Least
Biology
Calculus	Most
English
Math
Biology

Least
Economics	Most
English
Computer Science

Least
Math	Most
Chem
Eng Drafting

Least
Calculus
Speech	

4.	Who were your most influential and respected teachers and why?

Parker-demanding. Knows her students and finds ways to push	Parker and Mr. Hale – both brought  out the best in me. They were not afraid to challenge us and give us homework. (con’t) 	Clinkenbeard-willing  to help. She made learning fun.	Mrs. Hale – great way of teaching that was like my college classes	Parker – always willing to listen	Parker – never quit teaching something unless everyone got it	Parker, Hales and Weaver-very helpful and willing to do anything to help you and very supportive	Clinkenbeard-made me more interested in my major than I was before. Made class interesting.	Mrs. Hale – she not only taught me all the math she could, she took time to know me and care.	
Mr/Mrs. Hale-demanding. They both teach like college professors	They taught their classes close to what a college class is taught like.	Mrs. Hale – she helped me really understand math	Sanders – importance of a well written paper holds more meaning to me every day	Mrs. Jury – pushed me further than I could have done by myself	Mrs. Hale – knew I struggled in math and always made sure I knew what was going on				
			Parker/Franklin – taught me what chemistry was all about and made me know it was possible						

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5.	What can the teachers, staff and administration do better to help our students prepare for college and/or career in order to be successful?
More homework that applies lessons instead of repetition	Challenge students. Coasting by is teaching them nothing.	Prepare them for workload	Public speaking presentations	Encourage how helpful these classes are in the college classes	More homework. Was unprepared for the amount of homework in college.	Push, push, push	Study skills	Time management	
Expect all to attend college		Prepare them for the real world	Better explanation of assignments	Have some teachers step up their game	Time Mgmt	More homework		Calculus	
			Actual teaching instead of writing on board		FAFSA help	Study skills, time/money mgmt		Had to have tutoring	

6.	How valuable was the Senior Culminating Event for you?  How did you feel about it when you were in school and how do you feel about it now?  How did it help prepare you for college and a career path?
At the time I had to decide what to do for my SCE I had no idea what I was going to college for. I hated it then and not sure how I feel about it now. I believe the speaking part and presentation part was the main beneficial part.	Really valuable. I thought it was just busy work in school. Looking back, it did prepare me for my career choice and influence the career path that I chose.	I think it was good because it actually made you work hard to fulfill the project. But I didn’t choose that career path so it didn’t help me. When I was in school I felt that it was a challenging project.	I honestly don’t think it did anything for me. In high school I didn’t enjoy it or like the idea of it and I still don’t think it’s necessary because nothing I did on it helped me with college.	It was extremely valuable, but it did not help me decide what I wanted to do since it was a little late. It would be much more beneficial during the junior year. It helped me research the field I had already chosen.	It was helpful because I learned a lot about the major that I am pursuing right now. I learned about what was needed in that field and how important it is to have a passion for it.	I didn’t care for the senior culminating event. It didn’t help me prepare for college. But I think it did help me find what I want to do with my life.	Didn’t mean much to me in school. I waited until last minute to complete it. But now, it has helped me decide what major to go into and field.	I feel it did nothing for me. While I was doing it, it just made me mad. The one thing I did learn from it was how hard it is going to be in that profession. Now that I am in college, I learned it will be hard.	

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7.	What advice would you give our college bound students?
Research colleges and take a lot of tours. I did not and have ended up transferring.	Learn how to study harder and try as hard as you can to do your best in every class.	There is a time to have fun and then there is a time to study. 	Study as hard as you can.
Pay very close attention. Work on time management for classes, work, etc.	Do not procrastinate. Do your work the day it’s assigned 	Take advantage of HS. The better GPA, the more KEES money, better ACT, more KEES money.	Learn to study efficiently. Plan ahead because college is a place for you to learn, but it’s a business for the people who work there.	Don’t wait until your senior year to decide your major. Do some research  to help you choose a career path. 	If you are doing good and coasting through high school, don’t expect that to happen in college. 	
		You have to learn how to manage your time.	Not HS anymore. You are getting prepared for the world.	Staying up until 3 am the day before your paper is due is not fun.	Learn how to manage your time.	Community colleges are a great way to knock out irritating gen ed classes.	Concentrate on your studies, don’t just worry about the fun stuff.	Be prepared to manage your time wisely and study hard.	
				Be wise with your money & time. Chances are, you can’t get either back.				Don’t skip class; it’s habit forming.	

8.	Would you be willing to talk to students who are wondering what path to take about your experiences (good and bad)?
Yes because I didn’t get the chance to talk with a lot of older students about the transition to college.	Yes I would be willing to talk because maybe if someone would have told me about bad experiences I would have learned something.	Yes I would be willing to share my experiences. I have changed majors and would talk to them about researching majors they would be interested in.	Yes. It is good to know what to expect in their future when to attend college from someone they know.	Yes. I’d be willing to talk about UK or just college in general. UK can be an intimidating place coming from a small high school and town. 	Not good with public speaking. Depends on the situation but I would like to share my knowledge of what college is like.	Sure. I think it’s much easier to hear from another person who has experienced first-hand.	Yes I would always be willing to come and talk/share my experiences.	I am a lousy public speaker but I will do my best to speak to a class. When is the issue….I live at school.