Homewood-Flossmoor High School is a large high school that serves just under 3,000 students in Flossmoor, IL, a southern suburb of Chicago. The school is the only high school within the school district. As a marker of the school’s commitment to provide comprehensive supports for their students–academically, emotionally, and in their college and career readiness (CCR)–the school employs eleven general counselors and two postsecondary counselors who focus entirely on supporting students as they plan for their next steps after graduation. 

Approximately 75% of Homewood-Flossmoor’s students pursue enrollment at a 2- or 4-year college after graduation. The remaining quarter typically enter the military, attend trade schools, or take a gap year. To support every student–regardless of their chosen pathway–the school’s two dedicated postsecondary counselors work closely with students and families to provide tailored guidance throughout the college and career planning process.

Brad Kain is one of the postsecondary counselors who brings more than two decades of professional experience supporting students. Alongside his colleague, he helps students identify the postsecondary options that align with their interests, strengths, and long-term goals. From navigating college applications to exploring career pathways and securing financial aid, the postsecondary counseling team ensures students are on a path that is right for them and ready for their next step after graduation. 

Deploying SchooLinks to Amplify Postsecondary Support

As a key tool in this thoughtful and dedicated approach to postsecondary planning, Homewood-Flossmoor implemented SchooLinks as their CCR platform three years ago. Through the implementation, Kain described that SchoolLinks has transformed counselors’ ability to track student progress and milestones, share relevant resources, and amplify the impact their support can have on students’ futures. 

Kain noted that one of the most monumental ways SchooLinks has impacted their postsecondary planning and support processes is in the breadth, depth, and quality of the data it collects–including on student progress, planning, goals, applications, credentials, and intentions for matriculation. Having this information readily accessible has dramatically enhanced the counseling team’s ability to personalize opportunities and support, enabling them to ensure each student receives guidance that aligns with their unique aspirations and next steps. 

Transforming Student Access to Scholarships & Opportunity

This personalization has been especially meaningful in counselors’ ability to connect students with significant scholarship and financial aid opportunities. With SchooLinks’s ability to track student goals, applications, acceptances, scores, grades, and other credentials, Kain emphasized that he and his colleagues are now able to match opportunities to specific students based on their unique profile. 

In a recent powerful example, Kain described that his school has had three different universities reach out in the past year looking for his team to provide recommendations for students to receive full-ride scholarships to their colleges. In the past, Kain explained that the work to respond to this opportunity would have required both postsecondary counselors spending hours going through numerous student digital records, paper files, and notes to identify which students had applied to these schools and met the qualifications. With SchooLinks’s real-time tracking and robust student profiles, the counselors were able to pull relevant students’ names within minutes, quickly assess alignment with the scholarship criteria, and share the information with the colleges. 

In another instance, the district superintendent received an inquiry from a university about an opportunity for students to earn a work-study scholarship with the women’s basketball program. School counselors were able to immediately identify students who had applied to the university, confirm those who planned to attend, and connect with them directly to share information on how to apply for the financial support. 

Kain reflected that,

“Ultimately what we’re doing is giving more opportunities to our students–putting opportunities in front of them because of the information we’re able to pull from SchooLinks so quickly.”

He emphasized that the platform’s value goes far beyond administrative efficiency; it empowers counselors to make a real and lasting impact on students’ lives because they have gotten to know the students in a more comprehensive way: “When you get the opportunity to give a kid a full-ride scholarship worth $125,000…you’re not just helping them with college–you’re changing the trajectory of their life. It’s a big difference maker for them.”

Data on Where Students Hope to Go and What They Need to Get There

Beyond utilizing SchooLinks to connect students to opportunity, Kain explained how powerful the features are in collecting critical data to guide their work and to share out with stakeholders. Kain stated that, with SchooLinks, they have been able to compile end-of-year data “better and faster than we have ever done before.” This included data to meet critical state reporting requirements, along with information to share with the superintendent, school board members, principals, parents, and the broader community about the achievements and postsecondary destinations of the graduating class of seniors. With this data, the school is able to easily share success and identity areas to strengthen future support.  

When asked what he would share with other districts considering SchooLinks, Kain described the platform as “very robust”–noting that it offers more depth and functionality than other CCR platforms. He emphasized that SchooLinks has “the features [districts] need, when they need them” to advance and scale their college and career readiness efforts. He also encouraged districts to take advantage of the platform’s responsive and adaptive customer support teams to help tailor the system to meet local needs and goals. But beyond the logistics, Kain returned to what matters most–the students. With SchooLinks as a resource, Kain is excited to be able to continue connecting kids to these powerful opportunities, ensuring their postsecondary dreams can become a reality.