Welcome to the BHS School Counseling Office! 

The BHS School Counseling Department adheres to the American School Counselor Association's (ASCA) National Model for School Counseling. A formal curriculum is delivered and services are provided to meet students' needs within the Academic, Career, and Personal/Social Domains.

Students and parents are encouraged to access the many resources available through the Counseling Department. Xello is an Internet-based resource which allows students to explore career choices, learn detailed information about post-secondary schools, and research specific schools that have characteristics that appeal to individual students. Scholarship information will soon be available through Xello, too.

Other resources available in the Counseling Office include post-secondary planning tools such as business, trade, apprenticeship, and college information and scholarship and financial aid resources. Additionally, the Career Center offers students easy access to Internet-based and print resources.

Hours: 7:00 AM - 3:00 PM 

Phone: 412-885-7500, Select option #2

Location: School Counseling Suite, 2nd floor

• Julie Sumper- All 9th Grade Students
• Sara Fiorill- Grades 10-12, Last Names A-G
• Kaitlyn Figurelli- Grades 10-12, Last Names H-N
• Noel Santini- Grades 10-12, Last Names O-Z

Announcements

Financial Aid Presentation

Thank you to everyone who attended for last week’s Financial Aid 101 presentation! A recorded webinar can be viewed here: https://youtu.be/iAgGUceh5GE.

BHS 2025-2026 Scheduling 

Course Selection Guide:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/12X0C65af8tWBOHX_0qDZiHHYOlyMmiIVTmo6K7BSWQw/edit?usp=sharing

Program of Studies:

2025-2026 BHS Program of Studies

Please click here for an important update on Spring 2025 AP Testing

AP Test Update- Thursday, October 10, 2024

We hope everyone has had a good start to the school year! While it feels like testing season is months away, we know that it will be here in the blink of an eye. Thus, I'd like to share some crucial information regarding the AP exams for this academic year.

All students must first indicate "Yes" or "No" regarding whether they plan to take the AP Exam for their specific course. This can be found in your AP Classroom on the College Board website.

Registration for all AP tests will begin on Friday, October 4, 2024, through Total Registration.
Registration will remain open from Friday October 4, 2024 to Friday, November 1. The cost for each AP exam is $103. Payments for the exams will be processed online via Total Registration, which accepts online credit card payments or provides the option for students to submit a money order. For more details on payment options, please refer to Total Registration.

To register and make payments for AP exams, please follow this link: AP Test Registration.  

The final day to register for or cancel an AP exam on College Board and Total Registration will be November 1, 2024. Any AP exam orders placed after the registration deadline (11/1/2024) will incur a late registration fee of $40. If you opt to cancel your exam after 11/1/2024 or do not sit for the exam, you will not be eligible for a full refund.

AP Exams are scheduled for May 5-9 and May 12-16. Additionally, please take note of the following essential information:                                                                                                                     
● Students seeking a fee waiver must submit their request by November 1 through Total
Registration.
● Students requiring accommodations for AP exams are encouraged to submit their applications by November 1 or as soon as possible to ensure that accommodations can be accommodated.
     ○ For further information, please consult with Mr. Eric Jankoski or your School Counselor.        
Should you have any further inquiries or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact your School Counselor.                                                                                                                                                      
Thank you,

BHS School Counseling Department
Julie Sumper- All 9th Grade Students
Jennifer Pellen- Grades 10-12, Last Names A-G
Kaitlyn Figurelli- Grades 10-12, Last Names H-N
Noel Santini- Grades 10-12, Last Names O-Z

Students in grades 9-12 are encouraged to visit the Counseling Canvas pages to explore a variety of opportunities and communications from the BHS School Counseling office.  All information students receive through homeroom lessons or additional resources can be found here.  

All parents/guardians were sent invitations to the grade level counseling canvas page at the start of the school year.  If parents/guardians do not have access to the canvas page to view updated scholarships and information, please reach out to your child's counselor for an updated invitation.  

Graduation Requirements

School counselors work closely with students and their families each school year to ensure students meet the requirements set forth by the district and state in order to graduate on time. If you have specific questions about graduation requirements, please contact your school counselor. 

Local Job Postings

Below are any local job postings that are shared with the counseling office.  If you have any questions or would like to discuss these further, please contact your school counselor.  

