 Welcome back to Geeks are sexy. I'm Jason Laduke. This is the fourth Thursday of the month here in Las Vegas It's a it's a pretty cloudy day here in Las Vegas today. It's winter time here, but we're back We're here talking with Ashley Jordan the founder of my education connections Ashley's the owner of my education connections Which is taking on the mission of helping families make informed decisions about college and affordability And I really want to get into that because you and I had a great conversation last week about this whole thing You've been a teacher so you know how confusing and stressful as well as having been a college student. Yeah You know how confusing and stressful the college application process can be for families and You're here to share how she can help your family make the right decision for you. Welcome Ashley. Thank you for being here today Thank you so much for having me Jason. I really appreciate it. I'm glad to be here. It is yeah full cloud today, but it's okay We'll take it. We'll take it here at Las Vegas So tell us about you your background and what made you start this business So I was a teacher. I graduated from college in three years and I got done teacher got done with my college You know a career and I decided that I wanted to be a teacher I went in teaching at risk youth and these were students that were credit deficient for graduation and so they were struggling to graduate and We really wanted to make sure that they had all opportunities Especially for after they finished high school and they just really were not sure of what to do They had no idea what to do how to pay for it where they wanted to be Career-wise and so it was really kind of devastating and I was trying to kind of get them help with these were at rescue So I was trying to get them help with places to live places to stay some of them were sleeping on the bus And then coming to school So it was really kind of devastating until college was just kind of like this dream And so when I found this assessment years later That really helped align student interests and aptitudes with their best choices for not only college But also for major to really get them on the right track to begin with I thought this was phenomenal and something that was really needed within the community for students And that's something that you bring to this that I don't know if it's unique But it's it's very impressive the way you bring these science-based assessments into helping kids figure out What what their options are maybe not what the one right path for them What are the one of those branches on that path they could take can you tell us something about these assessments and how they help you help Right, so our assessments are we're actually developed by psychometricians at Baylor University They're extremely reliable, so they have a point eight five reliability rating Kronba alpha, which is basically a test retest reliability so it could be one one is the most So one is the highest and most you know industry is anywhere from you know point six nine two point nine two So ours is considered excellent in terms of that test retest reliability And so it really gets at the heart of what is this what not only what the student is good at right? But also like what they're passionate about and what they're interested in and it provides them with not only You know best fits in terms of you know the most careers that they would have been exposed to But also things they may not have even thought of and we also are connected to on that which has Additional recommendations for the students while that they can explore so how often do you find that? A kid is set on something They're set on maybe one path and they take this assessment and they realize there's there's options for them They didn't consider and they start to pursue those options. I would say probably 90% of the time They're like oh my gosh, I didn't even know that existed and so what traditionally has happened is students will graduate high school They'll get into college and they'll be like, okay, you know, I'm familiar at their exposed careers right around them So teachers nurses, you know a doctor They don't really realize what's all out there and what opportunities are available to them And so I think probably the biggest thing is That they are just like hey, I didn't even know it existed, right? I didn't know that you could use them like this and this is like just it fits me perfectly And I didn't realize I was out there and so a lot of times students have to then go back to school once They realize this is out there after they get into the working field So not only are they a debt from going to school for something that they didn't even really like or want to pursue But now they have to go back to school again take out more debt more You know get in those loans and get in this kind of you know like hey is this ever gonna Is this ever gonna end kind of thing? So our goal is to really make sure that students are prepared prior to entering into college so that they can really put their Best foot forward graduate on time Mitigating the debt and the loans that they have to take out so they can really have a good start to their future. That's awesome Now one of the things I want to talk about because what the kid wants to do with the kids thinking about is really important, right? Yeah, however Families parents are thinking about this as well Besides what the kid wants to do and besides affordability because we've talked about how important that is What are some of the things that families parents? grandparents caregivers Should be thinking about as they start to help guide their students in these processes Besides just what the kid wants to do right exactly. So here's the thing when my when I told my dad because I wanted to be a teacher for the longest time and Then I kind of had a phase and I don't know most 14-year-olds girls have the same You know, I wanted to be a fashion designer. So I told my dad. I said, yeah dad That's what I want to do and he's like, you know I think you need to take some art classes and really see if that's something that you like I took art classes and I hated it, right? And so I realize that just wasn't for me But I did this while in high school not when I got to college And so I was able to explore those areas of interest while in high school where it wasn't costing us any money It was as elective that I could use to graduate so it really didn't matter, right? And I was like, hey, I hated it. I got an A in the class. I moved on and I realized that's not for me Um, so I you know went back to the teaching that I had kind of wanted to do when I was younger And so my dad was a smart guy, right? He didn't just tell me like no That's a silly dream and you know, what's wrong with you be realistic Which I think is what a lot of times parents they're like, hey be realistic, right? You have to make a living and this is a hard career to go into and what are you thinking? Right explore those areas of interest if your student is really interested in art They're really interested in drama or they're really interested in writing have them Be in your book, right? If they live there for time if they're a photographer