Weekly Update: June 20

☀️ Summer is (unofficially) here, and you know what that means: pool days, sunburns, melty ice cream... and college essays.

Yes, while your rising juniors and seniors are probably thinking about popsicles and playlists, we’re over here thinking about personal statements, recommendation letters, and how your student will make their case when answering 'Why This School?”

Between scoops of your favorite frozen treat, keep an eye out for upcoming blog posts on colleges with surprising quirks and hidden strengths – perfect for adding punch to those “Why Us?” supplements.

In the meantime, here’s what’s happening this week in the world of college admissions:

BIGGEST COLLEGE-RELATED NEWS OF THE WEEK

GOP 2025 Tax Bill Could Expand Qualified 529 Expenses

You may already know that 529 plans are a great tax-advantaged way to save for college—but new legislation could make them even more flexible, according to the WSJ. Proposed changes would expand what qualifies as a legitimate educational expense, including:

• K–12 tuition beyond the current $10,000 cap

• Test prep and tutoring -> yes, that would include your DCCC fees! 🎉

• Books and online learning tools

• Homeschooling costs

• Trade and credentialing programs

Translation: families could soon use 529 money for a broader range of educational paths, not just four-year degrees. We’ll be watching this closely – if passed, it could be a game-changer for college-bound students with hefty supplementary educational expenses. Check out the article linked above for a closer look at some of the finer details – but keep in mind that even if it passes, states can still enforce these changes differently.

Baby Bonds in the GOP 2025 Tax Bill

Another feature of the proposed GOP tax bill is the creation of “baby bonds” – what some are calling “Trump accounts.” Under the plan, every U.S. citizen born between January 1, 2025, and December 31, 2028, whose parents have Social Security numbers, would receive $1,000 in seed money from the federal government. Families would open an account at a qualifying institution, and the funds could be used starting at age 18 for college, vocational training, a first home, or to start a small business. If unused, the money becomes fully accessible at age 31.

Families could also contribute up to $5,000 per year, so families who can contribute extra will see even greater returns over time. While some see this as a step toward addressing wealth inequality, the proposal has drawn bipartisan interest. It’s worth keeping an eye on – especially if your family is growing and you’re thinking about future college costs.

A Supreme Court Win for Disabled Students

On June 12, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled in favor of a young girl with epilepsy whose school had refused to adjust her schedule – even though her seizures made morning instruction unsafe. Previously, families had to prove that schools acted with “bad faith or gross misjudgment” to win a disability discrimination case – an unreasonably high bar. The Court struck that down, aligning the standard to that in workplaces and other areas of public life: if reasonable accommodations aren’t being provided, that’s enough.

This ruling is a big deal for families of students with IEPs and 504 plans. It strengthens legal protections and puts schools on clearer notice: they must take accommodations seriously, not just check boxes or hide behind vague justifications. For many special needs students, this could mean more responsive support, greater access to meaningful learning, and fewer barriers to getting what they actually need to thrive.

Fulbright Scholarship Board Resigns Citing Trump Interference

11 of the 12 members of the Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board resigned in protest after the Trump administration blocked a significant number of already-selected U.S. Fulbright recipients and called for a surprise review of 1,200 incoming international scholars. The Fulbright Program, established in the 1960s, funds U.S. students to pursue graduate study, research, and teaching in more than 140 countries. It’s one of the most prestigious global fellowship opportunities, designed to promote cross-cultural exchange and academic collaboration.

The resignations reflect growing concerns about politicization in higher education. For students hoping to study abroad through Fulbright or similar programs, this introduces a level of uncertainty – and serves as a reminder to build a strong Plan B. As with college admissions, international opportunities may increasingly require flexibility and backup options.

BEST ARTICLES OF THE WEEK

Last week, we shared some thoughts on the public vs. private school debate, leaning slightly toward public options—especially if that means a chance to save more for college. But Town & Country recently took a closer look at some of the country’s most progressive private schools, many of which are now facing enrollment challenges. And while their offerings may sound unconventional (broom-making, anyone?), these schools aim to give kids a holistic education—one that teaches them to think for themselves and solve real-world problems without relying on a pre-written strategy guide from a teacher.