Summer Grass Cutting for Baldwin Township

$15/hour

contact:

Nina Belcastro, Township Manager

412-341-9597 

Looking for a job? Sodexo is hiring Food Service Workers at ProMedica Whitehall near Caste Village Shopping Center.

Starting at $12 an hour, $600 sign on bonus. 

Shifts available:

4pm-7:45pm all evenings

6am-2:30pm and 11:15am-7:45pm also available on weekends

Contact: Britany.Mellott@sodexo.com or call 412-884-3500 ext 212

Please Note: Covid vaccine and flu shot are mandatory 

Baldwin High School Counseling Newsletters

2022-2023

College and Career Fall 2023:

     College and Career Events for Families

Financial Aid Newsletter: 

     Financial Aid Events for Families

September 2022:             

     South Hills College Fair

     PSAT Edition

     College Rep Visits

August 2022:                     

     Welcome Back Edition

Safe2Say Something is a youth violence prevention program run by the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General. The program teaches youth and adults how to recognize warning signs and signals, especially within social media, from individuals who may be a threat to themselves or others and to “say something” BEFORE it is too late. With Safe2Say Something, it’s easy and confidential to report safety concerns to help prevent violence and tragedies.

Here’s how it works:

• Submit an anonymous tip report through the Safe2SaySomething system
• Crisis center reviews, assesses and processes all submissions
• Crisis center sends all submissions to school administration and/or law enforcement  for intervention
• If needed, crisis center may contact tipster anonymously through the app

BHS 2025-2026 Scheduling 

Course Selection Guide:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/12X0C65af8tWBOHX_0qDZiHHYOlyMmiIVTmo6K7BSWQw/edit?usp=sharing

Program of Studies:

2025-2026 BHS Program of Studies

Scholarships

Virtual Financial Aid Night Presentation

Thank you to everyone who attended the 2025-26 Financial Aid 101 presentation! A recorded webinar can be viewed here: https://youtu.be/iAgGUceh5GE. 

Students in grades 9-12 are encouraged to visit the Counseling Canvas pages to explore a variety of scholarship and enrichment opportunities. New scholarships are posted to the 12th grade Counseling Canvas site almost weekly! Once on the 12th Grade Canvas site, seniors should go to Modules-Scholarships and Financial Aid to search opportunities. Ninth, tenth, and eleventh graders should also check the Counseling Canvas sites under the Enrichment Modules. 

All parents/guardians were sent invitations to the grade level counseling canvas page at the start of the school year.  If parents/guardians do not have access to the canvas page to view updated scholarships and information, please reach out to your child's counselor for an updated invitation.  

We also encourage students to research institutional scholarships (those offered by the college or university to which they are applying) in addition to the independent scholarships.  Information regarding institutional scholarships can most often be found on the institution's financial aid website.  Deadlines for institutional scholarships vary and may or may not coincide with admissions deadlines.  It is very important to check and organize all deadlines at an institution including admission, financial aid, and scholarships. 

College Greenlight connects first generation and underrepresented students to both college and scholarship information.  Students must create a free profile account to explore scholarships.  

In addition, several databases exist to help students search for scholarships. Many students also find these reputable sites helpful in their search:  

• The SmartStudent Guide to Financial Aid
• Petersons College Scholarship Search 
• Fastweb
• College Board Scholarship Search 
• Sallie Mae Scholarship Search 
• Hispanic Scholarship Fund
• UNCF Scholarships
• UniversityH

Scholarship Scams - Warning Signs

If you find in your search that a scholarship includes any of the following, it is wise to be wary of a potential scam: 

• Scholarship has "fees"
• Scholarship is "guaranteed"
• Scholarship is exclusive - "you can't get this information anywhere else"
• Scholarship is unsolicited - "you're a finalist"
• Application requires credit card or bank account information 

Click here for additional information and guidance from the Federal Trade Commission.

Financial Aid

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) opened on October 1st. Seniors are encouraged to complete the FAFSA with their parents/guardians. Colleges, universities, trade schools, and other post-secondary institutions use information provided on the FAFSA to build financial aid packages for students who may attend their schools. The FAFSA closes on June 30th, but families are encouraged to complete the FAFSA sooner rather than later. 

Financial Aid/ FAFSA Materials:
FAFSA Tip Sheet (Links to an external site.)
Scholarship Tip Sheet (Links to an external site.)
Planning for Higher Education Timeline (Links to an external site.)
Student Aid Guide (Links to an external site.)

