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College Cool: Sikeston High School seniors reaping benefits of a near-peer college adviser
SIKESTON -- Sikeston High School is gearing up for College Application Week, and at the helm of it all is college adviser Taylar Merriweather.
Merriweather, who graduated in May from University of Missouri-St. Louis where she earned a degree in business administration, was hired through the Missouri College Advising Corps. MCAC is a college-access advising program established in 2007 by the University of Missouri-Columbia.
MCAC hires recent graduates of the four University of Missouri campuses to work in 41 partner high schools across Missouri to empower Missouri students to go to college and succeed. MCAC partner schools have high percentages of first-generation-college, low-income, and underrepresented students at risk of not going to college.
Merriweather and other MCAC college advisers are immersed in the school and are available to guide students through the college planning and preparation, applications and financial aid processes.
Merriweather said she loves the social network, Instagram, and planned a week of college-themed activities with the picture-sharing site.
On Monday, the activity is "Take a selfie with Miss M."
"Students can take an Instagram picture of themselves wearing their college colors or a picture of the college they're going to," Merriweather said.
On Tuesday, there will be an alumni panel at lunch to answer questions about college. Merriweather said she's asked SHS teachers who graduated from Sikeston to appear on the panel.
Students will visit college campuses, specifically Washington University in St. Louis and the University of Missouri-St. Louis, on Wednesday.
College Colors Day is Thursday, and there will also be a door-decorating contest for advisory classes. The advisory class with the best door and most spirit will win a prize.
A college fair is scheduled for Thursday at the Field House, where numerous two- and four-year colleges will be on hand to answer students' questions. There will also be college trivia in the school's cafeteria.
Since school began in August, Merriweather has met one-on-one with all nearly 200 seniors at Sikeston High School with the exception of 12 of them. And she has plans to meet with those students as soon as possible, she said.
As a college adviser on a high school campus, Merriweather said her job is to check in with the students and help them find their "best fit" post-high school.
"My goal is to help students realize their potential and that they can go to college and can succeed," Merriweather said.
Merriweather helps the students find a focus, and she does this by talking to them and asking them questions.
"Do you want to go to a big school or a small school? In-state or out-of state?" Merriweather said. "These are the questions I ask. ... We just talk it out until they know their options."
What Merriweather has found is oftentimes the seniors are simply afraid to apply to college.
"They don't know where to start. There are thousands of colleges out there," Merriweather said. "It can be very overwhelming."
Students are learning they can turn to Merriweather with any of their college questions, and many of them can also be found during a free time at the student computer in her office, applying online for colleges and/or financial assistance.
"She's taken a ton of stress out of my life," senior Kaylan Butler said about Merriweather.
Butler said she appreciated Merriweather's advice and opinions. Because she was able to have those one-on-one conversations and get her questions answered, Butler applied to Missouri State University in Springfield and was accepted.
Merriweather told of another student who she talked to who was scared to apply to college. Then, on a whim, he applied to four colleges. On Monday, he came into Merriweather's office and told her he'd been accepted to two colleges.
"She has come in to our school and jumped in with both feet. She's really organized and very energetic," said senior class counselor Kim Thornbrough said of Merriweather.
"And she dresses cute," Butler added.
"The students really like her," Thornbrough said. "They've really embraced her."
Merriweather also serves as the cheerleading sponsor at the Junior High.
As a recent college graduate, Merriweather and other MCAC college advisers model that college is within reach and, because of this near-peer approach, interact with students, Thornbrough said.
Merriweather devotes full-time attention to college advising and is available to students all day, every day throughout the school year and beyond.
During parent-teacher conferences on Thursday, Merriweather conducted 30-minute workshops on college readiness and financial aid and met with parents.
"I love my job. I never thought I'd be working at a high school," Merriweather said. "Now, I'm pretty sure I want to go into counseling."
Already this year 70 of Sikeston's nearly 200 seniors have been accepted into college, Merriweather said.
Thornbrough credited Merriweather for creating a "college-going" atmosphere in the school.
"You can feel it's growing," Thornbrough said. "They're applying and excited about getting accepted to college."
For this story and more, see the weekend edition of the Standard Democrat.