Angel Tree Update!

Attention all SAGErs,

The Angel Tree Deadline has been extended to Monday!!!

Pick up your tag today!

- Christine

Finals Approaching

SAGE,

You totally don’t want to think about it right now, but finals are just around the corner. That means you can add studying for them to your already vast to-do list. Here are some helpful hints on how to prepare for your exams and get everything else done.

Tip 1: Start early
Preparation for exams should begin earlier than the day before the test. You can’t cram an entire unit of information into an all-nighter. Get started at least a week before the exam. Space out studying in advance, so you're not overwhelmed at the last minute.

Tip 2: Organize
Begin by making yourself a calendar outlining a daily schedule of topics for review. Cover a small amount of material for each class each day. Every time you complete a topic, give yourself a mini review on what you've already learned.

Tip 3: Outline
Once you have decided what you need to study and how much time you need to spend studying, it is time to actually study. One of the best ways is to make succinct outlines. As you read over your textbook and class notes, write a brief summary for each topic. Highlight the areas in your outline that were most troublesome. When you have finished with all the material, you will have an outline you can review.

Tip 4: Make flashcards
Similar to outlining, making flashcards is a really helpful technique for studying. By writing down the information from your outline, you are already doing half the studying. Once the flashcards are complete, you will have a portable study packet to look over.

Tip 5: Get help
If you are having trouble memorizing something or a particular concept is just not sinking in, get help before it’s too late. Ask your teacher to go over a glitch you might be having. All your teachers are there to help you before school, and sometimes after school as well.

Tip 6: Sleep
You need at least seven hours of sleep a night to function. Tests are designed to make you think. If you are sleep-deprived, you won’t be able to remember any of the information you worked so hard to cram into your brain. When cramming the night before (you shouldn't, but this is a worst-case scenario) KNOW WHEN TO STOP. A good night's rest is THE MOST IMPORTANT THING YOU CAN DO FOR YOURSELF.

Tip 7:Stay calm
Do not panic at the exam! Even if at first glance the test is overwhelming, remember to breathe. If a question seems too hard, answer all the questions you know, then return to the ones you left blank. Remind yourself that you are prepared. Step into the test with confidence, because you're prepared.

Tip 8: Don’t rush
You have spent at least two weeks studying, so what’s another couple of minutes? Work through the exam slowly and read all the questions before answering them. If you are done before the time is up, look over your answers. Checking your work may be boring, but it can catch stupid mistakes that cost you easy points.

Tip 9: Relax post-exam
Don’t let panic overwhelm you. Even if you think you bombed the exam, worrying will not change your score. It may, however, affect your mindset for your next final. Zone out the last test and stay focused on the next one. Odds are, you didn’t do as badly as you think.

And last, try not to stress. Stay calm, and know that it'll all turn out alright in the end. Good luck!

-Victor
:)

Newspaper

Sage is creating a new newspaper called "The Forum"! If anyone is curious about current events or politics, the Forum has some great articles written by our students. Anyone is allowed to contribute to the Forum, and that includes faculty as well! The first newspaper comes out soon, so don't forget to pick up a copy!
-Ellen

P.S. I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving weekend!=]

Community Service!!!

Hey everyone!

There are several ways you can help out your community! SAGE is currently hosting two great community service programs, the Angel Tree Drive and the Maricopa Book Drive. Make sure to check them out, because they are both amazing ways to give back to your community! Here is some info on both of them:

--

Angel Tree Drive

Where: The tree is currently set up in the DV Guidance Center.

When: All tags are due December 11th, 2008. That's a Thursday, so don't be late!

Who: The names of the requesters are on the tags, and their ages range from newborn to 50+.

Purpose: The Angel Tree Drive is a touching way to make one less fortunate person's Christmas much better! Each tag on the tree has the name of a person and two gifts that they are requesting. Our task is to help grant their wishes by going out and buying both gifts that they are asking for.

How: Once you take a tag, you must sign up in the Guidance Department by giving your name, the name of the person that will be recieving your gifts, and the names of the two gifts you are donating. Afterwards, when you bring your unwrapped gifts in, you should attach the tag to the presents before placing them underneath the tree. Remember, leave them unwrapped!

About the SAGE Angel Tree Drive (From Mr. White):

The SAGE Angel Tree Drive is in conjunction with A New Leaf (formerly PREHAB of Arizona), an organization that serves the needs of families who are homeless and/or abused. For those of you not familiar with the program, every year the Desert Vista SAGE Club coordinates a school wide program to fulfill a two item wish list for hundreds of individuals who are homeless, either because of financial reasons or because they are seeking safety from an abusive home. As you may already know, hard financial times mean that rates of homelessness and domestic abuse increase; as a result, A New Leaf is experiencing an overwhelming number of needy families. Therefore, we are looking to assist 200 individuals, as opposed to our normal 150. If you feel as though you might be financially strapped this year, understand that many of the items individuals ask for are quite simple, such as diapers, a teething toy, a packet of toy cars, a doll, a pad of paper, etc. It is important that the needs of these individuals are served, so whether you are or are not able to give this year, please pass this information to friends and family.

--

Maricopa Book Drive

Where: The boxes are located in the library, the Guidance Office, and the front office

When: Similar to the Angel Tree Drive, books are due on Thursday, December 11, 2008

Who: The receivers of these books will be the students of the Maricopa Unified School District, schools K-8.

How: This book drive is for anybody with dusty picture books stashed away at home! These books may no longer hold any importance to you, but they can help out a needy kid. Books can be dropped off at any of the three centers mentioned above. Please make sure they are age appropriate! Books can be newly purchased or used, and sign-up sheets will be placed next to each box if you wish to receive community service hours.

--

More opportunities...

Another great community service opportunity to look out for is the Festival of Lights. 100+ volunteers are needed on November 29th, and it's a fun way to earn your community service hours!

The kick off party is on November 29th, 2008. There are four shifts that you can currently apply for:

Shift #1 - 10:30 am - 1:30 pm
Shift #2 - 1:30 pm - 4:30 pm
Shift #3 - 4:30 pm to 7:30 pm
Break Down - 7pm to 10pm

Activities include working at the game booths, selling tickets, manning an inflatable activity, working in concession booths, and much more!

Also, you can sign up to work at the Hayrides (Saturdays, December 13th and 20th) and the Light Removal (Saturday, January 10th, 2009)

For more information on signing up for the Festival of Lights, you can contact Alix Parker, president of Desert Vista's Key Club.

You can also apply directly at their home page:

http://www.folaz.org/volunteers.php

--

I hope to see everybody participating in these great events! Remember, both the Maricopa Book Drive and the Angel Tree Drive come to a close on December 11th, 2008.

~Grace Ma, Community Service Officer

Mentorship Lunch

SAGE Club is having a Mentorship Lunch on Friday, December 5th. (This was previously planned for November 20th, but the date has been changed because POs take longer than I thought - sorry if there was any confusion!) Nearly all mentors have the same lunch period as their mentees, so this is a really great opporunity to get to know each other. (If you don't have the same lunch, I have already contacted you, so if you haven't gotten an e-mail from me about mismatched lunch periods, then you're fine.) The lunch will be in the Counseling Office, and there will be free pizza! Mentors should send an e-mail to their mentees to make sure they are coming. If you can come, please send me a quick e-mail at iridescentbubbles@hotmail.com and let me know, so I can make sure we'll have enough pizza for everyone.

Also, I would like to remind all mentors to email your mentees once a week and send a copy to me. If you're not sure what to talk about, here are some examples of really great topics that I've seen mentors discussing with their mentees:
- Community service opporunities (recent/upcoming examples: Festival of Lights, Feed My Starving Children, canned food drive, Relay for Life, Maricopa Book Drive, Angel Tree, DV library, Irownwood library)
- SAT / ACT tips (some mentors include SAT vocab or the SAT Question of the Day with every e-mail)
- Scholarship opportunities (fastweb.com, the school scholarship site, etc.)
- Information about DV clubs and activities
- General tips about school, stress, studying, and time management

Also, mentors should always be avaliable for tutoring their mentees and for answering any questions that their mentees have.

Again, don't forget to send me an e-mail if you plan to attend the mentorship lunch!

I'll see you there,

Lauren Zack
Mentorship Coordinator

Career Fields of Study

Hello to everyone, I am Sonia Sen the Career / Fields of Study Coordinator for your DV SAGE club!!

As high schoolers we are all bombarded by that one nagging question that there really is no answer to: “What do you want to be when you grow up?’

The truth is that there is an innumerable amount of things that you can do when you grow up. From being a musician to a doctor to an underwater basket weaver; the list goes on. If you do know what you want to do, that’s great and fantastic and you should give yourself a pat on the back. But for the rest of us who have no idea whatsoever of what we would be interested in doing as a career there is hope!!

The counseling office has a number of different ways that you can find out about jobs in the work force. The Events Binder situated on the front counter not only has college visitors but also people who want to talk to you about their jobs. They’ve had a wide range of people already come in from teachers to lawyers and all you have to do is sign up. You can ask them questions and find out how your daily schedule would look if you were to have their job. It is a great opportunity to get to know more about said job.

