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Schools

Guru goes global with guidance

A former Plant High adviser's Web site attracts local and international attention from the college-bound.

By ELISABETH DYER
Published August 18, 2006

Margaret Gandy is going global with the skills she honed helping Plant High School kids navigate their way into college.

"I had so much knowledge in my head from helping 300 to 400 students each year," she said.

So the former guidance resource specialist at Plant created an online consulting company to help students land scholarships and get into colleges of their choice.

As of Monday, more than two dozen local students, plus several from other states and the United Kingdom, had signed up for her services through her new Web site, www.collegeguidepost.com. Annual memberships range from $325 to $1,350. She also offers personal consultations for $150 per hour and flexible fees for those who demonstrate a need.

Gandy, 74, likes the relaxed pace of working from home in a field she loves. Big moments are when students win scholarships or when parents of past students stop her while shopping to credit her for what their children are doing after college.

Students Gandy has helped often tell her, "You paced it out for me, so I didn't need to stress," she said.

The guidance guru at Plant from 1985 through 2003, Gandy was known for her comprehensive guidance that got students into college with scholarships. Before Gandy, the position didn't exist in the district. The program she developed is now used in most high schools.

Scholarships won by Plant students grew from $340,000 during Gandy's first year to $10-million during her last year.

To launch her Web site, Gandy paired with Harriet Plyler, a third-generation Tampa native who now lives part of the year in England.

Plyler created the Good Schools Guide International UK, which details the quality of schools globally, at www.goodschoolsguide.co.uk. Both sites aim to help American students living abroad get a quality education.

Gandy gives high school students strategies for each grade level. For instance, she advises ninth-graders to explore their interests and to keep their grade point high: "Remember a minimum of 3.0 is the magic number for scholarships and college/university acceptance."

For seniors writing the often dreaded essay, Gandy guides them to develop vignettes of meaningful life experiences into polished works.

"When you're doing it for the first time, it's a total unknown," Gandy said. "Even if you had an older child, it's a continually changing activity."

Gandy dispenses the practical, such as how to sit in a swivel chair at a college interview, along with the useful, such as a list of every U.S. university. She links students to Web sites that have learning style and career interest quizzes to help them understand their personality.

She wants students to find the perfect college match, regardless of a family's budget.

"My theory is you figure out where you're going to be successful, and we'll find the money to get there," Gandy said.

Elisabeth Dyer can be reached at edyer@sptimes.com or 813 226-3321.

[Last modified August 17, 2006, 10:59:43]