Roles and Responsibilities

Student Responsibilities

Seniors must attend all scheduled meetings. Seniors who do not attend all meetings and/or do not complete assignments on time risk failure. Seniors who fall behind on the deadlines, will be assigned additional responsibilities by the advisor to help ensure the completion of this project. Grade appeals for any of the assessments must be made directly to the principal or their designee.

Support Roles

Each senior is required to engage the assistance of important adults during the senior project: the faculty advisor (to be assigned by the school); the mentor (to be identified by the student); and other adults as needed, such as the senior project coordinator, a parent, a family friend, or other associates.

Faculty Advisor: The faculty advisor is a key figure in the support of the senior during the project, conducting mandatory meetings as scheduled by the coordinator. The faculty advisor's role is to meet with the student and offer advice, guidance, and feedback on the development of the project through discussions based on the assignments that the senior has completed prior to each meeting. The advisor also contacts the mentor by phone during the project: once before the placement period, to confirm placement and to answer any questions the mentor might have; and then during the placement to confirm the student is at the placement and to discuss with the mentor the senior’s progress. The advisor will contact the parent and project coordinator as situations warrant. The advisor collects all assignments and will grade the senior based on the project rubric.

Mentor: The senior will be expected to engage a mentor for the experiential learning phase of the project. The mentor will be a resource in a particular area of interest related to the student’s essential question, and/or will provide facilities or other support for the completion of the project. Resourcefulness, independence, and the ability to learn are traits measured by this project; therefore, it is required that seniors demonstrate the ability to identify, locate, contact a mentor, and use specific skills developed during the project to ensure learning. Unlike the faculty advisor, who guides the senior in the construction of the project, the mentor guides the senior's learning. The mentor will be asked to submit feedback that identifies the senior’s willingness to learn and a signed log sheet that verifies the 50 hours logged by the senior.

Senior Project Coordinator: The senior project coordinator oversees the project. The coordinator conducts activities that support the advisor, the senior, and the development and logistics of the project.

Independence and Initiative

This project is intended to be a student-centered and student-driven project. Students hold the responsibility to meet all deadlines, to attend all meetings with their advisor, and to arrange all contacts for placement and resources during the experiential learning phase.