Of course, in today’s era of standardized testing, some parents worry that their kids will be learning how to milk cows instead of how to ace the SAT. But, as the article points out, the kind of life experience and self-direction that progressive schools cultivate often lead to the most compelling—and memorable—college essays. And we agree! One quote stood out:

““The average competitive schools spend about 90 seconds reading a college application,” says Danny O’Brien, Putney’s head of school. “What a Putney application does is it gets that kid an extra minute. Because they’re interesting, they’ve done something, and they have a lot better sense of who they are and what they want to be than the average incoming freshman, who has just put their head down and tried to beat the system for four years or more.””

— Town & Country

So if you're still weighing private K–12 options, it's worth remembering: colleges do notice students with more than just test scores. Liberal arts colleges especially value the whole student – not just the transcript.

At the same time, some families are rethinking whether college itself is worth it. With millennial parents still carrying hefty student debt, it’s no surprise that many are encouraging their kids to explore paths outside of academia. According to Fortune, a recent study found that 70% of high school students say their parents support alternatives like apprenticeships or trade schools. Many Gen Z grads are struggling to find jobs even after earning a degree, and “new-collar” jobs – especially in tech – often don’t require one in the first place. For kids raised hearing about student loan horror stories, the appeal of diving straight into a career is growing. And if the GOP tax bill mentioned above passes, 529 plans may soon cover vocational programs as well.

We still believe that a college education at the right school can be a strong investment. But it’s worth asking: does your child’s dream job actually require a college or graduate degree – or could they get there through a different path?

If the answer is yes, here's a surprising financial aid twist to keep in mind. Shortly after the May 1 enrollment deadline, a student who had already committed to Penn State received a sudden $20,000 merit offer from Syracuse – despite getting no offer from them earlier in the cycle. That number kept growing in the weeks that followed. And she wasn’t alone! Multiple students received sizable merit awards post-deadline, though few enrolled as a result – partly because it was too late logistically, and partly because the effort seemed, frankly, a little desperate. Syracuse later admitted that the offers were an attempt to reverse declining enrollment.

What can families take from this? While we wouldn’t count on a last-minute offer, it’s a good reminder: don’t feel pressured to rush your deposit until you’re sure a better offer isn’t coming. And if you’re still deciding, don’t be afraid to ask schools if there’s room to negotiate.

And speaking of arrivals – summer also brings home the college kids. Before yours comes back and turns the kitchen into a snack graveyard, take a minute to set some ground rules. After months of late nights, messy roommates, and minimal adult supervision, your well-behaved teen may return with a few... new habits. Try to compromise, keep your expectations clear, and – if all else fails – remember what it felt like to be 20 and invincible.

OFFICE HAPPENINGS

Now that high school is officially out for summer, things are picking up at DCCC! Many of our rising seniors are putting the final touches on their Common App essays, and our coaches are gearing up to dive into school-specific supplements next.

If you’ve got a vacation coming up, we recommend scheduling a meeting or two before your rising senior disappears into full summer mode. The more consistent the writing process, the easier it is to stay focused and build momentum.

Have a great week – and as always, we’re here when you need us!

To Learn More about what’s going on in the world of higher ed lately, Check Out Our Other Recent Posts!

Scandal Aftermath: Students with Disabilities

I have a regular twice-weekly conference call with a long-time client, and we were on the phone Tuesday morning when the news hit. We were speaking on my landline, so I was able to notice when my phone started lighting up over and over again with each email I received about the situation. We sort of digested the news together before getting back to to our issues at hand. “Back to doing it the old-fashioned way!” she joked.

As the day progressed, and particularly when I came back home that night and read the entire 204-page criminal complaint, I became more disgusted by the minute. I still can’t wrap my head around how these people thought they would possibly get away with this kind of behavior. However, the entire situation has raised a number of issues in my mind that I’d like to address in the coming days. We’ll loop back to reader questions soon!

I’d like to start with the the impact of this situation on students with disabilities. I am often approached by media outlets to serve as an expert resource on matters relating to the admissions process; today, I discuss this very issue in U.S. News. I served as an SSD Coordinator for a number of years at an independent school as one of my duties as their Director of College Counseling, so I am pretty well-versed in this process. I also help a number of my own clients go through the extended time process each year, and I have a child at a Fairfax County Public School with a 504 Plan. So, I have done this as a school administrator, an outside consultant, and a parent.