Things to remember:

• FAFSA is always FREE to apply.  If you are on a website asking you to pay, you are in the wrong place.
• FAFSA covers loans, grants, and some scholarships for the state of PA and federal funding.

Checklist to complete the FAFSA:

• FSA ID to log in (complete this first at fsaid.ed.gov)
• Social Security Numbers (parents and student)/Alien Registration Number
• Driver's License Number (if you have one)
• Federal Income Tax Return, W-2's and other records of money earned for 2018
• Bank Statements and records of investments
• Information on untaxed income (child support)
• List of schools the student is considering

ATTENTION SENIORS!!

Your senior year is an exciting time! School counselors are ready to work with seniors to help them to have a successful senior year and to reach their post-secondary goals. Please see below for a list of action items seniors should consider. 

• In September, all seniors received the BHS School Counseling Senior Meeting presentation.

• In September/early October, all senior students meet individually with their school counselor. In this meeting, school counselors will cover the following information:
  • Graduation requirements
  • Overview of transcript and grades
  • Post-secondary planning
  • Process of requesting a transcript, applying to college, trade school, employment, military, etc. 
  • Next steps for a successful senior year
• If needed, request recommendation letters from teachers, coaches, employers, etc. Use this document as a guide on how to request a letter of recommendation. For the Counselor Letter of Recommendation form, click here. 
• Do your research! Many post-secondary institutions are holding virtual tours and meetings. Use Xello (formerly Career Cruising) for college and career preparation. Take advantage of what is available online. Be on the lookout for college reps and guest speakers in the BHS library.
• Register for college entrance exams. While many post-secondary institutions are now test-optional, we encourage our students to take the SAT and/or ACT exams to strengthen their applications and to ensure they meet the requirements of scholarships. Please visit the College Board and/or ACT websites to register for an upcoming exam.
• Visit the Senior School Counseling Canvas page to find resources and information on scholarships. 
• Contact your School Counselor with any questions! We are here to help!

Common App and Xello

Seniors using Common App should link their Common App and Xello accounts. Linking your accounts will allow counselors to send your transcripts electronically. It will also allow students to invite teachers to submit recommendations electronically. Please follow the instructions below if you have not yet linked your accounts. 

How students integrate their Common App account with Xello:

1. From their Student Dashboard, under Goals & Plans, students click College Planning.
2. They click View My Applications to see their full list of colleges they’re tracking.
3. At the top of the page, in the banner with the Common App logo, the student clicks Connect.
   • A pop-up will inform them they may need to redo tasks they’ve previously completed. This could include requesting a transcript or a recommendation letter.
   • The Common App login page opens.
4. The student signs in to Common App (or creates a new account if they haven’t yet).
   • Once they’ve successfully logged into Common App, they’re redirected back to the page they left in Xello.
   • The banner at the top of the page now states the accounts are connected.

Senior Mid-Year Grade Reports

Colleges, universities, and trade schools that you applied to in the fall may now request your mid-year or semester grades. If a college, university, or trade school has requested your mid-year/semester grades, please visit the 12th Grade Counseling Canvas page and complete the Mid-Year Grade Report Request form. 

The School Counseling Office will begin sending mid-year grade reports in February and will only send mid-year reports if this form is completed. You may list up to 10 schools per form (complete an additional form if you have more than 10 schools requesting a mid-year report).  Not all schools require a mid-year transcript; use this form only if a mid-year transcript is required or requested.

Please note: If you completed your college/university application(s) using the Common App, your mid-year report will be sent through Common App/Xello and will be received by all colleges/universities which you applied to via Common App.  No test scores will be included on mid-year transcripts.

Parchment- Transcript Request Process

Baldwin is moving away from paper transcript requests and now partners with Parchment as the new online transcript request portal. Parchment streamlines the transcript request process that allows students, counselors, and outside institutions to send and receive documents digitally, allowing all parties to see when documents are sent and received during every step of the process.  Seniors met with their counselors during the first week of school to review the college process and introduce Parchment.  Information on the college process and Parchment account instructions can be found below.  If you are having an issue with your Parchment account, please see the Parchment Learning Center for help here.  

Please be aware that official transcripts will not be sent prior to Monday, September 11, 2023 to allow time for the add/drop period to end to ensure classes are accurately depicted on the transcript.  Students are welcome to submit transcript requests in Parchment before this date and the requests will be processed after the 11th.  Students can access their unofficial transcripts anytime through their Parchment account.  Prior to the official transcript being processed, many postsecondary schools will accept this unofficial transcript for application purposes if needed.  