Now if you have NO clue at all there is still hope for you as well!! Tests that can tell you, based on your interests, what jobs would be suitable for you can be found in the counseling office as well.
ASVAB is being proctored December 4 at 7:30 a.m. and you can sign up in the events binder in the counseling office; sign up closes December 1, so hurry!! (sidenote: this test stands for Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery meaning that is geared towards students interested in the military; this does Not mean you can’t take it if you don’t want to go into the army, you’ll just be getting a lot mail/email from the military urging you to enlist)
If you don’t want the excess mail from the military there is another test that is offered by the counseling office which is a computer survey which basically does the same thing: takes into accounts your interests and tells you some jobs that you would be like based on that. It takes about 45 minutes and to take the test, talk to Diana Brown in the counseling office.

I think that no matter what you choose to do with your life, the single most important thing is to make sure you’re happy doing it. I also believe that as a high schooler the most effective way to find out what you’re passionate about if through volunteering, interning, or even getting a part-time job. Make sure you’re doing things that YOU ENJOY not things that you think other people would like to see you be doing.

For most internships you will have to go out and find internships that are available for you in the field that you are looking for. Don’t get an internship with a doctor if you want to be an engineer!! Opportunities are out there waiting for you!!

That same philosophy goes with volunteering. Remember it is supposed to help the community, not you; the trick is to make it work for you. If you want to become a doctor go and volunteer at the hospital not if you want to become a history professor. Never forget that volunteering is a selfless thing which also looks good for you. Don’t forget that volunteering isn’t about the hours or your resume—it’s for the betterment of society :]

RELAY 4 LIFE!!!!!

SAGE Members,

GO TO RELAY 4 LIFE KICK-OFF TONIGHT!!!!

Bring $50 and sign up your team! (If you sign up later, it's $10 per person...which means you could pay up to $150...)

Location: Mountain Pointe Drama Room
Time: 6:30 PM
Date: TODAY!!!!

Volunteer Opportunity

First of all, remember to come to the college information meeting tomorrow (Wednesday the 5th)!! Even if you aren't a junior or senior this will help, it's never to early to start planning for the future!


If anyone is looking for a local volunteering opportunity, Thursday the 6th there will be a volunteer training session at the Ironwood Library from 4-5 pm. Once you are trained you can set up a regular volunteering schedule throughout the school year.

If you are interested, call the library at (602) 534-1910 or email Sheila Levine at sheila.levine@phxlib.org


Thanks & see you at the meeting tomorrow!
Alyssa McAlister
Public Relations Officer

Scholarships 101

Hi everyone!

Here's a brief overview about scholarship information:

• When to Start Looking- Some scholarships are open to all grade levels (9-12), but most prominent ones are only open to Seniors. That being said, Senior year (or the summer before) is the best time to start focusing on getting a scholarship.


• AIMS Information- In order to get this scholarship, you need the following: 'B' or better in all 16 core classes + cumulative GPA of 3.5 in these core classes + exceed all thee sections of the AIMS by the end of your Junior year. NOTE: This only covers tuition, not anything else (room and board, books, etc.)


• The Truth About National Merit- The top 15,000 finalists are chosen from the 1.4 million students who take the PSATs their Junior year. In selecting the "winners" of this scholarship, the organization looks at: academic records, PSAT and SAT scores, recommendations, activities and leadership, and a personal essay. Each "winner" receives a $2500 scholarship. Colleges and corporations may also issue annual stipends that range from $500 to $2000 a year. For more info, go to www.nationalmerit.org .


• The Breakdown of Flinn- If you: rank in the top five percent of your graduating class, have a minimum 3.5 GPA, score a minimum of 1280 (math and reading) on the SAT or a 29 on the ACT, and are a US citizen and Arizona resident (for at least two years), you are eligible to apply. The top twenty students in the state receive: the full cost of tuition and fees for four years at an Arizona public university, a three-week overseas seminar plus two additional summer or semesters of international study-related travel, personal mentoring by Flinn Foundation professionals and university faculty. Download the application at http://www.flinnscholars.org/. NOTE: Students should apply for this by mid-October of their Senior year.


• Scholarships of the Rest of Us- If you don't feel as though you meet the criteria of these scholarships above, or want a shot at possibly some more money, check out http://www.collegeandfinance.com/32-weird-scholarships-almost-anyone-can-get/ for scholarships ranging from $1,000 for writing the best essay about why being tall is cool to $10,000 for developing a new candy!


• Other Places to Look- TUHSD's Scholarship page- www.tuhsd.k12.az.us/view.php?page=55.82. This site is updated regularly, so check it often. Fast web - http://www.fastweb.com/. Create an account and have opportunities mailed directly to you.

Best of Luck!

Shivani Kapur

Applying for Universities (Since "college" is a misnomer and "University" is a bunch of "colleges" therefore it should be applying to "University")

Steps to applying for Universities (and colleges)
1. Be a pain in the neck. In a good way though. Let everybody know you want to go to a university. Find people that can help you gently squeeze all the good advice you can get from them.
2. Push yourself; seriously, if you know what you want to do, then freaking sign up for those classes and make the most of them. Universities like persistence. Sometimes you can get college credit for classes you take during highschool; take advantage of them.
3. Explore universities; just because the university has the right major doesn't mean that it's right for you. Go the campus, talk to students, stay overnight or something. Don't let freshman orientation be your first day on campus grounds.
4. Apply to get in to the university. That's a given.
5. Apply for scholarships; Get dat cash. It's out there, and if you don't get it then some other, faster kid will. Which means APPLY EARLY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

-Bryant (One of the College Info Coordinators)

AIMS Retakes

Next week, juniors will have a chance to retake the Arizona Instrument to Measure Standards (AIMS) Exams. Tuesday, 28 October students will have the chance to retake the Writing portion, Wednesday, 29 October students will have the chance to retake the Reading portion, and Thursday, 30 October is reserved for Math. Juniors needed to have signed up for AIMS retakes well before today--so if you are planning on signing up now, you will have to wait until next semester -- which is when all sophomores will need to take the exams. Next semester's schedule is as follows:

* 24 February - Writing
* 25 February - Reading
* 1 April - Math
* 2 April - Science (NEW)

For those of you who want to study for this exam, you might wish to review my teacher website AIMS page, which is http://staff.tuhsd.k12.az.us/dwhite/index_files/Page1650.htm, where I have provided links to study guides, rubrics, and a practice test.

Good luck to all of you who have chosen to retake it. For those of you who have not yet taken it, no worries until next semester (I'd still take a look at the website though if I were you).

Take care,

Mr. White

Consider Internships

So as your looking at what your going to do next year, or if your looking at your computer screen wondering what you can do, you should look at some internships. Internships are a great way to get experience, possibly get some money, and get exposed to a field you want to major in or pick in the future. For example there is an array of internships down at ASU. The one that I know best is Biodesign, this is an internship where they teach you how interact with various cells and as the name suggests, it relates to Biology. My sister, Mugdha Golwalkar, can answer some of your questions regarding this particular internship, but it requires attendance of at least twice a week excluding weekends. Many internships will require such hours, think of an internship like a job. If you only show up one day or two days at your job, your not going to get paid much and your not going to get that much experience as opposed to going everyday. There is an array of internships around us, all you have to do is look. I suggest looking on the SAGE blog for posts about internships as well asking any of us about them. Remember if you have any questions email us at mailto:dvsagedvsageclub.com@gmail.com. If you have any questions regarding the above internship email me at shardul.golwalkar@gmail.com.

--Shardul

Sage Meetings

Hello all!

For anyone who wonders when SAGE meetings are, here is a complete list of all the dates:

11/5
11/20 ** Thursday
12/3
12/17
1/14
1/28
2/11
2/18
3/25
4/8
4/22
4/29
5/6

Also, don't forget PSATs this weekend! good luck everyone! Get a good night sleep, and eat a nutritional breakfast.

And, everyone age 18 or over: Don't forget to register to vote, and if you're already registered, then VOTE!

-Ellen

PSAT Woes

Dear me, it seems to be the time for PSATs again! The SAGE Club's PSAT help session has been moved to Thursday, October 16, due to the half day presented by the Homecoming Parade.

If you're not a junior yet, you don't have to worry as much about doing super-well. This is another year of practice for you, and also for the SAT.

If you're wondering what in the world PSAT stands for, its more or less "pre-SAT." SAT has no real meaning these days. Its simply a test that colleges use to judge your ability to take a test.

So, back to the PSAT. Juniors, yes, you should worry about doing well--If you score high enough (in the top 1% of the nation) you will qualify for National Merit. In doing so, it opens many doors for you, especially in scholarships. Becoming a semifinalist will earn you a lot of money for in-state colleges, and as a finalist, some prestigious private colleges such as USC will also award you a scholarship (granted that you are accepted to said university). Even if you're not interested in going out of state, you should try your best to score as well as possible. It never hurt to try!

If you haven't been studying, well, hopefully, you will at least run through a few sections of practice PSAT. Don't be afraid to ask a teacher or two why you missed a problem if you don't quite understand what the book's explanation tells you.

And as always, make sure you not only get a good night's sleep the day before, but also a decent amount of sleep a day before that. Depriving yourself of sleep one night, then sleeping well the next doesn't quite return you to full mental capacity. Make sure you get up early enough the day before as well, so your body is somewhat used to the earlier wake-up time, so you won't have to be dragged out of bed by your parents in order to make it to the PSAT on time!