I would assume that anyone reading this post is aware of the ways in which Rick Singer manipulated the SSD process, but I’ll recap just in case: he worked with families to fake disabilities during psycho-educational evaluations order to get incorrect diagnoses, then pushed the kids through the system (including repeated appeals in some cases) until they were granted extended time through their schools and testing agencies. At that point, he was able to use the relaxed regulations for students with legitimate disabilities (individual proctors, private testing environments, and so forth) to cheat the system through fraud.

This is going to make the system so. much. harder. for all the kids out there with legitimate disabilities. It honestly makes me sick to my stomach to think about. School systems in our area, as well as the College Board and ACT, are already concerned about parents “working the system” and they already make it needlessly difficult in many cases. So this will, in effect, take a broken situation and make it worse. This is going to be crushing for the students who need these accommodations and are entitled to them under federal law.

In recent years, the College Board has relaxed their standards a little bit by agreeing to give students the same level of accommodations that their school system provides them in a school-based setting. This is where kids at independent schools have an advantage, because those schools will generally give them what they need without a fight. On the other hand, I have found Fairfax County to become more and more difficult in recent years. The longer parents wait, the harder the accommodations are to get, especially for a bright child without behavioral issues. This is why I made sure that my daughter had them on record now, even though she doesn’t actually need them at the moment (she has a diagnosis to support them so this is completely on the up-and-up). I don’t want to find us in a position later where she needs them and can’t get them because she has good grades without a history of accommodations… and I see this happen ALL THE TIME!

Fortunately, from my experience as a parent, the process was very easy. Her school counselor was amazing and really advocated for her. The reason for this, I would imagine, is that most parents of first-graders aren’t out there falsifying diagnoses (give it another ten years!). However, this is not the case on the high school side. Counselors in our area see overzealous parents pushing for unnecessary accommodations, and now the kids who actually need them can’t get them as a result.

I can think of two clients in particular this year who tried to get accommodations and were turned down, and I genuinely believe that the decisions were wrong. It makes me so sad to watch them struggle when I don’t think that they have an equal playing field. I also have two separate seniors right now who had to appeal the process repeatedly - over and over again - until they were finally approved. It cost their families so much money and time. Talk about inequity - how many families have the resources to keep filing these appeals? Most Americans would not have been able to pursue it. Both of these students’ ACT scores skyrocketed once they finally got the time that they deserved, which has now had a major impact on their college choices and merit scholarship offers.

It’s not a coincidence that each of my examples above relate to female students. This didn’t make it into the story, but I actually told this reporter that I actually think that high-achieving girls are going to be the hardest hit if we see even more crack-downs because of this scandal. I referenced this recent article from the New York Times (a must read for any parent with a daughter) - as the author states, girls are “relentless” and “hyper-conscientious". Not all of them, of course, but by and large, most girls learn to over-compensate for any difficulties that they face in the classroom. The end result leads to sleepless nights, anxiety, and a feeling of never being good enough.

At the same time, they manage to squeak by with decent grades as a result of so much hard work. Their parents usually don’t realize that there is a problem until they are in tenth or eleventh grade when they simply cannot keep up anymore, or when their standardized test scores show major discrepancies when compared to their high levels of academic achievement. It’s usually too late, though, because they have already established a pattern of long-term academic success and it’s next to impossible to get the accommodations after that. Now you see why I made sure my daughter had her accommodations in place as a first-grader! I am not going to find myself in this situation if I can help it, after watching so many girls suffer needlessly.

Why so much focus on girls? Well, boys tend to react differently in a situation without needed accommodations. They are much less likely to over-compensate from an academic perspective and tend to act out behaviorally. So, teachers and parents notice at an early age and it’s just a lot less common for them to make it to tenth or eleventh grade without the help they need. It happens, just not all that often.

All in all, I sincerely hope that College Board, ACT and the school systems will take time to consider what has happened here in the context of the bigger picture before rushing to judgment. There are so many capable students who need these accommodations and rely on them for the equal opportunities they deserve.

If you would like to learn more about standardized testing, extended time, or any of these issues as they relate to your own child’s individual situation, feel free to come in for a one-time strategy session.