In June of 1964, I graduated from Sacramento High School – in what seemed like a momentous accomplishment at the time.

Marty Relles

During the last week of school, I carried my yearbook around with me and solicited signatures and comments from my friends and fellow alumni.

When he signed the book, my friend Jim Edwards scrawled, “See you over at Freeport U.”

Yes, that was my plan.

During high school, other kids planned for college, earned top notch grades, took the SAT and applied to attend the best universities.

I hadn’t done that, so Sacramento City College (SCC), also called “Freeport U.,” and also called a “high school with ash trays” was my only option for higher education.

I decided to make the best of it. I enrolled in two classes that summer and earned B grades in both.

When I showed up for fall classes, my friend Mark Lazarotto collared me saying, “I am starting a new political club on campus, want to join?”

I reluctantly agreed.

The club was an ultra-conservative organization: The Young Americans for Freedom (YAF). This was definitely not my politics, but – Mark insisted – so I joined.

The club’s tenure at City College lasted one year. But joining the YAF had a good outcome for me personally. The small membership (five students) voted me vice president of the club. That qualified me to represent our organization on the Inter Club Council, the group of students which acts as a liaison between the entire student body and the administration.

Participating on the ICC affected me in ways I could not imagine at the time. It gave me the opportunity to work with the “best and the brightest” at SCC and to learn the dynamics of working on an important school organization. This experience benefited me immensely later in life.

The ICC met monthly. In addition to planning school events such as dances and the annual Pioneer Day celebration, the organization presented student’s concerns and needs to the administration. To this day, I am thankful for having that experience.

In addition to my participation on the ICC, City College had another benefit for me. I reconnected with a group of kids I knew from Christian Brothers School: Henry Aguire, Joe Cisneros, Pete Sartlidge, Michael McDermott and others such as Jim Hansen (police officer Tiny Hansen’s son) also attended SCC at the time. We hung out together at school.

We formed a bond which lasted well after college. We met in the cafeteria for lunch, had parties, went to dances, and joined in extra-curricular activities such hunting. We were a “band of brothers.” Sadly, I subsequently lost touch with most of these guys, including Mark Lazarotto, the President and founder of the YAF, but the memories of our time together at SCC remain strong.

In the fall of 1966, I transferred to Sacramento State College. My time at SCC had come to an end. It was time to take on more serious educational challenges.

Sac State would prove to be a much greater challenge than City College. Ultimately, it took me another nine years to earn my Bachelor of Arts Degree, counting a two year tour of duty in the U.S. Army.

Now my time at Freeport U. is another unforgettable Janey Way Memory.

marty@valcomnews.com

By now, high school seniors are fully aware that CSU, UC, The Common App and other colleges have posted their applications for Fall 2011.

As one student aptly comment

College students

After deciding on a college list, the most important task is to make a timeline for each college, the type of application it requires, potential scholarship opportunities, and all due dates. For the Common App and many other non-state schools, students need to note additional requirements such as teacher recommendations, art and athletic supplements as well as the secondary school, midyear and final reports completed by their high school counselor.

Some colleges even invite students to submit additional recommendations, and all of these application parts need to be coordinated and completed on schedule.

By using a special calendar or plotting all of this information on an Excel spreadsheet, students can really see their job in its entirety, break it down into parts, and get each task done on time.

To make the application process smoother, students can work ahead and organize information for easy input. They will need the following information:

• A copy of their high school transcript so they can record their grades;
• SAT and/or ACT scores (these must also be sent colleges);
• A list of their activities and jobs and the amount of time involved in each;
• Their parents’ annual income (information on tax records or pay stubs);
• Their Social Security Number (memorizing it saves time and keeps it secure);
• Their Statewide Student ID (printed on high school transcripts or obtained from the school registrar or counselor);
• A credit card to pay for application fees and additional SAT/ACT scores (Parents may want to be on hand, since these can easily get out of hand if a teen decides to apply to additional colleges at the last minute by simply clicking on additional buttons and then hitting “send.” Sticker shock could ensue).

This list seems long, but it will really expedite the application process and keep stress levels down to a manageable level. After students send in their applications, they should check their email every day and respond to college’s messages as soon as they pop into their inbox. At the recent CSU Counselors Conference, campus representatives asked us to tell students to be sure to read to the bottom of each page and to make the time to reply to each request promptly.

At times during the application process, students can get bogged down. One student said, “No one will even read my application.” Admissions offices actually read each application carefully and at least twice. In some cases, when readers are not in agreement over an applicant, a third person reads the application, and the three make a recommendation.

Senior year is definitely busy and applying to colleges does take a lot of time, but getting organized before beginning the process will result in time to go out to a movie or just to hang with friends plus the satisfaction of a job well done.

Marilyn van Löben Sels is a certified college counselor. Contact her at marilyn@college-gps.com.