Saint Croix Central counselors outline college, testing and early‑credit steps for juniors

Travis Madigan, a high school counselor at Saint Croix Central School District, and colleagues Erin Pop and Carly Eichstead told parents at a Junior Parent Night that now is the time for families to prepare for college applications, financial aid and early‑college options.

“Questions at the end will be really important,” Madigan said, urging attendees to hold detailed queries until the Q&A so presenters could cover the program overview. Counselors reviewed common terms — trade school, associate’s and bachelor’s degrees, scholarships and FAFSA — and outlined local opportunities such as college visits, job shadows and regional career fairs.

The counselors listed upcoming events for families to consider: the Western Wisconsin Career Fair at River Falls High School on Jan. 13, a career day at Northwood Technical College on Feb. 27 and a youth career expo at Menominee High School on Apr. 23. Tracy Crowley, who teaches business, futures and personal finance, was identified as a school contact for arranging student participation.

Staff summarized recent FAFSA changes and timing, saying the revamped FAFSA opened Dec. 1 for the current cycle and that the application for the upcoming aid year will use 2023 tax information. “One of the biggest problems we saw was parents creating accounts before students,” a counselor said, advising parents to have students create their FAFSA account first so parents can be linked correctly as contributors.

Counselors emphasized three pathways for earning college credit in high school: Advanced Placement (AP), dual enrollment and Start College Now/early college credit. Madigan explained that dual‑enrollment and early‑college classes generate an official college transcript that students must request and send to later colleges. He noted the district will pay for up to 18 college credits under its early‑college arrangements but that there are “caveats” and an application process.

“If you decide to go to Madison, you are legally required to send that transcript to Madison because it’s part of your GPA,” Madigan said, cautioning that dual credits can have persistent effects on a student’s college record. He contrasted that with AP, which awards college credit based on an end‑of‑course exam, and said the district is steering more students to dual enrollment where appropriate because it can produce reliable, transferable credits without a single exam determining credit.

Testing logistics were covered: counselors said all juniors will take the ACT in March (the group confirmed March 26 as the test date) and encouraged students to use any free in‑school administrations because retakes at national testing sites require registration and fees. The counseling team also described Horizons, a district ACT prep platform administered as practice tests to help students become familiar with timing and format.

Practical deadlines and mechanics: counselors said course registration paperwork for fall college classes must be submitted to the school by March 1. After the school turns in applications for dual and early‑college enrollment, colleges typically communicate directly with students to complete registration, so counselors urged families to monitor the student’s email for follow‑up messages and to set up Parchment accounts for official transcript requests.

The district also partners with the Going Merry scholarship platform to surface local and national scholarship opportunities. Counselors recommended that students create profiles (GPA, activities, intended major) to receive targeted scholarship matches.

Madigan closed by reminding parents that junior year is a pivotal planning year: the counseling team will post resources on the district counseling website and is available for follow‑up meetings. “If we don’t have the answers right then, we’ll get them,” he said.

The presentation concluded with contact instructions (emails on the district website) and an invitation to reach out for individual questions or meetings; presenters said they will share written clarifications where they could not provide immediate answers at the event.