Don't forget to eat a good breakfast. Make sure you have your carbs and your protein--nothing too sugary. Sugar is good for a quick spurt of energy, but after that runs out your mind will start to lose its thinking capacity, impairing you later. Complex carbs, found in bread and whole-grain cereals will last a lot longer. Protein will also help you think straight. And don't forget to have a banana to help your body absorb and use those carbs!

Bring a snack--having enough energy is crucial to surviving a long test. A protein bar, a banana, or a PB&J sandwich (using whole wheat bread is even better!) will help you maintain focus and not succumb to hunger or mental fatigue (maybe I'm being a bit too health-conscious...but it will help you keep focused on your test!)

Lastly--don't stress about the PSAT. After you take it, you can't change anything. So don't worry! If you've prepared adequately, you will not have anything to worry about. For actual college admissions, the PSAT isn't considered, so if you bomb once, its perfectly fine! So stop worrying that much! 

So, my underclassmates, I wish you luck in your endevours in the wonderful world of standardized testing!

--Brian Djaja

Fall Break!

Weclome to Fall Break! :)

SAGE will be taking a break from the blog this week, but we will have a new post next Tuesday.

Enjoy your break and don't forget to RELAX.

As always, if you have any questions or comments, feel free to email us at dvsageclub.com@gmail.com or leave a comment here!

* Next Meeting: PSAT Review Session-->Wed. Oct. 15, 2008 in library right after school.

Did you know?!

Just to let you know, we will be posting every Tuesday and Friday so be sure to check the blog!!!

Did you know that SAGE has an email? It's dvsageclub.com@gmail.com! Try it out! Send us an email!

Mentorship is a big part of SAGE this year. This is a great program where freshman and sophomores can ask juniors and seniors for help on almost anything. Hopefully this will make their high school experience easier. Are you a part of it? If not, send us an email and you could become a mentor or mentee!

We are currently updating our club database. SAGE has collected information from almost every club on school and compiled a list. We will provide sponsor names, meeting times/locations, etc. so check the Activities page and the SAGE blog for updates! Hopefully we'll have it ready in a few weeks.

SAGE has also made a college list. Our college information coordinators have created a list of tons of colleges and important information! We will make that available to everyone ASAP.

Want to listen to a lecture from a university? Watch some of our videos. We have several video lectures from different colleges. The links are posted on the left side of the blog!

Pictures on the college brochures are great. But, what's better than the real thing? Check out our college photos collection to see pictures that SAGE members have taken while visiting campuses. If you have some college pictures you would like to share, send them to SAGE! Just let us know what college it is.

SAGE also has many community service opportunities so be sure to check the blog or email SAGE for more information.

Last but not least, please look forward to The Forum, a newspaper-like publication with pieces about politics, tests, etc. (And with no grammar mistakes!). Literary works will also be included!

Hopefully this has helped you learned about what SAGE has to offer this year. See you at the next meeting! (It will the Wednesday afte Fall Break and will be another PSAT review session)

- Christine Hsieh
SAGE President

SAGE Blog 2008-2009 School Year

Hello everyone and welcome to the 2008-2009 SAGE Blog, your source for everything SAGE. Be sure to check out the various resources on our Blog, including previous posts, videos, and links. Also be sure to attend general SAGE Club meetings held every other Wednesday afternoon at 3PM in the Desert Vista Library.

You can sign up to receive blog updates by signing in at the subscription sign-in located at the left of this post.

- David L. White
SAGE Sponsor

Advanced Placement Exams: Monday, 5 May to Friday, 16 May 2008

Good luck to all of you on your upcoming AP exam (or exams). I recommend that you all study hard up to the exams, but give yourself that final day before the exam just to relax. Get a good night's sleep and be sure to eat a healthy breakfast before you go to your exam (so, no cold Pop Tarts on the run). The exam dates and locations are as follows:

Week One
Monday, 5 May 2008—
Government & Politics: US
Begins 7:45 – 41 students
Proctors: Mark Kulik, Karen Hinds
Location: Library Labs 1-3

Tuesday, 6 May 2008—
Spanish Language
Begins 7:45 – 15 students
Proctor: Josephine Levy
Location: Language Lab

Statistics
Begins 11:45 - 12 students
Proctor: Birgit Musheno
Location: Language Lab Location: Library Lab 1

Wednesday, 7 May 2008—
Calculus BC
Begins 7:45 – 63 students
Proctors: David White, Kathy Shamley, Ryan Stanley
Location: Library 2 & 3

Thursday, 8 May 2008—
English Literature
Begins 7:45 – 9 students
Proctor: Mark Kulik
Location: Guidance Career Center

Friday, 9 May 2008—
US History
Begins 7:45 – 60 students
Proctors: Amanda Domino, Amie Hickel & Dennis Abgrall
Location: Library Labs 2 & 3

European History
Begins 11:45 - 19 students
Proctor: David White
Location: Library Lab 1

Week Two
Monday, 12 May 2008—
Biology
Begins 7:45 - 24 students
Proctor: Kathy Shamley
Library Lab 2

Music Theory
Begins 7:45 – 8 students
Proctor: Kari Fischer, David White
Location: Guidance Career Center

Physics B
Begins 11:45 - 5 students
Proctor: Stacy Foster
Location: Guidance Career Center

Physics C: Electricity & Magnatism
Begins 11:45 / 1:45 - 11 / 1 students
Proctor: Katrina Montoya
Location: Library Lab 1

Tuesday, 13 May 2008—
Chemistry
Begins 7:45 – 34 students
Proctor: Laurie Wiesinger
Location: Library Lab 2

Environmental Science
Begins: 7:45 – 8 students
Proctor: Michele Lucas
Location: Career Center

Psychology
Begins 11:45 - 33 students
Proctor: Chris Jones, Stacy Foster
Location: Library Lab 3

Wednesday, 14 May 2008—
English Language
Begins 7:45 – 53 students
Proctors: David White, John Matthews,
Michele Lucas, Chris Jones
Location: Library Labs 2 & 3

Art History
Begins 11:45 - 4 students
Proctor: Kari Fischer
Location: Career Center

Thursday, 15 May 2008—
Macroeconomics
Begins 7:45 – 1 student
Proctor: Kelly Price
Location: Guidance Conference Room

Microeconomics
Begins 11:45 - 1 student
Proctor: Chris Jones
Location: Guidance Conference Room

World History
Begins 7:45 – 74 students
Proctors: David White, Amie Hickel, Diana Brown
Location: Library Labs 1-3

Friday, 16 May 2008—
Spanish Literature
Begins 7:45 – 19 students
Proctor: Dawn Schmidt
Location: Library Lab 1

Latin Literature
Begins 11:45 - 7 students
Proctor: Josephine Levy
Location: Career Center

Take care and good luck

- Mr. White

THE LIT 600 for 2008-2009 School Year

The Desert Vista Literary Magazine is proud to announce that you can sign up to enter the 2008-2009 LIT 600 contest. Categories include Fiction, Non-Fiction, Poetry, and a new category: Translation.

Look for the entry forms located at the bookstore and in the English department. To enter on-line, go to the DV Literary Magazine Club Web Site located at http://www.tuhsd.k12.az.us/Desert_Vista_HS/GiftedProgram/GiftedCoordinator/page3.html

- Mr. White

SAGE Officer Staff 2008-2009

The SAGE Officer Staff for the upcoming 2008-2009 School Year is as follows:

President -
Christine Hsieh

Vice President -
Brian Djaja

Secretary -
Ellen Zeng

Assistant Secretary -
Seung Jae Son

Treasurer / Fundraiser / Financial Aid -
Shardul Golwalkar

Career / Fields of Study Coordinator -
Sonia Sen

Club Liaison -
Jackie Xu

College Information Coordinators -
Shivani Kapur
Bryant Wong

Public Relations Officers -
Alyssa McAlister
Monica Xiong

Assistant Public Relations Officer -
Ryan Dias

Mentorship Coordinator -
Lauren Zack

Community Service Coordinators -
Grace Ma
Jared Schoepf
Sam Schoepf

Technology Director -
Niranjan Kumar

Intern Assistant to the Technology Director -
(still contested)

I will have more updates for you later on this week. Until then, congratulations to all the winners.

- Mr. White

SAGE Officer Elections

Elections for the new officer staff for SAGE 2008-2009 will occur tomorrow, Tuesday, 30 April 2008. If you wish to choose who should be the new officer staff of SAGE for next year (even if you are a senior), you must attend tomorrow's meeting.

Thank you,

David L. White

THE LIT 600 Award Winners

The winners of this year's very first literary magazine contest at Desert Vista High School, entitled THE LIT 600 have been decided. All of the winners receive an award certificate and an invitation to read their piece at Changing Hands Bookstore, located on the corner of McClintock and Guadalupe. The 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th Prize Winners will all receive gift certificates to Changing Hands Bookstore. Fifth Prize winners will receive a $5.00 Gift Certificate; Fourth Prize winners will receive a $10.00 Gift Certificate; Third Prize Winners will receive a $15.00 Gift Certificate; and, Second Prize Winners will receive a $30.00 Gift Certificate.

First place winners will receive $200 for their award winning work.

