Winner: Suet Yi Li (Shirley)
By: Helena Fauvel (Reporter)
On Thursday, April 12th, our colleges counsellors took juniors to a college fair at the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center. The fair was an incredible experience for all students who dream of attending college in the United States.
From my own experience, the fair was a great place to explore options for my professional future as well as for my college options. There I also discovered the option of taking a gap year and how this might affect my academic life. The fair included more than 100 representatives from colleges around the world. These representatives were very helpful in guiding students about the majors and services their colleges offer.
According to CATS student, André Shibata, “The college fair was fairly interesting, certainly more than my initial thoughts. I expected a tiring experience with crowded booths which was definitely not [the experience] I had. I believe that it helped me to decide my safety colleges and provided me with rather valuable information that I will likely use when I choose my college. ”
The college fair allowed CATS’ students to take a broader view of their academic options. Our well-trained college counselors will now help us navigate the next step in the college planning process, which is to create a personalized college list.
Overall, the Boston College Fair was an important step for juniors to get exposed to the endless educational possibilities American universities offer. The opportunity of going to this fair definitely made several juniors to start thinking more about the future that awaits them – and to start preparing for it.
The Day of Silence is today (April 27) so we call on students and others to join together and show support for the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender (LGBT) community which includes your friends and family members.
What is Day of Silence and its purpose?
The Day of Silence is a national student-led day created to show support for LGBT members of our community. Often, LGBT students feel they are forced to be silent about who they really are, and this is something we want to help change. We want to show the community that every individual is valued and has the right to be their own true self.
How did it start?
In 1996, students at University of Virginia organized the first “Day of Silence” as a project and non-violent protest. The “Day of Silence” officially became a national event in 1997, when over 100 schools took part. In 2001 the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) took over as an official sponsor for the event.
What you can do?
- Sign up and get an event sticker which will allow you to keep silent without feeling awkward.
- Participate in the “Day of Silence”.
- After the event “break the silence”, you will have a chance to share your experiences with others.
Where can you sign up?
In your Advisory and the Dean’s Office
By: Nuray Salina (Lead Reporter)
Making new friends and involving yourself in a new social environment can be fun, but also intimidating. It is important to be willing to meet new people and have a positive attitude every day. As CATS students, who live in the dorms on campus, we spend a large amount of time socializing with each other. This interaction helps make us more responsible, open-minded, and adaptable now and for our future lives away from CATS.
Our school provides us with an environment to develop and grow through our interactions with caring teachers, coaches, administrators, and house parents. Despite the friendly environment, some students can have trouble adjusting to new people and new environments. My first recommendation is, don’t worry. It is normal to experience uncertainty in a new environment hundreds, if not thousands of miles away from home. I have looked at the core of this problem and will give you my thoughts on how to get the most out of your social life at CATS.
An abrupt change, like leaving your home and your parents, has a big effect on everyone. Since most students at CATS are international, we had to leave our home-countries in order to study in the United States. I have noticed this can result in some students feeling lonely or homesick. There are many supports in place at CATS to help you adjust and feel like you are at your second home! Here are some tips to banish the homesick bug:
- Involve yourself in the school community. Try to join one of the school’s clubs or organizations, like the student government, or the school newspaper or consider becoming a peer mentor! In this way you can socialize with peers who have similar interests. Fun activities and group projects will help you to become closer to your fellow griffins. Another option is to join a sports team, where you will have fun playing a sport you enjoy while meeting new people.
- Try to be positive. Positive people are optimistic, very pleasant to talk with and easily attract new friends. Try to express positive energy everyday. Smiling is an easy way to do this and it makes people want to be around you!
- Find people with similar interests. For example, do you and a friend like playing the guitar? Go, and play guitar together. Seek ways to improve your performances together. I know you will enjoy it! Expand your group of friends and add a lot to your social life!
