By Mary O’KEEFE

On Tuesday, the Crescenta Valley Youth Town Council, Fire House and Prom Plus Club members are sponsoring a college discussion night. In October, the groups held a college pre-fair event the day before the Glendale Unified School District’s annual college fair. The purpose of that event was to give parents and students a guide as what to ask colleges during the GUSD College Fair.

The event on Tuesday will cover several areas of preparing for college including how to look at college options and choosing the one that works best for the student. There will also be a discussion on financing college and working with financial aide offices, setting up dorms, learning about credit card options and personal financing for teens.

Montrose Travel will also be on hand to discuss travel options for students going away to college.

The night is designed for all ages, not only those heading to college next year but for those going in the future and those already there. Students who are and are planning on attending community colleges will also learn valuable information.

“After our success with the last college fair, we thought it was important to have a supplement to [that event],” said Cooper Iven, president of CVYTC.

The groups’ members range in age from middle school to college. The event was planned by the students, from their point of view, as they prepare for college. They approached Tuesday’s discussion in the same manner as when they and their parents talked “around the kitchen table.”

“We wanted to have something for people who are still deciding and [those who have already] decided on a college,” Iven said. “This [information] is often overlooked. We want to look at [everything] from the logistics of getting into a dorm to the practical steps of where to go to school.”

The College Discussion Night is on Tuesday, April 9, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Fire House youth center, 2563 Foothill Blvd. in La Crescenta.

  Mary Okeefe