The winning prizes for Non-Fiction will be announced live on DVTV, 3rd period, tomorrow, Tuesday, 29 April 2008. Prize winners include Ashley Bennett, Freddy Eschrich, Kellie Mejdrich, Justin Sanders, and Rachel Wilt.

The winning prizes for Fiction will be announced live on DVTV, 3rd period, Thursday, 1 May 2008. Prize winners include Fiona Pigott, Carolien Schieke, Samara Shanker, Anny Wu, and Lauren Zack.

The winning prizes for Poetry will be announced live on DVTV, 3rd period, Friday, 2 May 2008. Prize winners include Adam Lozier, Nina Martin, John Mason, Maitri Mehta, and Nina Ogesen.

Please stay tuned and be sure to congratulate the award winners.

-- David White

DV Literary Magazine: What the Thunder Said

The Spring 2008 edition of the Desert Vista Literary Magazine, which is volume seven of What the Thunder Said, is on sale now, today, and everyday, in the Desert Vista bookstore. The cost of the Literary Magazine is $5.00. You should also know that Literary Magazine pens are still on sale for $2.00. What could be a better gift to give this spring than the Desert Vista Literary Magazine? IT'S LITERARYIFIC!!!

-- Mr. White

The Thousand Parsec Project

The Thousand Parsec project, which I have been working on for my
internship this year, has just released version 0.3.1 of the Thousand
Parsec Client. For information, see the announcement here:
http://www.thousandparsec.net/tp/news.php/2008-03-25-2020

To learn more about Thousand Parsec, you can read this FAQ:
http://www.thousandparsec.net/tp/faq.php

There's also this "Getting Started" page:
http://www.thousandparsec.net/tp/gettingstarted.php

Finally, there's the Thousand Parsec Wiki:
http://www.thousandparsec.net/wiki/Thousand_Parsec_Wiki

To download the new version of the Thousand Parsec Client, go to this
page:
http://www.thousandparsec.net/tp/downloads.php

- Nathan Partlan

SAGE Officer Elections

Well, it's that time of the year again: SAGE Officer Elections.

We are in great need of new blood for the 2008-2009 school year. The following officer positions are open for the running:

President—This position requires a dedicated leader who is able to attend, lead, and create an agenda for all the regular meetings. This person will help coordinate and guide the other officers and delegate responsibility. This officer works closely with the officers in charge of special areas to stay informed and keep club members informed of the progress in these groups.
Special Skills: leadership, charisma, organization. Presidents must be able to coordinate and lead fellow officers and must have a deep sense of devotion to the club and its overall philosophy
Special Criteria: Only seniors; only existing officers may run – unless with appropriate permission from the previous existing SAGE club officer staff.
Reports to: Gifted Coordinator

Vice President—This officer must be able to attend all regular meetings and stand in as president in the absence of the president both at regular meetings and officer meetings. This officer also helps the president coordinate and guide the other officers.
Special Skills: leadership, charisma, organization. Vice-presidents must be able to coordinate and lead fellow officers and must have a deep sense of devotion to the club and its overall philosophy
Special Criteria: Only juniors or seniors.
Reports to Gifted Coordinator

Secretary—This officer must attend all meetings, whether regular or officer. The main duty of this officer is to create and maintain a master calendar of all events, take notes, and type minutes of both regular and officer meetings, and must keep accurate records of attendance for both regular and officer meetings.
Special Skills: organization and note taking skills. Must know and be able to utilize Excel. Secretaries must also be diligent to attend all meetings and send accurate reports in an expedient manner.
Reports to: Gifted Coordinator, SAGE Club President

Treasurer/Fundraiser/Financial Aid—This officer is responsible for raising money for the club, whether through soliciting tax credit donations, organizing events, or selling food, etc. This officer must also actively seek out financial aid opportunities and publicize them in a general forum.
Special Skills: organization and proficiency with math. Should know and be able to utilize Excel. Treasurer/Fundraisers must also be active in finding new and creative ways to increase SAGE funds.
Reports to: Gifted Coordinator, SAGE Club President, Bookstore Manager, Guidance Dept. Chair

Career / Fields of Study Coordinator—This officer is in charge of working with the advisor to create and coordinate shadowing and internship experiences, career speakers, and career exploration opportunities. The majority of this officer’s time will be spent outside of the regular club meetings. This officer will work closely with the advisor, president, secretary, and public relations officer.
Special Skills: Good communication skills; ability to network, find, keep, and maintain contacts; organization skills; best if familiar with Excel, though not a necessity.
Special Criteria: Only juniors or seniors
Reports to: Gifted Coordinator, SAGE Club President, Gifted Counselor, Career Technician

Club Liaison—This officer is responsible for acting as a coordinator between SAGE and the outside clubs, which involves communicating between clubs, coordinating inter-club activities, and dispensing pertinent information regarding entry into other clubs.
Special Skills: Good communication skills; ability to network, find, keep, and maintain contacts; organization skills; must be familiar with Excel and Publisher.
Special Criteria: Must already be an active member of the National Honor Society. Must be able to attend all 90-minute site-based meetings held every 2nd Tuesday of every month in the Administrative Conference room, beginning at 7PM.
Reports to: Gifted Coordinator, SAGE Club President, Vice Principal of Activities, Site-Based Chair

Community Service Coordinators (3)—These officers are responsible for finding, creating, and coordinating all community service activities on and off campus. The majority of their duties will be spent outside of the regular club meetings. These officers must work both closely and proactively with the advisor, president, secretary, and public relations officer. One officer must attend all Key Club meetings, one officer must attend all Community Counts meetings, and one officer must attend all STAND meetings.
Special Skills: Good communication skills; ability to network, find, keep, and maintain contacts; organization skills; best if familiar with Excel, though not a necessity. Must have own method for transportation and be reliable in transporting peers.
Special Duties: Must work closely with President of Tempe Parents for the Gifted (TPG), contact representative with A New Leaf, and contact representative for the Maricopa Book Drive.
Reports to: Gifted Coordinator, SAGE Club President, Sponsor of Key Club, Community Counts, and/or STAND.

College Information Coordinators (2)—These officers will work closely with the advisor to create and coordinate opportunities for students to write resumes and essays for scholarship and college applications, learn interviewing skills, and become an effective leader. These officers also work with club members to create and maintain effective study groups for AP, SAT/ACT, PSAT, and finals preparation. The majority of these officers’ time will be spent outside of the regular club meetings. These officers must maintain an up-to-date knowledge of collegeboard.com and princetonreview.com as well as resources involving college placement. These officers will work closely with the advisor, the gifted counselor, president, secretary, and public relations officer.
Special Skills: Good communication skills; ability to network, find, keep, and maintain contacts; organization skills; must be familiar with Excel and Access.
Special Criteria: Only juniors or seniors
Reports to: Gifted Coordinator, SAGE Club President, College Visits Coordinator

Public Relations Officers (2)—These officers are responsible to communicate all events with club members, students, and the general public. This includes creating and disseminating DVTV announcements, flyers, posters, Ahwatukee Foothills News articles, and any other form of communication about the club to the public.
Special Skills: Excellent communication skills; ability to network, find, keep, and maintain contacts; organization skills; best if creative in nature and possibly pursuing to seek a career in marketing or business.
Reports to: Gifted Coordinator, SAGE Club President, Vice Principal of Activities

Mentorship Coordinator—This officer is responsible to organize and coordinate all mentorship activities; provide appropriate mentors; and create incentives for mentor/mentee relations.
Special Skills: Excellent communication skills; ability to network, find, keep, and maintain contacts; organization skills; best if proficient in various IM modalities.
Special Criteria: Must be Junior or Senior
Reports to: Gifted Coordinator, SAGE Club President, Sponsor for National Honor Society

NEW! Technology Director—This officer is responsible for creating and maintaining all technology related resources at SAGE Club’s disposal.
Special Skills: Mastery of various electronic and multi-media systems. Must know and be skillful in Word, Excel, Publisher, Access, Dreamweaver, and one or more computer languages.
Reports to: Gifted Coordinator, SAGE Club President, Technology Director

We are also in need of the following Freshman SAGE Officers:

Assistant to the Secretary—This officer must attend all meetings, whether regular or officer. The main duty of this officer is to help create and maintain a master calendar of all events, take notes, and type minutes of both regular and officer meetings, and must help keep accurate records of attendance for both regular and officer meetings.
Special Skills: organization and note taking skills. Must know and be able to utilize Excel. Assistant Secretaries must also be diligent to attend all meetings and send accurate reports in an expedient manner.
Reports to: Gifted Coordinator, SAGE Club President, SAGE Club Secretary

Assistant Club Liaison—This officer is responsible for acting as an assistant to the SAGE Club Liaison who coordinates activities and communications between SAGE and the outside clubs, which involves communicating between clubs, coordinating inter-club activities, and dispensing pertinent information regarding entry into other clubs.
Special Skills: Good communication skills; ability to network, find, keep, and maintain contacts; organization skills; must be familiar with Excel and Publisher.
Special Criteria: Must already be an active member of the National Junior Honor Society. Must be able to attend all 90-minute site-based meetings held every 2nd Tuesday of every month in the Administrative Conference room, beginning at 7PM.
Reports to: Gifted Coordinator, SAGE Club President, Vice Principal of Activities, Site-Based Chair, SAGE Club Liaison.

