My favorite websites

One of the sites that I check regularly for up to date information on college admissions trends is "The Choice" on the New York Times website. It has great information for parents and students.

Today's site has the following piece on Marilee Jones, formerly of MIT. I have always admired Ms. Jones' take on the admissions hysteria. Check it out:
http://thechoice.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/12/07/a-second-act-for-a-former-admissions-dean/

U.S.

The Choice: A Second Act for a Former Admissions Dean

By By JACK KADDEN

Published: December 7, 2009

A former admissions dean at M.I.T. who resigned in disgrace is back at work advising college applicants and their parents.

My favorite quote? “In their worrying about college, a lot of parents lose touch with who their kids are,’’ she said. “I want them to fall in love with the child again.’’

That really says it all.

Support Group for Parents of Seniors meeting

This is the announcement for the support group meeting on December
13th. Please email me if you are planning to attend.

This month we will be focusing on three topics (finishing up the
applications, preparing for Financial aid applications, and
emotions... ours and our teens) and whatever else people want to
discuss. Getting additional applications done after the early decision
round can be painful. We will also discuss individual concerns. The
support group costs $5 per person, and you do not have to pay or
register in advance.

PLEASE GET THE WORD OUT... TELL YOUR FRIENDS ABOUT US... This group
was very helpful to the participants last year.

Welcome to my blog!

I have started this blog with the idea of having a place to write my thoughts on college consulting, parenting and graphic design. I also wanted to link articles that I find interesting that may also interest my clients and friends.

Initially, I just want to introduce myself, and Off the Wall. My name is Wendie Lubic Binstock, and Off the Wall is my umbrella company. It is named for most of my initials (Wendie Alison Lubic Lamb) and covers my personal and professional interests.

For the past 15 years, I have been a parent educator at the Parent Encouragement Program (PEP, www.pepparent.org), teaching and/or writing curricula for Babies and Preschoolers, PEP I, PEP II, Thriving with Teens, Anger Management, Resilience Training, and other topics. For the past 18 months, I have also been meeting one on one with clients as a Parent Coach, which I really enjoy.

My other life is as a graphic designer, and I have had my own studio for more than 10 years. A thumbnail portfolio of my work is available at www.otwdc.com/portfolio.html. Yes, I know they are small. They are not products for sale... they are just a small visual of some of the work I have done for my clients. I love working with graphics, but sadly the industry seems to be contracting, especially the print end, and I feel that the time may be right for me to evolve and diversify, while still working with my long time clients who have become close friends.

So I am branching out. As a way to combine a variety of interests, I am working on a certificate in Independent Educational Consulting. I have always loved academia, and I loved working as an Adjunct Professor of Design at American University. I also really enjoyed helping Max, Rachel and Sasha chart their courses into the world of college and beyond. And I'm revving up to start working with Jamie. But I know that I have a lot to offer to parents who are stressed out by the process, and to teens who need extra encouragement, organizational help and a source of good information.

I am in the process of writing a book for parents called "Preparing to Launch" on the college application process, which superagent Janet Rosen is selling to publishers as we speak. The goal is to help parents stay calm, and enjoy their teens, while also helping them stay on top of the details of the application process. It will mostly be informative, but I hope to inject it with some personality, so that it will be light-hearted, too. I hated some of those heavy-handed books that made it sound like the only way to get a good college education was to pad your resume and spend bundles of money on consultants and test prep.

And I know it seems hypocritical that I am now going into college consulting, but I also know that some parents don't have the time, patience and knowledge to help their teens. And some teens don't want to hear it from their parents! I know that we would have done a lot of things differently with Max, had we had some good solid advice. In particular, we would have forced him to visit a wide variety of schools, and encouraged him to apply to a wider variety as well.

So there you go. My first entry. Hopefully the upcoming ones will be more interesting!