Steps for 9-11th graders to set up their Parchment account:

Information shared with Seniors for the 2022-2023 School Year:

Current Students (Grades 9-12): To request a transcript, students need to request their transcript through Parchment. 

• Transcript requests must be submitted at least two weeks prior to the first college admission deadline (see chart below for reference).

• Transcript requests for January 1 admission deadlines must be submitted two weeks prior to Winter Break.

• SENIORS: If your college requires mid-year (semester) grades, please complete the Mid-Year Transcript Request through Parchment.  Mid-Year grades will not be sent if this is not completed.

• SENIORS: Your final transcript must be sent to the college or post-secondary institution that you are attending. This request will be made through Parchment.  Final transcripts will be sent by July 1, 2023. 

BHS Alumni: Please visit the alumni page under the School Counseling website to find the Alumni Transcript Request Form.

Transcript Request Deadlines

Please allow at least two (2) weeks before the first college application deadline for processing your transcript request. Below are application deadlines and the corresponding BHS Counseling Office deadline for transcript request forms. For Rolling Admissions, please allow the Counseling Office two weeks to process requests. 

After Transcripts are Sent:

Seniors: Please note that it oftentimes takes colleges and other post-secondary institutions four to six weeks to process transcripts, especially if transcripts are sent via USPS mail. Admissions offices receive thousands of pieces of mail. It takes time for the staff to sort through it all and then pair the transcripts with applications and update your status online. Seniors will often receive automatically generated emails and letters from admissions offices stating that the student's transcript has not yet arrived. If you receive a notification like this, please reach out to your counselor to ensure your transcript was sent. If the transcript was sent, but the college never received it (and the normal processing time has passed [four to six weeks]), let your counselor know and he/she will reach out to the college to get more information. 

• Carley Kaercher- All 9th Grade Students
• Morgan Tremblay- Grades 10-12, Last Names A-G
• Sima Misquitta- Grades 10-12, Last Names H-N
• Noel Santini- Grades 10-12, Last Names O-Z

Looking to Obtain a Work Permit?

The Baldwin High School Main Office will processes work permits for our students. If you are interested in acquiring a work permit, please visit the office with a parent/guardian and your birth certificate or passport.  No appointment is required.   

Xello

Xello is an internet-based resource which allows students to explore career choices, learn detailed information about post-secondary schools, and research specific schools that have characteristics that appeal to individual students.  Students are required to complete four Xello lessons each year through their homeroom class periods.  Each grade level engages in different topics based on where they are in preparation for their post-secondary career.  

Students access Xello through the School Counseling Canvas pages, which allows for single sign-in use.  All students, parents, and guardians were sent invitations to the grade level counseling canvas page at the start of the school year.  If students, parents, and guardians do not have access to the school counseling canvas page, please reach out to your child's counselor for an updated invitation.  

Click here to access Xello through Canvas!

2025-2026 School Year

South Hills College and Career Fair

Need Help?

Submit a Help Desk Ticket

Canvas

Canvas is an easy-to-use, cloud-based platform that hosts all necessary digital learning resources and tools in one place, and it supports real-time instruction through Google Meet and other video conference programs. Canvas provides a reliable integrated system for teachers to connect with students, deliver instruction, assign independent learning activities, conduct assessments, and easily communicate with students and families. For consistency across all grades and learning methods, Canvas will be used in both the Hybrid and Remote Learning Models. 

For more information, including information on parent app access, please click here. 

Chromebooks

After a successful first year of implementation during the 2017-2018 school year, we expanded our program during the 2018-2019 school year to reach every student in grades 6-12 by providing each student with his or her own Chromebook. Starting with the 2020-2021 school year, all students in grades K-12 will have a Chromebook.

Chromebook Handbook Form for All Students in Grades K-12

Families are asked to sign off on the Chromebook handbook form on an annual basis. This form can be found in Skyward’s Family Access portal. For more information about the 1:1 program, please click here.

Optional Protection Plan for Chromebooks for All Students in Grades K-12

This year the District is only accepting electronic payments for the protection plan. This is the same system that is used for meal payments with the food services department. Click here for Directions for new e~funds users. Credit card and check payments are accepted via e-funds.