Assistants to Community Service Coordinators (3)—These officers are responsible for helping to find, create, and coordinate all community service activities on and off campus. The majority of their duties will be spent outside of the regular club meetings. These officers must work both closely and proactively with the community service coordinators. One assistant officer must attend all Key Club meetings, one assistant officer must attend all Community Counts meetings, and one assistant officer must attend all STAND meetings.
Special Skills: Good communication skills; ability to network, find, keep, and maintain contacts; organization skills; best if familiar with Excel, though not a necessity. Must have own method for transportation and be reliable in transporting peers.
Special Duties: Must work closely with President of Tempe Parents for the Gifted (TPG), contact representative with A New Leaf, and contact representative for the Maricopa Book Drive.
Reports to: SAGE Community Service Coordinators, Gifted Coordinator, SAGE Club President, Sponsor of Key Club, Community Counts, and/or STAND.

Assistant Public Relations Officers (2)—These officers are responsible in helping communicate all events with club members, students, and the general public. This includes creating and disseminating DVTV announcements, flyers, posters, Ahwatukee Foothills News articles, and any other form of communication about the club to the public.
Special Skills: Excellent communication skills; ability to network, find, keep, and maintain contacts; organization skills; best if creative in nature and possibly pursuing to seek a career in marketing or business.
Reports to: Gifted Coordinator, SAGE Club President, Vice Principal of Activities, SAGE PR Officers

NEW! Intern Assistant to the Technology Director—This officer is responsible for shadowing the SAGE club technology director. This officer must also help create and maintain all technology related resources at SAGE Club’s disposal.
Special Skills: Understanding of various electronic and multi-media systems. Must know and be skillful in Word, Excel, Publisher, Access, Dreamweaver, and one or more computer languages.
Reports to: DV Technology Director, Gifted Coordinator, SAGE Club President, SAGE Technology Director

Prospective candidates must be able to fulfill the following guidelines:

1) No zero hour applicants.

2) Officers must sign a letter of commitment to SAGE with an understanding that if an officer cannot fulfill his or her duties, the SAGE member who received the second highest number of votes would take his/her place.

3) Excepting PR, Secretary, and Technology Director positions, all officers must commit to lead at least one general SAGE meeting - as appropriate to office.

4) Officers themselves have an attendance requirement with regard to officer meetings: within a year, 2 absences leads to a warning, 4 absences leads to a second warning, 6 absences leads to probationary status, any absence after 6 and the officer is removed from office and replaced. Officer meetings take place every single week on Tuesdays at 7:30AM in room C206.

5) Officers must fulfill duties of office as prescribed within the officer structure. Those officers who do not fulfill their duties will be removed from office in favor of the SAGE member who received the second highest number of votes (see rule 2).

6) Officers must set an example as a Desert Vista student. A student who engages in impropriety that either shames the club or violates the Desert Vista handbook will be removed from office in favor of the SAGE member who received the second highest number of votes.

7) Except for the Secretary, SAGE Officers must submit discussion topics to the officer meetings held every Tuesday—submissions must be sent to the advisor and the secretary by Monday evening via e-mail with a Word attachment.

8) Officers must report directly to the advisor at least once a week in order to maintain a dialogue regarding their office.

9) Officers must act as mentors to prospective mentees.

10) Officers must be proficient in Word and PowerPoint, as well as one or more of the following (depending upon official duties): Excel, Publisher, Dreamweaver, and/or Access.

11) Officers must display proficient writing and computer technical skills in order to maintain the DV SAGE Blog.

12) Officers must exhibit leadership, communication, and public speaking skills.

Prospective candidates must inform Mr. White, the club advisor, of such a decision no later than Tuesday, 22nd of April. If you intend on running for office, you must submit a maximum one-hundred word essay description as to why you believe you would be the best candidate for the position. Submit this description directly to your advisor electronically in a Word attachment. Mr. White’s e-mail address is dwhite.dvh@tuhsd.k12.az.us . This description must be submitted to the advisor by the Tuesday, 22nd of April deadline. If you have not already done so, you will also need to speak with Mr. White, one-on-one, (or by e-mail for Freshman officers) about your intentions to run for office. Voting for officer positions will take place during the general meeting on Wednesday, 30 April elections at 3:00PM. Publication of Elections will take place during the general meeting at 3:00PM on Wednesday, 7 May 2007.

-- Mr. White

April 16th Meeting: AP Study Session

With the AP exams less than a month away, SAGE is hosting an AP study session in the library after school on Wednesday. The unique part about this meeting is that we will have students who have scored a 4 or a 5 on the exams last year to lead the study sessions for each subject. Thus, we are offering a student's perspective on the AP tests to supplement -not reiterate- the teacher's advice.

We will have study sessions for the following subjects:

English Language and Composition
Calculus BC
Spanish Language
US History
World History

Leave a comment if you have any questions or concerns.

-Kunal

Let Loose with a SAGE GAME DAY!!!

So, it's the last stretch of the school year! And sooner or later, you're going to start stressing out about standardized tests/grades/finals/something-totally-unrelated-to-school...
So come join us after school in the library this Wednesday, April 9, for the first ever SAGE Game Day! We'll be offering games such as Chess, Go, Board Games, etc. for no apparent reason other than to have FUN! It's a great opportunity to hang out and meet new people! Hope to see you there! =D

Native American Club Movie Extravaganza

Dago Te, or maybe even Ya'a'te'eh, everyone!!!

The Desert Vista Native American Club would like to invite you to the first ever Native American Club Movie Extravaganza. We will be showing the hilarious comedy Smoke Signals this Thursday, the 3rd of April in Mr. Whitman's room (C211-212) at 4PM. Smoke Signals is based on the award winning novel The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fist Fight in Heaven by accomplished author Sherman Alexie. Be sure to ask your English and history teachers whether or not they will allow extra credit for coming to our Thursday movie matinee! The Native American Club is asking for a $3.00 donation at the door for your chance to see a wonderful movie, have some treats, and be a part of a good time (for a good time will be had)!

See you there!

AP Pre-Administration Sessions

Are you planning on taking one or more AP exams this year? If you are, you will need to attend one of the two Pre-Administration sessions -- either the afternoon of Thursday the 10th of April at 3:15PM or the morning of Friday the 11th of April at 7:30AM. For more details concerning specific locations, refer to your pink AP receipt or go to http://www.tuhsd.k12.az.us/Desert_Vista_HS/GiftedProgram/GiftedCoordinator/page4.html.

- Mr. White

Picking a College, or, Lifeplanning.

I know if you're anything like me you probably have had that moment where you feel a mad wave of anxiety come over you and you realize: "I AM GOING TO COLLEGE IN (X) YEARS AND I DON'T KNOW EXACTLY WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN!" What you probably haven't heard among the strife and turmoil of your peers is, you don't need to know. It's ok! Finding a college and a respective scholarship is a long, arduous process, but it is an organic process. Oftentimes, it happens without you even really paying attention. Oftentimes, people are waiting to give money to you if you just contact them. So, here's my guide to finding the college (or scholarship) of your dreams.

First. DO NOT FORGET THE VALUE OF INSTATE SCHOLARSHIPS. Scholarships like National Merit, Flinn, and even university scholarships like the President's or Wildcat Excellence are extremely valuable and can often pay most, if not all, of your undergraduate expenses. And just think, you can use all that money you were going to get your undergrad at Princeton with to get your Graduate degree, and make millions more over your lifetime just because you have another degree!
To get these scholarships, you have to remember:
1. Do well on the PSAT (for National Merit) and SAT (for others). If you are shooting for National Merit, DO NOT FORGET TO DO WELL YOUR JUNIOR YEAR. That is the only year the PSAT matters.
2. Maintain a high class rank. You can do this by taking AP classes, taking 0 hour, and keeping a good GPA.
3. Get a leadership position your Junior or Senior year of high school that is substantial. (ex. club officer). This is really important for applications.
4. Do community service in something you are interested and passionate about.
5. DEVELOP YOUR OWN INTERESTS. I can't stress enough how important this is to being successful not only in scholarships, but in high school. Make sure you do what you love, or you can forget what you love--which makes choosing a college difficult.

If in-state scholarships aren't for you, and you want to go out of state for college, the path is a little more arduous, but not impossible. You need to prepare the following:
1. Visit college campuses. The best time to visit is during the school year, because you can see how people actually interact on campus and how the school functions. I visited UC Berkeley in October, and it was the perfect time to visit because I could see how the school felt when you were walking around like a student.
2. Start searching for scholarships via fastweb.com, fill out the FAFSA on time, and make sure you have a candid discussion with your parents about how you're going to pay for college. Also, don't disregard those letters from schools you apply to out of state about Alumni and other private scholarships. You are going to need all the help you can get to pay for out of state, even if you get a school merit scholarship, you are still going to pay a sizable sum.
3. Find colleges specific to your major. For example, an english major at MIT might be rare, but you would probably enjoy studying a liberal arts major at a school like NYU or a small private university like Reed College.
4. Consider small, liberal arts colleges. Especially if you are interested in getting a well-rounded, liberal arts education.

But most of all, consider what you really want your college experience to be like. Do you want a tight knit community? Do you want a large school that is highly competitive? Do you want to go to grad school? These are all important to consider when making a decision.

