College Guidance
The College Guidance Office
(Left to right: Thomas Becker, Kirk Blackard, Jeffrey Depelteau)
Our goal in the College Guidance Office is to help each student identify and gain acceptance into his ideal school. This process begins in the freshman year and continues through the senior year in individual counseling sessions and workshops. Each is purposely designed to prepare students for the transition from Christ School to college.
Taking the first steps toward the college search and application process is not easy. The programs we offer, combined with the individualized attention your son receives here will prepare him in a manner that will leave him feeling confident and well prepared for the challenges that lie ahead.
I encourage you to give me a call, should you have any questions, and I want to thank you for your interest in Christ School. We welcome the opportunity to be a part of your son’s life at this important stage in his academic career.
Sincerely,
Kirk Blackard
Director of College Guidance
Read the Headmaster's Thoughts on the College Search Process
College Guidance Newsletters
Each semester our office creates a newsletter on our students' journeys through the college admissions process. We invite you to read the Spring 2017 College Guidance newsletter, The Green Pages.
Meet the College Guidance Department
Thomas Becker
B.S., Economics
After a short stint at The Webb School (Bell Buckle, TN) as a substitute teacher, an assistant soccer coach, and an Alumni and Development Associate, this 2015 Centre College graduate joined Kirk Blackard in our College Guidance office as Assistant Director of College Guidance. Thomas Becker finished his Master of Education in Leadership and Organizational Performance at Vanderbilt University in May 2017, and he is excited to support the college application process, while also teaching the Entrepreneurship course this fall.
A lover of sports, Mr. Becker insists that he “will watch just about any sporting event, either in person or on TV.” As an assistant JV Soccer and Baseball coach, Mr. Becker will have plenty of opportunities, and when, as a house parent, he finds himself surrounded by 8th and 9th graders in the Cuningham House commons, his love of televised sports will serve him well. Additionally, Mr. Becker looks forward to mastering his culinary chops and hiking through the Pisgah National Forest.
Kirk Blackard
M.S., Communications
“Traveling often on two wheels” is a pastime for Kirk Blackard and he means it. The Director of College Guidance has cycled approximately 4,000 miles to colleges in 22 different states during his 14 years at Christ School. Mr. Blackard, in turn, imparts the knowledge he gains onto Christ School families looking to find a college destination for their son.
Mr. Blackard has been involved in college admissions and college counseling since 1991. A graduate of St. Christopher’s School in Richmond, VA, Mr. Blackard received his B.A. from Wake Forest University in 1989 and an M.S. from Virginia Commonwealth University in 1995.
When he is not pedaling away on his bike, Mr. Blackard’s interests include basketball (he is an Assistant Coach for the Little Greenies program), tennis, and cooking.
Jeffrey Depelteau
In 2006, Jeff Depelteau earned his B.A. in English from Wheaton College (MA). At Wheaton, Mr. Depelteau tutored flailing college writers, while also managing to play on the varsity basketball team. Mr. Depelteau’s love for basketball remains strong. A member of the National Association of Basketball Coaches and a certified coach for the International Basketball Federation (FIBA), Mr. Depelteau works with the U16 and U17 Men’s National Teams. In 2015, Nike selected Mr. Depelteau as the “America’s Got Basketball Coaching Talent” winner, and as a recipient, Mr. Depelteau spoke at the Nike Championship Basketball Coaches Clinic in Myrtle Beach, SC. Championship Productions DVD produced and marketed his speech, “Growing as a Coach.”
Mr. Depelteau joins the Christ School community from Suffield Academy (CT), where from 2007-2013 he served as Assistant Director of Admission, but since 2013 has worked as the Associate Director of College Counseling, which is the title he will maintain at Christ School. Mr. Depelteau received his M.A. in Education and Human Development from George Washington University in 2015. While working with Kirk Blackard in the College Guidance office, Mr. Depelteau will also assist Scott Willard as Associate Head Coach on the varsity basketball team. His wife, Brooke, is the new Academic Dean, and they bring two future Greenies to campus with them, their sons Maxwell and Bryson.