Lastly, know that you are never alone at CATS Academy Boston. There are supports in place at to help you adapt to your new surroundings and develop lifelong friends. Seek out Ms. Reihl, a teacher, house parent, or an administrator if you are having difficulty. They will all be there for you!
By: Dmytro Zhuravel (Founding Member/Reporter)
Each one of us faces a similar question. What do we want to do with the rest of our lives? For some of us, it is a simple question, which we can easily answer. However, if you, the reader, do not know what you want to pursue as a future career option, here are some tips to help decide what you might want to pursue in the future:
- Your interests. Some people decide their major by taking account their interests in their free time. In other words, which hobbies do you spend your time on? How might these interests relate to a career? Google it. Go to https://portal.masscis.intocareers.org/ and research career clusters.
- Your abilities. If you do not have a favorite hobby, maybe your classroom performance can suggest a future major. Start by asking yourself the question, “What is my favorite class is at CATS?” Are you good in Math? Science? Art? Literature? Social Studies? Maybe a career field related to one of these subjects is the answer to your future.
- Future Employability. Another reason why it is important to start thinking about your future major in college is the importance of being able to find employment in your chosen career field. As most of you know, the world changes rapidly and the demand for certain career fields is constantly changing. Check out the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) at https://www.bls.gov/ooh/ to research job growth in a field you are interested in.
- Future Potential Income. How much money do I need to live a comfortable life? This is a personal question only you can answer. It is an important question for you to consider. For some it may be important to have more money to spend than others. So, if you plan to take exotic vacations when you start working, the income from the job should be enough to accomplish your goal. The BLS link above will show you the average income in your chosen field.
As a student, I understand how important the decision of what major to choose can be for us; it will influence our future life. However, it is your life and your own decision to make. It is important to listen to your parents and close friends, but always ask yourself whether you are happy with your decision, it’s your future after all!
By: Anastasia Dvoryanchikova (Reporter)
What gives you a taste of real life? When do you get to explore the depth of your curiosity? When do you get valuable experience from your curiosity? The answer is simple: internships. Imagine a filmmaker who wants to launch a movie, keeping the concept in one’s head will prevent the project from materializing. A filmmakers project needs to undergo active filming at various locations followed by editing until it becomes a complete story. The same applies when we think about our future careers. Despite all hypotheses, preconceived notions about our interests, and research, we lack the practical application that can link our desires to our future path.
From the perspective of my recent experience in an internship, I want to emphasize how much they broaden your horizons. During our March 2018 spring break, I had an opportunity to work in an internship at CEG Cambridge. I brought my own passion for filming in working with the marketing department on upcoming projects. When you get to work with professionals, they can become your mentors, who provide guidance better than guidelines or textbooks. One day, while I was out in London working with a freelance videographer he provided me with greater clarity and many suggestions on how to be a visual storyteller. It was an amazing experience to gain knowledge and skill through mentored experience. My internship taught me to stay open minded about every opportunity and be a good back-up when people need you. Through my internship my ultimate goal of gaining valuable experience was achieved.
As high school students, we tend to focus on our academics and theory rather than practical real life solutions to problems. When high school or college is over life moves on; I, for one, do not want to be left behind the ongoing process of reality in the larger world. Everyone one of us is a filmmaker that needs to go beyond an idea and test how their personal interests and skill sets match with potential careers outside of the classroom. An internship is a great way to connect with the larger world while you are still in school.
In order to test our prospective career field, we need to try ourselves out, and one of the most accessible ways is through landing an internship. If you are eager to get a constructive feedback, have a glance into possible career paths, and rise above the school routine, it is highly recommended that you consider pursuing an internship.
By: Nuray Salina (Lead Reporter)
May is one of the hardest and most important months in the school year at CATS. There some very significant upcoming events, like exams, projects, prom, and graduation; they all require a lot of preparation. Although all the upcoming events can seem overwhelming, they can be managed with success! I came up with the list of things we, CATS students, should to do before the end of the school year.