Essentially, make college searches a fun, natural process. Don't force yourself to research colleges, or you will start to hate it. College is going to be the greatest experience of your life, take time to discover where you will go! But most of all, don't worry.

-Kellie

A Note Regarding Email Subscriptions

Not too long ago, SAGE added an email subscription service to the blog that sends our posts directly to your inbox. You can sign up for this service using the textbox on the left-hand side of the screen.

If you do signup, you will recieve an email from confirmations@emailenfuego.net. Many email services consider this address as spam, and thus send it directly to the spam box. Be wary of this; if you do not click the link contained in this confirmation email, you will not recieve our posts via email.

Also, do not forget that email is a two-way street. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to shoot us an email at dvsageclub.com@gmail.com.

-Kunal

Community Involvement: Getting Involved Outside the Box

When students and parents think of the words "extracurricular activities," it is probably synonymous with club, sport, or some fine-art class. However, there is another genre of activity that often gets overlooked: community involvement. This could consist of church (or other religious group)-sponsored community service projects, a neighborhood event-organizing committee, or a local leadership seminar. Such activities not only allow one to interact with members of his/her community, but also meaningfully contribute to the community.

For instance, one that I was involved in was Tempe Youth Leadership (which I found out about through the TUHSD scholarship web site :)). In this program, we gave up roughly every other weekend for a semester to meet important officials of the city (such as the mayor and the architects who are re-designing the downtown) to gain a better understanding of how a community operates. Similar to TYL is the Governor’s Youth Commission, whose mission is to increase awareness of community issues through youth volunteerism, more information is available at: http://gocyf.az.gov/CYD/BRD_AGYC.asp.

If you have a career interest, getting involved through the city of Phoenix in that division could even facilitate in determining whether you really are interested in that field; departments that you can contribute in range from aviation to the fire department to the city’s prosecutor’s office. A more extensive list is available on their web site: http://phoenix.gov/menu/rescomvolhelp.html.

There are opportunities on an even more local level, such as being on the organizing committee for Relay for Life or the Festival of Lights. Another option could be involved in an ethnicity or diversity group, for example, on the Youth Committee for the Indo-American Association.

Basically, the purpose of this post is to encourage you to view community involvement as equal in importance to a long list of clubs, and to demonstrate that you might already be involved in some of these activities.

-Shivani

Student Tips for Writing an RN

RN's are excellent examples of the "practice makes perfect" philosophy. These papers are essentially five paragraph essays condensed - each one has an intro, body, and conclusion. In the beginning a three prong thesis is advocated and teachers will generally accept it. However, gradually move away from this writing aid because it will restrict your ideas. Also, remember, three prong theses must be parallel and can usually be the first sentence. However, some teachers prefer a creative one line intro. Transitions must be obvious since there are no paragraph separations. In general stay away from too much flowery language, just be straightforward.

The following are rules agreed upon by teachers:

-Never use contractions or personal pronouns
-Active voice preferred over passive.
ex. Active: The student (doer of the action) wrote the essay (receiver of the action). Passive: The essay (receiver of the action) was written by the student (doer of the action).

RN's often require the inclusion of quotes from a literary source. Before writing, find the quotes that would complement your topic. Do NOT use random quotes: they will be awkward. Always introduce your quotes and provide an explanation afterwards. As well, remember to cite the quote in the following fashion: (Author page #). However, quotes do not have to be cited if the author or source is part of the sentence. For the conclusion it is allowed to restate the thesis. However, extend or reword the thesis so that it is not an exact replica. Conclusions should only be about one to two sentences. Keep this in mind and you should be fine. Good luck!

-Janson

A Sneak Preview of the Field of Engineering

I'm not sure how much you have heard, but the ASU pilot engineering course (Engineering Design 101 I believe) will be continued to be offered next year. After taking the course this year, I have some insider information for interested math/science students who want to determine if engineering is the right major for them BEFORE they get to college (engineers are often disadvantaged because they have no experience from high school and have no idea what's really included in their major. Well, no more!)

The Rundown: This year, the course was on tuesdays and thursdays after school from 3:00 - 5:00pm in Mr. Zavaleta's room. Professors Hinks and Henderson met us at DV and taught a parallel course to the one offered at ASU Polytech on Mondays and Wednesdays. We did two major projects (one per quarter), first rockets and then robots. For the two competitions and presentations, the "DV Kids" drove out to the ASU Polytechnic Campus and participated as a part of the actual college class.

All in all, I believe this course allows a "sneak preview" not only of Engineering majors, but of Arizona State University as well. The only drawbacks were the time commitment needed (it was much easier to handle with release, but those with a full schedule found the day a bit tiring) and the college-size cost of the course (a mildly pretty penny, but I think it was undeniably worth it; plus, as a "student" of ASU, you get all the discounts in their store, which is a good, good deal).

For more information, you can contact myself or any of the other students who participated in the program (Dexter Scobee, Aaron Goldstein, Arjun Vinze, Megan Grady, or Martin Baricevic) as well as Mr. Z or ASU itself.

Have a nice day,
-Kadra

Next SAGE meeting: Engineering 101

Hello all,

I just wanted to update you with regard to next week's SAGE meeting topic. Mr. Dan Zavaleta will be present to discuss an exciting program for all those interested in a future in Engineering. Desert Vista currently is looking to expand this course for all gifted students interested in taking Engineering 101, a joint Desert Vista/ASU Polytechnic Program designed at preparing students for college and an opportunity for college credit through Arizona State University. If you are at all interested in Engineering or in pursuing a career in Engineering, please attend this next Wednesday, 5 March 2008. As always, we will be meeting in the library at 3:00PM.

See you there,

Mr. White

The Maricopa Book Drive: Coming Soon!

Here’s a quick heads up from the Community Service Department:

Some time after Spring Break, the Maricopa Book Drive will be up and running. We will be collecting new or gently used books to give to an elementary school that needs them. This event is a great way to get volunteer hours and clean up your bookshelf at the same time! All of these books will be going to a great cause, and you’ll be helping out the many kids who are less fortunate than we are.

-Grace

How to Approach Community Service

Community service can be one of the most enjoyable things to do - I can truthfully say that I help out because it’s fun, and not just because I think it looks good on my resume (this seems to be the reason most people do anything nowadays).

When choosing what community service you want to participate in, select one that reflects what your interests are. If you want to be a doctor later on in your life, volunteer at the hospital – in doing so, you can get a little taste of what you’ll be facing in the future. However, if you don't know what your future career path will be, don't worry -simply volunteer in a field that interests you. For example, if you are passionate about Spanish, you can volunteer at a place where a lot of Spanish is spoken to get practice with the language; if you really like sports, you can volunteer as coach for a little league team. In this way, the possibilities are endless.

The key to an enjoyable community service experience is to pick a job that genuinely interests you. Don't pick something just for the sake of getting a lot of hours; for colleges and for yourself, the quality of those hours are much more important than the quantity. Thus, if done correctly, community service can truly enrich your high school experience -which is what is was intended to do in the first place.

The catch is that often these community service opportunities can be difficult to find. Sometimes you can find out about them through word-of-mouth, or on the Internet. There is a nice little link to the left side labeled ‘Community Service,’ which has a list of volunteer opportunities compiled by SAGE. In addition, http://www.volunteermatch.org is a great resource. However, if you need any help looking for community service opportunities don't hesitate to contact us either by commenting on this blog or by sending us an email at dvsageclub.com@gmail.com. Don't be afraid to use us as a resource; we're here to help you out.

-Grace

Academics and Athletics: Getting Active!

Hey guys, whats up? I thought I'd take some time to share my personal experience and opinion about athletics and getting active.

There are numerous advantages to participating in a sport, one of which is exercise. You get a good workout, and studies show that if you're mentally and physically exhausted (from working those crazy math problems and working out), you get a better night's sleep. I can attest to this: I still find it hard to fall asleep when I'm not physically drained. If I had a good workout during the day, I fall asleep as soon as I hit my bed.

Athletics are also a good way to meet new people. It opens you up to a whole new sphere of people and friends. I met some of coolest and goofiest people I know on track and field.

In reality, athletics are not for everyone. Nevertheless, it is important to just get out and exercise. Anything to get you moving--chasing your dog around the house, playing with younger siblings, a quick bike ride--will allow you to enjoy life more.

However, if you can find a sport that you like and feel comfortable with, it will be very beneficial in the long run. If you feel like life is a chore, or just an endless stream of homework, sports may add some needed variety to your life. Don't worry about not having enough time; right now, as a junior, I'm managing all honors and AP classes, running varsity track and field, and still managing to get to bed before 12AM most nights. In the end, you will find that if you truly invest and dedicate yourself to a sport you enjoy, you will have a much more rewarding high school experience.

-Brian

The Fight Against Cancer

Not long ago, I sent several friends and loved ones an email asking for support. I want to send you another, just like it, to make sure you know how strongly I feel about eliminating cancer. I hope you can help me with a donation to this incredible cause. I have since made a donation to myself of $25. You can donate any amount you wish, but a match to my gift or an even larger donation would be very greatly appreciated. Your support will help people in our community and around the world in the fight against this disease.If you like, you can make a secure online contribution from my Personal Page by clicking on the link below.

