With the summer approaching, next year’s sophomores, juniors, and seniors should use the summer better to prepare themselves for the day they will graduate. First priority should be to take care of any failures from last school year, whether failure in English, mathematics, science, and social studies classes or failure on the Gateway math, language arts, or science exams. Opportunities are available to take care of these this summer.

Lincoln County High School again will offer summer school in English, math, science and social studies through the Credit Recovery Program. The program will run June 5 though July 14, 2006. To register, students should report to LCHS on Monday, June 5, at 7:00 a.m. The $50 will be paid that morning, paperwork will be filled out, and students will be assigned their time slots. Out-of-county students will pay $150 per credit, but out-of-state students will not be permitted to attend this year.

The Gateway exams will be given July 11, 12, and 13 at LCHS at 8:00 a.m. according to the following schedule: Tuesday, July 11, Mathematics (Algebra 1); Wednesday, July 12, Language Arts (English 10), and Thursday, July 13, Science (Biology). To take the summer Gateway exams, a student must be enrolled in a summer remediation program. The remediation will be provided through the computerized instruction program. Students planning to take the Gateway exams should be here at 7:00 a.m. on June 5 to sign up for the remediation and the exam.

Summer jobs are a great way for students to improve skills and learn financial management skills. The web site www.grovejob.com is geared toward the high school and college-age job seekers. Check out some of the part-time listings for the area for an opportunity to earn a little summer cash.

The summer is also an excellent time to visit college campuses or explore them on the Internet at www.ecampustours.com, www.newsdirectory.com/college, or www.tcids,utk.edu. A new web site is www.tennesseementor.org. It allows the student to do the following: apply to Tennessee’s colleges and universities over the Internet; plan current and future classes to meet admissions requirements; determine which campuses best meet the students’ needs and goals; explore detailed information about each campus; get answers to the most commonly asked questions; learn about financial aid options; zero in on possible career choices and majors; transfer student data from TennesseeMentor to the FAFSA on the Web; and set up a free e-mail account to communicate with colleges and universities.

The guidance department wishes students a happy and safe summer and encourages them to make wise use of their time. We also want to thank these people who make the weekly article possible: YOUR COMMUNITY SHOPPER for allowing us the space, Jack Jean for proofreading each week, and Roxanne Thomas for making corrections and emailing.