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Guidance Department
ACADEMIC ADVICE:
- For academic issues related to Kindergarten through Grade 6, contact the Elementary Principal.
- For academic issues related to Grades 7 through 12, contact Jim Stenstrom.
- As Guidance Director, Jim Stenstrom is responsible for pre-registration and registration of all Grade 7–12 students, scheduling, course selection advice, transcripts, report cards, monitoring student progress, standardized testing (Stanford, PLAN, PSAT, SAT I & II, and ACT), and communication with parents.
- Students in Grades 7 & 8 are classified as Junior High. Their program automatically includes English, Math, Bible/PE, Science, Geography, and Variety (options that include Music, Computer, Art, and Technical Education). Concert Band is also available.
- Students in Grades 9–12 are classified as Senior High. These students have a wide variety of courses to choose from. The students can plan for an RVA General High School Diploma or an RVA College Prep High School Diploma. The latter has greater demands.
- For a listing of course descriptions, graduation requirements, and pre-registration information for Grades 9–12, please see the pre-registration document at the bottom of this page.
- RVA prepares a cumulative transcript of a student's 4 years of senior high school. In order to complete this cumulative record, we require an official transcript of all schooling done outside of RVA.
- We ask parents to be actively involved in the course selections of their children in Grades 9–12. Our desire is that each student's high school program will be balanced and appropriately challenging for the gifts and abilities of that student.
COLLEGE ADVICE:
- Steve Peifer is RVA's college coordinator. He is available to advise seniors as they navigate the college application process.
- The requirements for an RVA College Prep Diploma can be found at the bottom of this page. These are considered a minimum for entrance into U.S. colleges. Most college-bound RVA students will achieve more than these minimums, especially if they are interested in applying to more selective colleges. We have also found that RVA students attending universities in countries other than the U.S. have done very well. Regarding the selection of courses, we recommend a 4-4-4 plan (i.e., 4 credits in English, 4 credits in Mathematics, and 3 to 4 credits in a foreign language).
- In addition to a good transcript and GPA, students will need to take an appropriate university entrance test. RVA offers the SAT I and II and the ACT for these purposes.
- U.S. colleges will expect a TOEFL (Test of English Fluency) exam for non-American students hoping to attend a U.S. college but who come from countries where English is not the primary language. RVA does not offer the TOEFL.
- The RVA Guidance office has computer-based programs to evaluate a student's career interests and abilities. The office also has abundant information on colleges. College representatives often visit RVA, providing students with a chance to receive first-hand information.
STUDENT SUPPORT:
- Jon Stocksdale is the student support coordinator for Grades 7–12, and James Myrick is the student support coordinator for Grades K–6.
- Like other Missionary Kid schools, RVA experiences a fairly high turnover of staff from year to year. In light of this, we may be able to offer more services to students with special needs in one year and less in another. Our philosophy is to support students in their special needs to the best of our ability, but not to offer a full range of special needs services.
- ESL (English as a Second Language)—The language of instruction at RVA is English. However, we do accommodate some ESL students. We try to offer support help, especially at the younger grades. A list of useful ESL websites is provided below.
- RVA offers peer tutoring. Students and/or parents are welcome to contact the guidance office to arrange tutoring. Some student tutors volunteer their time and others are paid at the rate of Ksh 150 per hour. The tutored student's RVA account is billed if costs are involved.
PROSPECTIVE STUDENTS AND PARENTS:
- For detailed information and forms for applying to RVA, please contact the RVA admissions office directly at
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.
- We require official transcripts and school medical records for all students applying to RVA.
- We require results of a standardized test (e.g., Iowa Test of Basic Skills, Stanford Achievement Test) from within the last two years for students who come from a non-accredited home schooling or other setting that may differ significantly from American-based education. RVA is willing to arrange Stanford testing if needed.
- Students who come from non-English-speaking schools are required to take a LAS test. This test reveals the level of a student's English language proficiency and can be administered at RVA. The LAS test may not be required if an ESL (English as a Second Language) student has been attending an English-speaking school for the previous three years.
- Math and foreign language screening tests are given to new high school students during their first day or two to ensure placement at the proper level.
- New high school students who want to enroll in band and/or choir are required to audition.
TRANSCRIPT REQUESTS:
- For current students at RVA, please email
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for elementary transcript requests and
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for junior high or high school transcript requests.
- Former students of RVA may request transcripts from the Association of Christian Schools International in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Each year, RVA sends all student transcripts electronically to ACSI. Students can e-mail ACSI directly at
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or visit their website. Go to www.acsi.org and click on International Ministries (left hand side); then click on Student Transcript Depository where you will find the appropriate forms and instructions. Using this ACSI option is best for students in North America. A transcript will only take a couple of days to get to the desired destination. Students outside of North America will do better to contact RVA directly.
- Many institutions are beginning to accept transcripts sent as a PDF e-mail attachment. If this is acceptable to the college or employer that you are working with, please send us the appropriate e-mail address and we will send the required document.
- We will prepare an official sealed transcript, if needed. We will try to catch someone to carry it to the U.S. for mailing. For other situations, we will mail it from Kenya. Expect this to take 2 to 4 weeks (if not longer).
- All graduating students are given a diploma and an unofficial transcript. An official transcript is sent to the college of their choice. The graduates also receive the contact information for the ACSI depository mentioned above.
ESL WEBLINKS:
The following are links to websites with various activities to improve your English skills.
Dave’s ESL Café (my personal favorite)
Activities for ESL Students
English as a Second Language website
Randall’s ESL Cyber Listening Lab
Has listening lab activities for improving your listening comprehension skills at various levels of difficulty, and connecting links to improving your accent.
REGISTRATION FORMS:
 Pre-Registration Form - 2007 120.11 Kb
All documents are in PDF format. You will need to install Adobe Reader to view them.
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