Thank you!
- Kimi Pike kiminadine@gmail.com.

Click here to visit my personal page.

If the text above does not appear as a clickable link, you can visit the web address:
http://main.acsevents.org/site/TR/RelayForLife/RelayForLifeGreatWestDivision?px=4010435&pg=personal&fr_id=4820&et=hZWygCFQ81-mlfl_lugMbw..&s_tafId=94493

Click here to view the team page for F.R.I.E.N.D.S.

If the text above does not appear as a clickable link, you can visit the web address:
http://main.acsevents.org/site/TR/RelayForLife/RelayForLifeGreatWestDivision team_id=182726&pg=team&fr_id=4820&et=lAJu24XFKdkaNMLkX94mIQ..&stafId=94493

What are the differences between the SAT and the ACT?

Most of you are probably wondering what the difference between SATs and ACTs are. You can compare the two by reading the charts below:

ACT
-3 hours, 25 minutes (including the 30-minute optional Writing Test)
-4 test sections (English, Math, Reading, Science) plus an optional Writing section
-4 Reading Comprehension passages, 10 questions per passage
-Covers science reasoning (analysis, interpretation, evaluation, problem solving)
-Math Topics Covered: Algebra, Geometry, Trigonometry (4 questions)
-Total composite score of 1-36 (based on average of 4 sections); each section receives a score of 1-36; the optional Writing section receives a score of 0-12
-No wrong answer penalty
-You decide which score is sent

SAT
-3 hours, 45 minutes
-10 Sections
-Critical Reading, Math, Writing (includes the Essay)
-Reading sections: mix of passage comprehension and sentence completion questions that require vocabulary expertise
-Science not included
-Math Topics Covered: Algebra, Geometry, and Basic Algebra II
-Total score out of 2400; 3 scores of 200-800 for each section; Writing section has 2sub-scores: multiple choice (20-80) and the essay (0-12)
-1/4 point per wrong answer (except for Math Grid-in questions)
-Your entire score history will be sent automatically

Leave comments if you have any questions or concerns.

-Ellen

A New Feature: The Email Subscription Service

As part of our continued effort to make this blog more helpful and accessible, an email subscription service has recently been added to the blog.

To have our posts automatically delivered to your inbox, simply enter your email address in the textbox on the left (above the list of officers) and click the Submit button. Keep in mind that subscription to this blog is not a permanent committment; if you wish, you can unsubscribe at any time.

-Kunal

Staying Chill

High School can be pretty stressful, especially with a rigorous school schedule. But it does not have to be. AP classes and extra-curricular activities are wonderful in healthy doses, but too much of anything can really hurt...like blunt-force head trauma.

AP classes are usually much more interesting and rewarding than your everyday honors or regular course, but also require a bit more effort. Three or four AP classes are really all you need in any given year, depending on the difficulty level of the courses (the most difficult AP classes are pretty notorious, so you should know that two or three of these are enough). Honors classes are weighted the same as AP for ranking, and DV GPA is on a standard 4.0 scale so AP classes do not have much of an advantage on honors classes. Some colleges will offer credit if you manage a 4 or 5 on the AP test, but some colleges just use the AP test to place you in more advanced classes in college.

Extra-curricular activities are a must in High School. They will not only keep you involved socially, but also help to motivate you academically. Just like a double-double is better with a side order of animal style fries (or whatever you like to eat), your school schedule should be complimented by some activity you enjoy. Whether it is football, ceramics, painting, martial arts, running, competitive sweater knitting, or whatever; you need to do something other than study. Believe it or not, sometimes having that something extra on your plate will help you enjoy your meal that much more (sorry for extending this analogy so far...haha). A good balance of school and extra-curricular is not only fun for you, but colleges like to see that too (it proves to them that you actually have a soul). So keep trucking academically, but don't forget to moderate and to do something for yourself once in a while.

-Minyu Kim

JourneySafe

Hello SAGE members,

A fellow SAGE mother sent me a link to the following video about the importance of driving safely. I highly recommend that you view it: http://www.journeysafe.com/presentation.

Be safe when driving,

Mr. White

Scholarships

As you all should know by now, college is EXPENSIVE! How are you going to pay then? With scholarships of course! Scholarships are extremely important when you go to college and they can save you a lot of money.

There are tons of scholarship opportunities out there and luckily, sites such as the Tempe Union website and CollegeBoard have complied easy to look through lists.

Although there are a lot of opportunities out there, they are no good if you don't go for them. You're going to regret waiting until the end of you senior year to look for scholarships. Instead, start your scholarship search during the second semester of your junior year, and continue on through senior year.

We have found the Tempe Union District scholarship website to be the most helpful. Check it out at the following web address:

https://www.tuhsd.k12.az.us/view.php?page=55,82&tuhsdgroup=2

Here are some other sites to help you with your search:

Fastweb
http://www.fastweb.com/

Princeton Review
http://www.princetonreview.com/college/finance/

CollegeBoard
http://apps.collegeboard.com/cbsearch_ss/servlet/scholarshipsearchservlet?SS_ACTION=DB_SEARCH&pageIndex=0

CollegeNet
http://www.collegenet.com/mach25/app

College Scholarships, College, and Online Degrees
http://college-scholarships.com/

Take a few minutes to look around them. Maybe you'll find a scholarship that suits you. And remember, these are by no means, the only opportunities.

The AP Exams are coming! The AP Exams are coming!

Hello all,

It is that time of year again. Tensions are high and sales of pepto-bismol are shooting through the roof. AP Exams are upon us. Thankfully, your exam isn't tomorrow. You have plenty of time between now and May to study and prepare and agonize. While you are in that process, though, a couple of reminders:

1. If you intend on taking an AP Exam, you need to sign up for it now. Exam order forms are available in a myriad of colors, including blue, green, yellow, goldenrod, and white! You can pick up an exam order form from your AP teacher or just outside the bookstore. The cost is $86.00 per exam and you need to take your order form and your payment to the bookstore. You have until February 22nd to sign up for the exam (a date that is fast approaching). You can order an AP exam form after that date, but it will cost you $30.00 extra per exam. I will not be accepting any orders after Thursday, March 6th at 3:00PM (the order form says Friday, March 7th -- but, please, for the love of everything good and holy, just get your order form in before then. Please. I'm begging you).

2. Whatever color you pick, the final color you will receive is a pink receipt that explains when and where the Pre-Administration session is and when you will be taking your AP exam. Be sure to keep that safe and visible.

3. ALL students who plan to take an AP Exam must attend one of the two Pre-Administration sessions, which will be Thursday, April 10th at 3:15PM and Friday, April 11th at 7:30AM. You will want to report to the room assigned according to your last name. These are the American Studies rooms:

Room C 207-208 (A-G) Room C 220-221 (N-S)

Room C 211-212 (H-M) Room C 273-274 (T-Z)

4. You are not required to send scores to any college or university. You may choose to release the scores later to the college or university of choice.

5. You do NOT need your teacher's permission to take an AP Exam. Your choice to take or not to take the AP exam is YOURS!

If you have any questions, you can check out one of the two AP web sites:

http://www.tuhsd.k12.az.us/Desert_Vista_HS/GiftedProgram/page2.html or
http://www.tuhsd.k12.az.us/Desert_Vista_HS/GiftedProgram/GiftedCoordinator/page4.html

Or you can e-mail me at dwhite.dvh@tuhsd.k12.az.us or call me at (480) 706-7900, extension 92154.

Take care and don't stress out!

Mr. White

If You're Filling Out your Schedule for Next Year, HURRY AND READ THIS!!

Quickly!! Schedules are due practically yesterday!
1) Are you a sophomore or junior?
2) Do you want to explore aspects of a career that you don't know much about, or get a sneak preview of the work world?
3) Do you want an extra period of release?

If you answered "Yes!" to any of these questions, you need to put "Honors Professional Internship" on your schedule this instant!

What it is: The Honors Professional Internship (not to be confused with the Business Internship, in which you spend one period at school and the other two at work) is similar to the Business Internship, but offered only to Gifted students who want a more in-depth experience in the area of their interest (ie: engineering, biodesign, computer technology, medicine, etc). I chose to work for WSI, an online marketing company, but you can choose any company in any field you wish. The bonus is that it only takes up one period (instead of 3) and you spend the whole hour off campus as an intern. NOTE: If you take this class instead of the Business Internship (recommended) you will still need to take care of that business credit necessary to graduation; luckily you can easily take Economics or Entrepreneurship (or anything else in the business section of the DV handbook) to satisfy this requirement.

What you do: First and foremost, you need to go talk to Mr. White (that friendly guy down in the counseling office) and tell him you're interested. Then, the hardest part is to actually find the internship; don't worry, there's dozens to choose from and even though you may have to put up with a few rejections at first, it's no harder than being hired for a job. (Note: yes, i know that most internships aren't paid but it's worth it, believe me)

Any Questions? If so, you can contact me at my email thedukeofhousemagrace@gmail.com, Mr. White or any of the other students involved in the Internship program (they're on the gifted web page http://www.tuhsd.k12.az.us/dvh/GiftedProgram/page9.html). For more information on the Honors Professional Internship (as well as Advanced Studies) you can flip to page 33 in that nifty handbook (the code is IS15).

