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I found College
Countdown to be an effective resource in the three roles I play in my
life: parent, teacher and counselor. The advice given is realistic,
specific, complete and honest, and students who read it will find
themselves much better prepared for their lives on campus. I recommend
this book highly for anyone serious about wanting to prepare for college
while they are still in high school.
James R. Deslisle, Ph.D
Kent State University
College Countdown will be an
outstanding resource to students and their parents, detailing valuable
information to assist them in preparing and planning for college.
John R. Oldani, Ed.D.
Superintendent of Schools
Rockwood School District
St. Louis County, MO
College Countdown
-- this is great work. It will help thousands of parents and teachers
through this important process.
Dennis L. Peterson, Ph.D.
Superintendent
Princeton City School District
Cincinnati, OH
College Countdown will
help many parents and students take that important step toward college in
a more confident fashion.
David Welch
Director
Gifted Education Programs
Missouri Department of Elementary and
Secondary Education
Taming the Paper Monster: The
College Game
(And It Starts in 8th Grade!)
[Taming
the Paper Monster was the predecessor of
College Countdown.]
Having worked with high school students for over twenty years in the
field of motivation and goal setting, I can overwhelmingly recommend Taming
the Paper Monster for students and their parents. Many students are
great dreamers, but not all of them have the tools to work toward their
goals. This guide gives them a start to finish the road map in charting
their own path. Bravo!
Mark Sharenbroich
Author, Emmy-winner,
Award-winning Filmmaker
Motivational Speaker throughout
North America
Traditionally the most daunting and frustrating activity a student and
family sets out to accomplish is the college search. Anything that can
minimize this anxious time is appreciated. Having a carefully planned
guide is a tremendous asset. VonGruben’s Taming the Paper Monster
accomplishes this on many levels. It’s a must for parents!
Robert E. Nagle
Chairperson, Pupil Personnel Services
Floral Park Memorial High School,
Sewanhaka Central High School District
Floral Park, Long Island, New York
Taming the Paper Monster should be on the night table of every
parent who is helping their adolescent get through the college admissions
process. It is one of the most user friendly resource guides for families
I have ever seen in 25 years as a counselor/guidance supervisor. Jill
VonGruben has chosen a format that is concise, easy to access, yet the
book is comprehensive in scope.
Taming the Paper Monster walks us through the eighth grade to post
high school with checklists, sample resumes, and therapeutic tips on
dealing with the emotional roller coaster from late in the junior year
through May of the senior year.
Clearly, this is a new approach to helping parents and students deal
with the anxiety of college admission issues. It is a most refreshing
effort.
Ron Giancola
Chairman of the Guidance Department for Mineola High School,
Garden City, Long Island, New York
During my thirty-five years in education, the past twenty-one as a high
school principal, I have reviewed materials designed to help parents cope
with the college application process. I believe that VonGruben’s Taming
the Paper Monster will take the stress out of that process. The format
is interesting, easy to follow and very user friendly. The book belongs in
every school library and guidance office reference section.
Leon Beckerman, Ph.D.
Educational Consultant
Eastport, Long Island, New York
Taming the Paper Monster is
beautifully told and organized for teens and parents to keep a record of
all the "stuff" that goes into this intense process. VonGruben
has made the process as painless as possible. This practical,
down-to-earth guide helps families successfully work their way through the
confusing process of college selection and admission beginning in the 8th
grade and continuing through the first year of college.
Taming is so practical that I have recommended the book to parents
in the parent education classes I conduct and to teachers in the staff
development classes I teach.
Dr. Sally Walker
Executive Director of the Illinois Association of Gifted Children
Author of Survival Guide for Parents of Gifted Kids
Co-author of Making Memories: A Parent Portfolio
Co-author of Teaching Young Gifted Children in the Regular
Classroom
VonGruben’s Taming the Paper Monster helps students and
parents prepare for college, meet deadlines and avoid the pitfalls and
problems along the way and complete a successful first year of study.
"Timeline Critical for College Prep,"
by Lindsay Gladstone
The Star,
The Sun-Times Co., Chicago
VonGruben’s Taming the Paper
Monster’s popularity is based on factual information presented from
a parent’s perspective. As such, it holds a special appeal for parents
facing the college admission challenge.
Dr. Dan Edwards
Principal, Lafayette High School
Rockwood School District,
St. Louis County, Missouri
Renaissance Educational Foundation Advisory Board Member
Jostens-Renaissance National Trustee Board Member
Chairperson of the Heartland Renaissance Association
Within a few days of receiving a copy of Taming the Paper Monster,
we were conducting a series of meetings for school counselors. We put the
copy on a table of items to share. We were asked by many of those in
attendance how they could obtain a copy of this publication. We know many
of those who attended were going to purchase copies of their own.
Many parents could find this information useful as they plan to send
their son/daughter to post secondary education.
Willard Worts
Supervisor, Guidance Services
Department of Elementary & Secondary Education
State of Missouri
We have used Taming the Paper Monster as a resource with
parents, students, and teachers at the intermediate, middle school, and
high school grade levels. The book provides practical and very helpful
information for parents who want to make the right decisions and do the
correct things in order to get their child into the best college possible.
I would highly recommend it to anyone with a student or child approaching
the college years!
Kathy Peckron, Ph.D.
Director of Curriculum, Rockwood School District
St. Louis County, Missouri
The search for the right college or university, the program that best
meets the student’s needs, the application process and the search for
scholarships are just a few of the traumatic issues facing parents and
students. Schools provide assistance but much of the burden is on the
family, the parent and student.
Taming the Paper Monster is a practical guide for parents and
students to help prepare them for these challenges. It is a practical
step-by-step approach that takes the family through the planning process
for high school, the search for colleges, scholarships and through all the
other potential roadblocks that one might face leading up to this
important decision. It is certainly a book that I wish I had had in
planning for my children as they entered high school and they began their
search for colleges. Not only is it an excellent guide for parents and
students, it provides valuable information and guidance for educators as
well.
John R. Oldani, Ed.D.
Superintendent of Schools, Rockwood School District
St. Louis County, Missouri
If preparing for college is a maze of confusing forms and procedures,
Jill VonGruben’s book, Taming the Paper Monster, will help you
cut through red tape like a hot knife glides through butter. Unlike other
books of this type, Taming will benefit both adolescents and their
parents. Filled with anecdotes, forms, dates and reminders of "what’s
due when", this book offers realistic advice for playing the college
game with gusto! Buy it for your college-bound teen...and for yourself!
James R. Delisle, Ph.D.
Professor and Teacher, Kent State University
Co-author of The Gifted Kids Survival Guide: A Teen Handbook |
