College Admissions Professionals Lead Application and Financial Aid Workshops at Sixth Annual Symposium

ANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN, February 10, 2017 — The Joyce Ivy Foundation will hold the sixth annual Joyce Ivy College Admissions Symposium (JCAS) on May 5-6 at Washtenaw Community College in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Participation will again be free of charge for all participants thanks to the support of Joyce Ivy Foundation donors and sponsors.

The two-day program will feature interactive college admissions and financial aid workshops designed for education professionals, students, and families. Topics will include access and affordability, paying for college and financial aid, institutional match and fit, and advice for the application process.

“The sixth annual Joyce Ivy College Admissions Symposium offers participants a valuable opportunity to engage with one another in a collaborative setting,” said Nicole Cannizzaro, Director of the 2017 Symposium and Senior Fellow with the Joyce Ivy Foundation. “Joyce Ivy is committed to equipping high-achieving Midwestern young women with the support and resources needed to effectively navigate the college admissions process. Our goal is to help students discover colleges not previously on their radar and learn more about colleges that they previously thought were beyond their reach.”

Sessions on Friday, May 5, will be offered for high school counselors and community-based organization leaders to learn about selective admissions and need-based financial aid, and to share best practices for supporting students and parents in the college search and application processes. For the first time this year, additional sessions tailored to returning and seasoned counselors will include a deeper and more nuanced approach to topics such as comparing net and sticker price, opportunities for first-generation college students at highly-selective institutions, and engaging student identities and interests in the search and application process.

Sessions on Saturday, May 6, are designed to help talented female high school students and their families learn more about admission to highly selective colleges and paying for college, including financial aid. As in prior years, the series of workshops will be open to female high school juniors, with a specific focus on those who have limited resources at their disposal. For the first time, the Foundation will also pilot a set of sessions for sophomores. With the goal of providing this critical information earlier, sophomore topics include admissions, financial aid, and key suggestions for planning ahead during the remaining high school years.

“Venturing outside of one’s geographic comfort zone can yield tremendous growth and open many doors, the benefits of which are long-lasting,” said Ms. Cannizzaro. “This year we are introducing sessions designed to help counselors and parents better support their students, as well as help students consider how specific aspects of their own identities affect college fit. Ultimately, we want each student to leave JCAS feeling empowered and with a keen sense of how to approach the college application process.”

All workshops will be led by admissions and financial aid professionals from some of the country’s most selective colleges and universities, as well as counselors from the Midwest. Returning institutions include Dartmouth College, Duke University, Johns Hopkins University, Amherst College, University of Pennsylvania, Stanford University, Wellesley College, and Yale University.

“The chance to connect with admissions counselors, as well as current students and graduates, from attending institutions presents a unique opportunity for students, parents and counselors,” said Kathy Noble, an independent educational consultant and former higher education administrator who joined the Symposium planning committee this year. “These conversations offer participants personal responses to their questions and information tailored to their particular interests. The sessions offer relevant and up-to-date information from financial aid to building college lists that reflect the unique talents and potential of each young woman.”

Since JCAS was first launched in 2012, over 1,400 high-achieving high school students and their guardians have participated in the program, along with over 500 high school counselors and educators.

“As a prospective college student, my Joyce Ivy experience inspired me to explore and apply to highly selective schools that I otherwise would never have considered,” said Katharine Janes, a 2012 JCAS participant, Senior Fellow with the Foundation, and undergraduate at the University of Notre Dame. “I would not be the person I am today without the Joyce Ivy Foundation.”

Registration for the Symposium will be available on the Joyce Ivy Foundation website beginning in mid-February. As capacity is limited, prompt registration is encouraged, and students are asked to select a single guardian to join them.