Good luck! And make sure you get those schedules in on time! :o
-Kadra

SAGE Meeting Dates

In case you were wondering, the following is a list of the SAGE meeting dates for the rest of the year:

February 20
March 5
March 19
April 9
April 16
April 30
May 7

The complete list of SAGE meeting dates has been available on the DV Gifted Services website: http://www.tuhsd.k12.az.us/Desert_Vista_HS/GiftedProgram/page4.html

However, do not confuse this site with the SAGE Club Homepage, which is accesible at the following web address: http://www.tuhsd.k12.az.us/dvh/GiftedProgram/GiftedCoordinator/page2.html

The latter is the site that has our research and our previous presentations.

If you're confused about what's going on at SAGE, or if you have any other questions, let us know by email at dvsageclub.com@gmail.com, or post a comment on the blog.

-Kunal

Art & Your High School Experience: Making More Than the Grade

It's second semester. AP Exams are creeping closely forward, term papers are appearing everywhere, you have three days of homework snowballed because you were working on that assignment that took you three days to finish--in essence, you're a gifted student at Desert Vista. "What does this all mean" and "Why did I do this to myself" might be questions that reoccur in your psyche as you laboriously engrave information into a worksheet for your history class.

I have some news for you, my friends: There Is An Escape.

This escape is better known as the Desert Vista Fine Arts Department. I know for some of you, the sound of "electives programs" that aren't AP or Honors can cause a wave of anxiety, ridden with visions of lost rank points, failure, and visions of a homeless future. I'm here to tell you these fears are irrational. I have taken one or more arts classes every year of my high school career, and I am the top 3% of my senior class. I have a very high GPA. I still enjoy my AP classes just as much, if not more! That's right: art classes won't destroy your life as a gifted student.

In fact, I couldn't live without the fine arts. In the midst of all the chaos of my AP/Honors world, I have found orchestra and ceramics classes to provide me with an outlet just to create. Art is such a personal experience--for one hour every day, you aren't judged on whether or not you can create a masterpiece; assignments aren't examined with a pass/fail mentality; you are given a space where you create your own vision of what you think is beautiful. Art isn't about getting an A--that's relatively easy. Art is about finding your own vision, about exploring your own world.

So when you are choosing your classes this semester, or thinking about your busy schedule next year, remember that you might enjoy this kind of outlet. As a culture, I believe we have become increasingly homogenized in order to "make the grade", and art classes help preserve this lost individuality and creativity. Additionally, these classes can help you look at your AP/Honors classes with a more creative, problem-solving mind.

I encourage you, with all my experiences in high school in mind, to take an art class or two. Take a break, enjoy, and create: you will be glad you did. High school is definitely about being successful, but it's also about finding out who you are--taking art classes can help you discover things you never knew about yourself.

-Kellie

How to Find the Information You Need

Search Engine
Located in the upper left corner of the screen, this tool is probably the quickest and easiest way to find the information you need. It searches all of our posts for your keywords, saving you a lot of effort.

"Information by Topic"
We label each of our posts according to its topic -for example, this post falls under "General Information." Click on the links under the heading "Information by Topic" in order to view all the posts that pertain to that topic.

Archives
This is the newest addition to the blog. Look through the archives to find older (yet still useful) posts that have been buried by the newer ones.

If you cannot find the information you are looking for on this blog, send us an email at dvsageclub.com@gmail.com and let us know. We would be more than happy to answer your questions or supply you with the information you need.

-Kunal

How Class Rank is Calculated

1) Every semester 6 classes, and 6 classes only, will be counted towards your class rank. Therefore, the max number of rank points you can obtain in a semester is 30.

2) In Honors: A=5, B=4, C=3, etc. In Regular: A=4, B=3, etc.

3) IMPORTANT: The order in which classes are counted for rank points: Honors Core, Regular Core, Honors Elective, Regular Elective
[[Therefore, if you are taking a regular science class and an honors music class zero hour, your regular science class will be counted (4 rank points) before your honors music class (5 rank points)]]

4) IMPORTANT: Students who have taken high school math classes, and gotten an A, before entering high school (H. Geometry or H. Algebra 3-4) will have those classes as "extra credit" on their record.
[[Therefore, if they take less than 6 honors core classes, or get less than an A, their previous math credit (5 rank points) will be used for rank calculations, instead of whatever class they took during the year.]]
**This only applies to students who went to a middle school in the Kyrene or Tempe district

EX1: A freshman takes 5 honors core classes and Concert Band. They also took Geometry in middle school and got an A. At the end of the 1st semester, they have gotten all A's.
To calculate their rank, their 5 honors core classes will be used first (25 rank points total) and then one semester of their Geometry credit will be used in place of Concert Band (5 rank points). That way, though they have not taken all honors classes, their rank is still 30 out of 30!

EX2: A freshman takes 5 honors core classes and AP Music Theory. They also took Geometry in middle school and got an A. At the end of the 1st semester, they have gotten all A's.
To calculate their rank, their 5 honors core classes will be used first (25 rank points total). But because AP Music Theory is an elective, their Geometry credit (5 rank points) will be counted in place of AP Music Theory, even though it is an honors class!

......I personally never really understood how the class rank system worked until going in to talk to a counselor, so hopefully, if anyone else was confused, this should clear it up! =] If you have any additional or specific questions, please post a comment and I'll try to answer it for you!

-Audrey

General Scheduling Advice

As the scheduling season rolls around, here are some general tips to consider when selecting your classes for next year:

1. Summer school is a great way of getting credits out of the way that interest you less (e.g. physical education, health, and computer application); thus, take the classes you don't care for over the summer, not the ones which you are passionate about.

2. Be sure to take into account your projected level of involvement in extracurricular activities (everything outside of school) next year. At the same time, however, don’t take an overly easy schedule simply out of a fear that you will be overly committed next year; the key is to strike a balance.

3. Don’t drop a class simply because you have heard that a particular teacher is difficult; be willing to try the class out for yourself, confidently and open-mindedly.

Above all, make sure that you have a parent signature on the form by the deadline. Failing to do so may force you to take classes that you don't want to take.

-Kunal

College Photos Update

Photos of USC (University of Southern California) and Boston University were added to the dvsageclub photobucket album today. Click on the following links to see the new photos:

USC Photos
http://s260.photobucket.com/albums/ii34/dvsageclub/USC/?albumview=grid

Boston University Photos
http://s260.photobucket.com/albums/ii34/dvsageclub/Boston%20University/?albumview=grid

A Sampling of Summer Programs

Believe it or not, NOW is the time to start researching and applying to summer programs, especially the more competitive ones. The following is a sampling of some programs, broken down by category. If anything, check out the link at the very bottom of the post; it is extremely helpful.

Competitive Academic Programs
Duke TIP Summer Studies Program
http://www.tip.duke.edu/summer_programs/

Harvard SSP (Secondary School Program)
http://www.summer.harvard.edu/2008/programs/ssp/

EPGY (Education Program for Gifted Youth) at Stanford
http://epgy.stanford.edu/summer/index.html

Programs in Arizona
Curry Summer Music Camp at NAU
https://www4.nau.edu/finearts/musiccamp/campinfo.asp

YAWP (Young Adult Writing Program) at ASU
http://www.asu.edu/clas/english/yawp/news.html

Summer of Excellence at the U of A
http://www.soe.honors.arizona.edu/

Summer Internship Program: High School Biotechnology at ASU
http://www.biodesign.asu.edu/outreach/internship/

Biology/Medicine Programs
National Institute of Health Summer Internship in Biomedical Research
http://www.training.nih.gov/student/sip/index.asp
*Participants receive a stipend

Bio@TECH: Biology at Georgia Tech University
http://www.biology.gatech.edu/biotech.php

Links to Lists of Other Programs
http://www.ams.org/employment/mathcamps.html
A long list of math camps around the country

http://www.cogito.org/Programs/programslist.aspx?summerprograms
One of the best resources available for finding summer programs

Update on "theU" Videos

The post entitled "Informational Videos about Your Favorite Universities" has been recently updated (on 1/21/08). Revisit it to see a link to a complete list of colleges and universities for which these videos have been made. In addition, a description of these videos by the Princeton Review has been added to the post.

How to Use This Blog Effectively

Here are some tips to make the most of your experience at this blog:

1. Check out the links on the right (under the heading "Information by Topic") to view only the posts that contain information germane to a certain topic. This way you can find the information you are looking for more quickly and effectively.

2. Comment! Ask questions, add any relevant information you may have, or simply let us know what you think of our posts. In this way, we will be able to tailor our posts more effectively to your needs. The more everyone contributes to the blog, the more everyone will gain.

3. Be sure to check the blog at least once a week for updates; we will be posting continually.

As usual, if you have any comments, questions, or suggestions, feel free to send them to us at dvsageclub.com@gmail.com.

CSS Profile

The CSS Profile is an application that is similar to the FAFSA that is produced by the College Board. The major differences:

1. FAFSA is free. The CSS Profile is not.
2. The CSS Profile is more detailed, which is why some colleges request it.
3. The FAFSA must be filled out after January 1st, while the CSS Profile can be submitted before then. (This point, however, is presently irrelevant.

You can complete the CSS Profile online at https://profileonline.collegeboard.com/index.jsp.