By Mark Choa
SMHS Senior
As senior year comes to a close, many students begin to think about all the activities that senior year provides such as Prom, Graduatio, and Grad Night. While these are all popular and widely known around the community, there is one part of a senior experience that San Marino High School that is known less around the community. This mysterious final element of senior year is what is simply known as “The Senior Project.”
As a matter of fact, this article is my senior project. Senior Projects are assigned in students’ English classes and they serve for the student to accomplish a goal in a genuine interest of theirs of which they have no real experience. This article is the true embodiment of this philosophy.
While this may seem fun, there is a significant amount of work that goes into the Senior Project process. Students must first complete an interest survey. After the submission of the interest survey, a detailed two-step proposal begins. In the proposal, students must outline their project with set deadlines as well as the securing of a mentor to help guide them. The mentor is an integral part of the senior project and is usually an expert in the field the student chooses. The student must work at least 2 hours with their mentor to assist them in starting their project. Along with dealing with a mentor, the student must create a handbook detailing the progress in their endeavors. The project is concluded with a presentation that demonstrates to the class what they were working on over the last quarter of the school year.
What makes senior projects unique is the variety of different subjects that students chose to pursue. In the name of journalism, I went around campus to ask several students about their own senior projects.
The most popular senior project around campus was Ryan Lin’s, who decided that he was going to learn the art of haircuts. Students have affectionately nicknamed him “Razor Ryan” and he has created his own informal barbershop called “Goodboicutz.”
When I got my own haircut from Ryan, I asked what the experience has been like for him. “The most rewarding thing about this experience was not just learning how to cut hair… during my haircuts I start to form conversations with whoever is in the chair, it is a really fun way to get to know someone.” His favorite haircut was the one he gave Trevor Davis, a fellow senior, who asked for lines on the side of his head. While Trevor loved the look, Ryan admits that he messed up a little. Ryan said it has become a passion and something he continues to do moving on.
Another popular project was taken on by Riley Fox who set out to create her very own Prom dress without any prior dressmaking experience. This was a very personal experience for Fox as her mentor was her mother, who always wanted to teach her how to sew. From this experience she said that, “I gained a new appreciation for how much time and energy goes into making clothes as well as having the opportunity to spend quality time with my mom. Fox said that her dress was everything she wanted it to be and when she got to Prom everyone was very impressed.
Many projects stem from already existing passion that parlays into a new avenue. Christina Chang may have spent many days shredding Rio Hondo League defense for the Lady Titan soccer team, but on the side she spends almost every possible weekend shredding the slopes on her snowboard. Due to this passion, Christina decided to build her own snowboard that she can take to college in the fall. She teamed up with Shaun Ross and Jake Elhart of Tribe Snowboards to form her masterpiece.
Another Titan that drew inspiration for a passion of theirs was Titan baseball superstar Trevor Davis, who leveraged his talents for writing to create an autobiography on his grandmother.
“I wanted to incorporate my love for writing with how proud I am of my grandma and all she’s accomplished,” Trevor said. Trevor continued to describe how fulfilling this experience was, helping his grandma relive her favorite moments of her life was an quality time spent together that they will cherish.
My personal favorite project was conducted by Kenneth Rangel, who wanted to take a dive in a possible career path by shadowing a Neurologist for his senior project. Kenneth described the day as “I was lucky enough to shadow a Pediatric Neurologist by the name of Dr. Neeson and the experience helped reinforce my love for Neurology. It is truly my calling and something I really want to do for the rest of my life.”
The senior project experience has challenged me in new ways I didn’t expect. For the last 3 years of high school, I stuck myself well within my comfort zone. My senior project pushed me out of that comfort zone to create something I’m truly proud of and I’m glad every other senior is given this chance to challenge themselves to achieve something remarkable.