- Closely examine your grades. If you consider some of them low work to improve them before the year’s end. Be proactive on assignments and turn in ones that are missing. Ask teachers for recommendations on how to improve your grade average of you are uncertain how to proceed.
- Sign up for the SAT, ACT, or TOEFL exams. This is especially important for juniors and the college search process. These scores will often dictate the colleges we will apply to this coming fall. Prepare for the exams, you will do great!
- Start doing rough drafts of term projects. It’s never too soon to start writing our term papers. As soon as you get your projects, start them. You need to save time at the end of the year for finals preparation.
- Find an internship or summer program. One way for your college applications to look great is to try to find an internship or summer program. They will help you to enhance your skills and make you summer interesting and hopefully unforgettable!
- Stop stressing yourself out. Seriously, stop. Your worries sometimes take even more time than your actions. That’s why when you feel stressed out, stop thinking about the things you need to do and just start them. We all go through challenging times and our success directly depends on taking action not worrying.
- If you are a senior, keep your grades up to a B (or better). Otherwise, you will have to take final exams.
- On the lighter side, start looking for an outfit for prom or graduation. Check online shops where you can get access to see unique clothes, new collections, and special offers.
By: Veronika Mykhailo (Contributor)
April 12th marked the opening ceremony of the art show called “4 schools, 1 town” brought to life by Mr. Archer and the CATS Academy Boston Art Department. It was the second annual art show hosted by CATS in the Braintree Community Art Center.
We were joined this year by all the Braintree area high schools, Archbishop Williams, Braintree High, and Thayer Academy. Each school submitted 40 pieces of art (160 in total), however, only 70 were chosen to be displayed. Seven individual works were given awards by the panel of 3 judges.
The “Mayor’s Choice Award” was given by Braintree Mayor Joseph Sullivan and his wife Barbara Sullivan. The Art Show included many talented artists from all of the Braintree high schools. Noteworthy CATS’ students were, Huy Hoang Le (Cecil), who won Third Place for his “Tarot Cards”, and Ruobing Chang, who won the Best Of Show (the top award) for her piece titled “Purple Mine”.
Overall the Art Show brought together some of the top high school art students in the area and provided an opportunity for the aspiring artists to mingle with one another. The gallery exhibition also featured a musical performance by CATS’ students, which was enjoyed by all. Students, teachers, and parents gathered at this event to celebrate the talented young artists of the town of Braintree. The diverse community was made a little closer by the pleasant surroundings and inspiring artwork. We hope that this art show will become an annual tradition and continuing generations of CATS’ students will be able to participate and enjoy it!
By: Sasha Chernysehva (Founding Member/Lead Reporter)
As the 2017-2018 school year starts to march to a close, many students enrolled in AP courses are beginning to ramp up their preparation for the May exams. For some students who have never taken an AP exam, this can be an intimidating experience. Here are some tips to follow and excel on your AP exams:
- Start reviewing in advance. AP courses involve a huge amount of material, which is why you probably don’t want to start reviewing on the last weekend before the exam. Overloading your head with knowledge in a short time frame won’t maximize your potential for success.
- Be familiar with the structure of the exam. If you know what kinds of questions to expect, it will be easier for you to get the answer. Studying the question types in advance will help save you precious time on the exam because you will know how to attack the question.
- Purchase a Barron’s AP textbook. This book series is designed specifically to help students familiarize themselves with the content and the structure of the exam. They offer a wide range of practice tests and a concise overview of the course that might supplement your knowledge. Also, they not very expensive.
- Read outside of class. AP exams are designed to test your analytical thinking and deep knowledge of a certain subject. Extra reading will help you get a better understanding of the course and deepen your knowledge.
- Don’t panic. Remember that if you did your work and paid attention in class, you will do a good job. Give the exam your best effort, and be confident when you start. Optimism is another key to success!
These are some of the proven techniques that helped me a lot when I was reviewing for my AP tests. I hope these tips will help you too! Good luck!
CATS Academy Courier 