Throughout the academic year, Melinda Giampietro, Options Founder/President, will share some of her favourite things in her monthly Founder’s Feature. Melinda loves reading, data, research, and following academic and adolescent news around the world.
April’s Featured Recipe
I’ve been trying to transition from the fall/winter flavours of maple, pumpkin, and apple and on to brighter, fresher spring flavours. This recipe from food.com is one of my favourites. Best Lemon Blueberry Bundt Cake is the perfect introduction to spring baking. It’s super easy and best the second day for breakfast with a cup of hot coffee.
April’s Featured Book: Defending Jacob
I love going to the library and finding books that I missed when they were in the height of their popularity. As a lifelong fan of John Grisham’s books, I love a good courtroom drama. I really enjoyed the twist and turns of William Landay’s Defending Jacob (2012). As a former district attorney, Landay brings a genuine voice to Andy Barber, the main character defending his son in a murder trial. It is nuanced with an exploration of family loyalty, family trauma, marriage, secrets, genetics, parental love, and the justice system. It’s the very best kind of library book.
April’s Cool Tool
We are always looking for innovative ways to help our students understand what it means to study within different faculties and majors. One of my parents (thanks, SS!) shared this video with me. It is Open Culture’s The Map of Engineering: A New Animation Shows How All of the Different Fields of Engineering Fit Together. It is excellent for understanding engineering and also really good at connecting its many disciplines. Be sure to check out their other animations that cover Physics, Computer Science, and Math.
April’s Featured Articles
Article Number One
I really enjoy reading university newspapers online. They are great sources to find out what the hot topics are on campus. The Ubyssey at UBC is one of the nation’s best university newspapers (in my opinion). Their recent article “We broke down UBC’S 2022/23 enrolment stats, admission rates and more” was an insightful read.
Here is the most important information: According to the report, over 89,000 “personal profile reviews” were scored for applicants to UBC for the 2022/23 admissions cycle. The mean grade range of all courses completed in grade 12 for successful undergraduate applicants was 89–91 per cent at UBC Vancouver and 85–87 per cent at UBC Okanagan. Personal profiles are read and scored by at least two trained readers, which consist of UBC staff, faculty and alumni, according to the report. Fourteen per cent of admitted students would not have been admitted with a grades-only admission model. This year’s undergraduate admissions rate was 49 per cent for UBC Vancouver and 73 per cent for UBC Okanagan.
Article Number Two
If you are a regular Founder’s Feature reader, you know I almost always include an article about writing, English, or teaching. I started my career as a high school English teacher, and there are days that I miss being in the classroom. Exploring literature is an incredible way to help students think about themselves and the world around them. I found “How to Get Kids to Hate English,” Pamela Paul’s op-ed, really thought provoking. I loved this quote, “By asking so little of students, schools today show how little they expect of them. In underestimating kids, the curriculum undermines them.” If we don’t expose students to the stories of others, they miss opportunities to expand beyond themselves and grow.
April’s Favourite Podcast
How many of you were cheering on University of Iowa’s Caitlin Clark? I know I was! I have really been enjoying Brad Wolverton’s Sports Scholarship Stories. There is so much going on in the world of college sports right now from fifth year Covid eligibility to no longer requiring the SAT/ACT for NCAA Division I or II sports. Some of my favourite episodes have been February 24th’s Kate Kantor on the Explosion of College Sports Camps and Their Growing Influence in Recruiting, January 10th’s Jeff Selingo on Why Athletes Have a Leg Up in Admissions, and November 17, 2022’s Elwyn McRoy on What Coaches Look for in Recruits.
April’s Featured Event
At Options Solutions, we are so excited for the return of NACAC’s International Universities Fair in Vancouver. We will see you at the Convention Center April 29th from 1-4 PM. There will Canadian, US, UK, and international institutions in attendance. Here is the list of institutions in attendance: Participating Institutions.
April’s Favourite Instagram
Do you follow @optionssolutions on Instagram? We have two new series that I am so excited about. One is Options on Tour. Follow along as we visit different campuses around the globe. See my first feature of my spring break visit to St. FX. Coming soon will be my recent trips to London, UK and to the Berkshires (NY/MA) to visit Williams and Bennington and then on to Salve Regina and Wesleyan. We also have a second new series Options Alumni. We will feature one Options alumni a month. It is so exciting to see where our students end up. This is a new feature to celebrate that the 2023-24 school year will be our twentieth year!! You can also find these on our blog.
To read more Founder’s Features, check them out under the Options News category.
