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College And Career Readiness

Canyon ISD is committed to ensuring that our students are prepared to pursue a fulfilling career aligned with their interests. We believe that no matter what our students are planning to do after high school, they should be in a position to choose the college and career pathway that will lead to a successful life.

When we are talking about being college and career ready, what do we mean? College and career readiness is being equipped with the knowledge and skills, habits of thinking, and preparation necessary to successfully complete the first year of college without the need for remediation or to be able to enter the workforce ready to handle the demands of the job successfully.

We know that we must be intentional when it comes to preparing and growing our students to succeed in college and career readiness through instilling the ideals of professionalism, leadership, and service.

Our mission is to actively engage and fully equip each student to graduate prepared and confident for post-secondary endeavors

Graduation Requirements At-A-Glance

Foundation High School Program
The Foundation High School Program with endorsements is a ­flexible program that allows students to pursue their interests. It is the graduation program for students who entered high school in the 2014-15 school year or later.

The Program Contains Up to Four Parts

  • A 22-credit foundation plan which is the core of the Texas high school diploma program
  • Five endorsement options that allow students to focus on a related series of courses
  • A higher performance category called Distinguished Level of Achievement
  • Performance Acknowledgments that note outstanding achievement in specific areas

The Foundation Requirements (22 Credits)

  • English (4 Credits)
  • Mathematics (3 Credits)
  • Science (3 Credits)
  • Social Studies (3 Credits)
  • Language Other Than English (2 Credits)
  • Physical Education (1 Credit)
  • Fine Arts (1 Credit)
  • Business Information Management (1 Local Credit) *Beginning with 2017-2018 Freshmen Class
  • Health (.5 Local Credit)
  • 3.5 Elective Credits

Endorsements

  1. STEM
  2. Business and Industry
  3. Public Service
  4. Arts and Humanities
  5. Multidisciplinary

Enhancements to the Foundation Program
A student may earn the Distinguished Level of Achievement and/or a Performance Acknowledgment for outstanding performance. The Distinguished Level of Achievement must be earned to be admitted to a Texas public university under the Top 10 percent automatic admission law.

Distinguished Level of Achievement

  • Foundation Program requirements
  • 4 Credits in Math including Algebra II
  • 4 credits in Science
  • At least one endorsement

Performance Acknowledgement Areas

  • Dual Credit Courses
  • Bilingualism and Biliteracy
  • PSAT, ASPIRE, SAT or ACT
  • Advanced Placement (AP) Exams
  • Earning a state-, nationally-, or internationally-recognized business or industry certification or license

Why it Matters? Benefits
The Distinguished Level of Achievement opens a world of educational and employment opportunities for you beyond high school. The Distinguished Level of Achievement will:

  • Allow you to compete for Top 10% automatic admissions eligibility at any Texas public university;
  • Position you among those first in line for a TEXAS Grant to help pay for university tuition and fees; (Must be financially qualified)
  • Ensure you are a more competitive applicant at the most selective colleges and universities
  • Taking Algebra II and Physics will improve your ACT/SAT Score

Performance Acknowledgements

  • Dual Credit Courses
  • Bilingualism and Biliteracy
  • PSAT, ASPIRE, SAT or ACT
  • Advanced Placement (AP) Exams
  • Earning a state-, nationally-, or internationally-recognized business or industry certification or license

Canyon ISD College Roadmap

  • Counselors will work with Exploring Careers teachers to help students work through the following items in Naviance, our online program used for post-secondary readiness and developing 4-year plans:

    • Introduction Survey
    • Career Cluster Assessment
    • Browse Careers
    • Add Career Clusters to list
    • Complete the Strengths Explorer
    • Student Explore Road Trip Nation
    • Build 4-year Plans
    • Complete endorsement form
    • Completion Survey

  • Fall Semester

    • Student and Parents will be invited to attend a meeting to discuss their student’s 4 Year Plan, endorsement options, courses and post-secondary goals
    • Revisit 4-year plan during pre-registration
    • Complete Career Cluster Finder

  • Fall Semester

    • PSAT

    Spring Semester

    • Revisit 4-year plan during pre-registration
    • Complete Career Interest Profiler through Naviance
    • TSI Test for students enrolling in Dual-Credit courses

  • The goals for the 11th grade year are to make sure the students will be on track to graduate. Majority of students will have already selected their endorsement(s) with the correct courses, and they need to begin narrowing the list of colleges that they will be applying for.

    September:

    • Graduation/Transcript Checklist
    • Register for the PSAT
    • Plan Community Service and Leadership Opportunities

    October:

    • Take PSAT
    • Begin College Visits

    November:

    • ASVAB – Early November
    • Research post-secondary options by completing SuperMatch on Naviance
    • FAFSA4Caster to help in planning potential financial aid

    December:

    • Continue post-secondary options

    January:

    • Register for 12th Grade classes, making sure they align with 4-year Plan
    • Complete the Strength Explorer
    • Register for the ACT

    February:

    • Continue to research post-secondary options
    • ACT for all Juniors provided by CISD

    March:

    • Discuss options with College and Career Counselor

    April:

    • TSI Test for Dual-Credit and CCR

    May:

    • Possible AP Exams
    • Register to take ACT
    • Work on Resume’
    • Practice college essays in English class

    June/July:

    • Begin applying to colleges and universities (Apply Texas Application)

  • August:

    • Sign up for ACT or SAT re-test
    • SuperMatch College Search – Naviance
    • Begin admissions essays
    • Know application requirements and deadlines

    September:

    • Apply for admission (Apply Texas Application)
    • Meet with College and Career Counselor
    • Attend Parent Night for FAFSA completion

    October:

    • FAFSA opens October 1st
    • Attend college fair during the school day
    • Begin gathering information for applying for scholarships
    • Counselor Page – Scholarship Listings
    • Apply for housing

    November:

    • ASVAB
    • Apply for scholarships

    December:

    • Continue to apply for scholarships
    • Re-Take ACT or SAT for higher score, if needed

    January:

    • Look for checklist of tasks from your chosen college/university
    • Set login (username and password) for the system to obtain a college email account

    February:

    • Continue to apply for scholarships
    • Visit military recruiters

    March:

    • Continue to apply for scholarships

    April:

    • Get meningitis vaccination
    • Interview Week for all Seniors

    May:

    • May 1st – Deadline to notify college/university of choice of attendance decision
    • Review financial aid awards
    • Request dual-credit transcripts be sent
    • Complete housing
    • Sign-up for New Student Orientation

    GRADUATE!!!!