They really like photography go to your book take a photography class make sure it's something that they like while they're in high school Where it's not costing you don't don't get involved in social media Explore those areas of interest while it's not costing thousands of dollars and it's affecting the timeline for graduation So your dad let you figure it out for yourself. Yeah, and there's there there are opportunities to do that And that brings us to when should a family be starting to think about this? Yes So and that's a great question and it's one thing that I get a lot of and I say I'll say this and people will be like Oh, that's way too early and it's really not I always say we need to start thinking 8th grade Because especially in the valley. So we're in Las Vegas. We have a wonderful community Magnet schools that offer great areas of specialization for students So they're starting to think about being interested in a certain area They can actually go to a high school that specializes in that so we have performing arts. We have fire fighting Sciences we have medical programs nursing CNA programs I mean the list is endless and so to start thinking about that in 8th grade you have to actually apply In January by January. So you need to start thinking about that in the beginning of 8th grade It seems really young But it's really something that could give them a really great start and really help them explore those areas of interest in a really specialized environment While they're still young and also making sure that they're doing well grade-wise as soon as they get to high school Oftentimes parents will think oh freshman year. I don't really look at that, right? No, they're looking at your entire GPA They're looking at what classes you're taking right GPA course rigor and then your metrics like SAT ACT tests are kind of third in line So it's really really important to make sure that you're thinking about grades and you're thinking about coursework the entire time I think that's a that's a great point. Well, so one it's 8th grade is not too early to take this assessment, right? No, no, yeah, our assessment is actually meant for 14 and up age 14 So 8th grade is the perfect time to take this before you start thinking about what school your kid wants to go to what what high school your kid Might want to pursue things or if they aren't sure to go to a high school They have opportunities to pursue lots of different things, right? So so that's important to think about early as well so We've talked a lot about the kid and what they're gonna do But as as we often overuse in our society takes a village, right? So what are what are some of the roles and responsibilities that teachers have parents have and even the student has to make this a Successful process no matter what the outcome where they end up in college. What are some of the roles responsibilities? What are the things they each need to take on so I definitely think and I'm very big on like the triangular approach, right? So when you're teaching and they teach you this right they teach you this idea of it takes the village But it really takes the teacher the parent and the student right and they're working together within the community to make sure that You know the educational experience is the best for the student and that the parent is involved and that the teacher You know knows and everybody's on the same page and ultimately for students and for parents They really need to make sure that they are starting as early as possible So Jason and I had met last week and we were talking about you know What what parents of students that get into Ivy Leagues know that most of us don't right? And that's kind of the thing is that they start as early as possible So they will actually start they'll get a college advisor. They'll start prepping for ACT SAT tests They will have it mapped out by the time their student is in middle school And it's kind of crazy to think about but that's really what we should be doing by eighth grade We should be thinking about what high school, but also we should be looking at okay over this summer Let's start prepping for these these standardized tests that really unfortunately determine a lot of our students future and their ability to get Acceptance into schools and there's a way to do this smartly where you can Keep options open do the steps you need to take but still let your kid be a kid Right, so I don't want anyone to get the impression that we're that we're talking about okay Let's let's drive these kids into the ground It kind of comes down to not be an outcome dependent on what college they get into right and What we really want to be focused on is what are the steps we can all take to make them successful? Regardless of the outcome. Yeah, and that's another thing too that I'm totally against like I as a teacher I did not ever give a lot of homework. I just didn't think it was that I mean this is controversial But I just didn't ever think it was effective You know we definitely want to make sure that the students have learning opportunities outside of the classroom But ultimately the student does need to be a kid and so by starting early We're actually mitigating the stress because what we're doing to these 16 year old students that are juniors in high school They are taking some of their most rigorous coursework They are then having to apply for scholarships think about colleges and then what let's add on right there SAT-ACT study so study program and so it's insane that what we're doing And so if we start little by little and really get a plan we're actually mitigating the stress We're mitigating the dread right the panic the anxiety from both the student and the parent and we're also helping them guide them to Take these classes along the way that could really be a great way to say hey This is a good fit for you Do you actually like this and that's what we're talking about is find their passion find what they like and then help them Explore those options In a real in a way that the timeline is much longer than what we're traditionally thinking of it as all right Well, we'll have you back some time to talk about the pros and cons of homework I know that is a huge deal right now So that's a huge conversation right now But before we let you go and have you come back for a panel discussion Tell everybody how they can reach you and my education connections. So you can actually reach me on my website It's just www.myeducationconnections.com And then you can also and that's my website and that has all of my contact information It also has information on our services and information on resources free resources for parents and students. All right, great Well, thank you for being here. We're gonna bring you back for the panel discussion students And I just want to jump in on this. It's December right now. I don't know when you're watching this But we're filming in December It's actually a really great timing if you've got that eighth grader or even that freshman high school Coming to see Ashley and trying to set up with the right plan for your family is to help your students So I'm Jason Leduc. This is Geeks are sexy. We'll be right back with Cynthia another. Thanks Jason