This month

Involvement

• Feature —Service to America
• It's a fact —The health benefits of volunteering
• Stay on track — A checklist of "to-dos"
• Take notice — Important dates
• All about AIEmail — Subscribe, suggest, review

Feature

Service to America

President George W. Bush has called on Americans to commit at least 4,000 hours — the equivalent of two years over the course of their lives — to the service of others. Volunteering is a great way to make a difference in your community and a good way to get a taste of the work environment. Not only that, but time spent volunteering looks great on a college application.

With time off from classes, spring break is an ideal time to contribute service to the community.

Here are some ways you can get involved:

• Read to and tutor children at your local library.
• Deliver meals or visit the elderly for Meals on Wheels (www.mowaa.org).
• Volunteer at the local hospital or nursing home.
• Start a community service project of your own.
• Sort clothes for Goodwill (www.goodwill.org) or The Salvation Army (www.salvationarmyusa.org).
• Take part in some of the many activities of the American Red Cross (www.redcross.org), Habitat for Humanity, (www.habitat.org) or United Way (www.unitedway.org).

Visit the following Web sites to learn about volunteer opportunities and awards and scholarships for volunteers:

• AmeriCorps (www.americorps.org)
• Points of Light Foundation (www.pointsoflight.org)
• Students in Service to America (www.studentsinservicetoamerica.org)
• USA Freedom Corps (www.usafreedomcorps.gov)

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It's a Fact

The health benefits of volunteering

Not only does volunteering help improve your community and the lives of others, it can also improve your physical and mental health!

• Volunteer work improves the well being of individual volunteers because it enhances social support networks. People with strong social support networks have lower premature death rates, less heart disease, and fewer health risk factors. (Fact Sheet: Volunteering as a Vehicle for Social Support and Life Satisfaction, Public Health Agency of Canada)
• Volunteering can improve self-esteem, reduce heart rates and blood pressure, increase endorphin production, enhance immune systems, buffer the impact of stress, and combat social isolation. (Research Summary: Graff, L. (1991). Volunteer for the Health of It, Etobicoke, Ontario: Volunteer Ontario.)
• Volunteering lowers the risk of physical ill health because it boosts the social psychological factors that healthy people have. (The Effects of Volunteering on the Volunteer, John Wilson and Marc Musik, 62 Law & Contemp. Probs., Autumn 1999)
• Medical and scientific documentation supports that volunteering results in a heightened sense of well being, improves insomnia, strengthens the immune system, and hastens surgery recovery time. (The Healing Power of Doing Good, Allan Luks & Peggy Payne)
• Volunteering puts people into highly social situations, increasing the opportunity for close interpersonal relationships and strengthening a sense of identity. (Peer Counseling Perspectives, April 2003 Survival News, Mary Lynn Hemphill, "Volunteer For Your Health")

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Stay on track

Checklist for this week

For freshmen

Now is the time to start learning the basics of money management.

• Open a savings account and save some of your income.
• Open a checking account, learn to write checks and balance a monthly statement.
• Keep a list of expenses — all the items you purchase.
• Talk about upcoming expenses with your parents. Find out what they expect you to pay for that new car, a bike, or college.

For sophomores

Here are a few important things to know about the SAT Subject Tests:

• The SAT Subject Tests are one-hour, primarily multiple-choice tests in specific subjects. They measure knowledge or skills in a particular subject and your ability to apply that knowledge.
• Some colleges may require one or more of these tests for admissions purposes or use them for placement in courses.
• The best time to take a Subject Test is at the completion of a course in that subject.
• If you are taking an Honors or Pre-AP course in one of the areas tested by a Subject Test, you may want to take the test this spring.
• Seek advice from your teacher. Registration materials for the tests are usually in your counselor's office.
• Get an update on a list of SAT tests that are available from the College Board (www.collegeboard.com).

For juniors

Here are a few notes about dual-credit enrollment:

• An advantage of dual credit is the ability to earn both high school credit and college credit at the same time. It is a "two-for-one" venture.
• Taking a college course while in high school gives you the opportunity to experience the structure and expectations of college classes.
• One disadvantage of dual credit is that not all colleges will accept a course for college credit if it was also taken for high school credit. Check with prospective colleges to determine if they accept dual-credit courses.

For seniors

It's your senior year and you may be thinking, "I'm outta here!" But if you plan on going to college, here's why you should stay focused:

• Colleges accept students contingent upon "successful completion of the senior year."
• Admissions personnel watch for dramatic grade drops on midyear reports and final transcripts. Should your grades reflect a steep decline, the school may request a written explanation describing the reasons for the poor performance.
• Occasionally, a college may require a student to attend summer school or be placed on academic probation for the first semester of the freshman year.
• In rare instances, a selective college may actually revoke a student's acceptance if his/her grades drop in the final semester.

For parents

If you filed a FAFSA, you will receive a Student Aid Report (SAR) from the federal government. Here is some information about it:

• The SAR will list the amount of money that you and your child are expected to contribute toward college expenses. This amount is called the Estimated Family Contribution (EFC).
• The SAR will also inform you of any federal grants (such as the Pell Grant) or federal loans for which your family qualifies.
• The college financial aid office will also receive the SAR information if you provided the college's name on the FAFSA. The college will subtract the EFC from the Cost of Attendance (COA) to determine the student's financial need.
• You can expect the colleges' financial aid award letters to arrive during the month of April.
• More information about the Student Aid Report and the Estimated Family Contribution can be found in AIE's "Applying for Financial Aid" section (www.AIE.org/College/ccs_finaid.cfm).

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Take notice

Important dates

Mark down these dates.

To get more information on the SAT or SAT Subject Tests, access useful tools, or register, visit the College Board's Web Site(www.collegeboard.com) or call (609) 771-7600.

To get more information on the ACT, access useful tools, or register, visit the ACT Web Site (www.act.org) or call (319) 337-1270.

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