Senior Projects
By ANNIE WERNERFELT ‘20 and SNEHA JAISWAL ‘22
The tradition of senior projects has been a benchmark of the spring term since its 1968 passing in the form of a Senior Privileges Committee proposal. In The Orange and Blue the following February, senior Sam Harrington wrote that the idea behind the proposal was that each student “would work on some project that he feels would be more worthwhile than the last term of school, and for which there is no room in the regular curriculum. This is an excellent opportunity for anyone who has felt restricted by Milton’s rigid study program, and allows room for this individual to plunge off on his own tangent.” Ms. Bonenfant, academic dean and member of the senior project committee, explains that “it was a time student rebellion across America” and “students felt that what they were doing in classes was restrictive and prescribed” and so the idea of senior projects was born.
This past February, the project approval process began for seniors. Every project must fall into one of four categories: arts, shadowing a professional, community engagement, or scholarship. The student must also consider in detail their daily plan, weekly goals, and vision for the final product. Proposals that show a lack of careful planning raise the most questions for the committee; while the month is meant to be used as a platform for freedom of individual expression, it is important to the committee that students are using their time well. Bonenfant notes that “the most successful senior projects are the ones where students are really passionate about what they want to do.”
This year, the scope of projects was as panoramic as ever. Kat Stephan ‘19 spent her time upcycling fashion; using 100% used clothes, she created new pieces inspired by the streetwear landscape. She says that the idea behind the collection is “to show that you don’t have to buy name brand stuff for your outfit to be relevant” and that the project is “a nod to the fact that all clothes are inspired by other clothes, and that’s not really a bad thing.”
Olayeni Oladipo ‘19 and Arianna Bravo ‘19 filmed a cooking show that examined the cuisines of three different cultures. You can find their episodes on youtube under the channel “Worldly Kitchen.” The duo’s idea was inspired by Oladipo’s love for cooking and Bravo’s passion for photography and film.
Livia Wood ‘19, Abby Foster ‘19, Charlotte Moremen ‘19, Lyndsey Mugford ‘19, and Katherine McDonough ‘19 studied satire by first researching and then writing a script for a 20 minute satirical film. Wood explained that they chose to “satirize the trope of ‘indie girls’ — girls who think they are unlike others because of their supposedly unique interests.” Their film centers around a student director who follows four friends as they prepare for an open mic concert.
In a more research-oriented project, Galen Lewis ‘19 and Jeremy Verley ‘19 looked into the physics of soccer; according to Lewis, the topics they explored included “the friction the ball experiences on grass versus on turf, the impact on the head during a header,” and the Magnus Effect that occurs when a player puts spin on the ball. Their project culminated with both a station at the project fair and a presentation to a Duseau Class IV Physics class.
Kiely Johnson combined two half projects. When she wasn’t volunteering at the Taylor School, she was learning how to knit hats and mittens, which she donated to the Taylor School, a school with a significant homeless student population. She says of her initial idea: “I wanted to somehow connect my two projects, so I decided to donate the things I make to the children at the Taylor School that I have been getting to know for the past few weeks, as they are really grateful for any donations they receive.”
Mert Bayturk explored astrophotography by taking long-exposure shots of the night sky with a motorized mount that continuously takes photos on a timer. He says that he both used the photos to create videos to show movement and also stacked them on top of each other to create star-trails. He detailed that, for single long exposure shots, he needed “to use [his] motorized mount to pan the camera slightly to compensate for the Earth’s rotation so there wouldn’t be any unintentional star-trails.”
Dan Schlakman shadowed the Chief Marketing Officer of the Boston Celtics. He met with the three different branches of the marketing office to learn about how their marketing works. He says that he has “been involved in social media engagement data and posts, both of the Celtics and other playoff teams” in the NHL and NBA.
Amy Shohet ‘19 created a series of videos about Milton’s faculty, students, and spaces “to showcase what Milton is really about” for prospective students. These videos include a virtual tour series, Day in the Life videos, and students and faculty interviews. Having been involved with the admissions office for the duration of her time at Milton, especially as an OBK head, Shohet explains that she saw “a lack of presence for Milton on YouTube”, which inspired the creation of a channel to make Milton accessible to students doing research on private schools. Shohet’s chosen project allows her to focus on her interests, develop skills, and add to the community.
Of course, not every project proposal submitted to the committee gets approved. Pierce Wilson ‘19 did not end up going on project and continues to attend classes for the rest of the year. In his proposal, Wilson submitted plans to interview leaders from the Boston Cultural Council— which works to promote cultural, economic, and racial diversity in the arts— and, with two of his friends, write profiles that would accompany photos and research for a museum-like exhibit. He chose this project, ultimately, for the opportunity to work together with his friends on something that involved their similar interests. Wilson explains that the proposal likely was not passed because the project was not initially well-planned or coordinated between three people with different schedules for the month.
Each year, the scope of seniors’ projects serves as evidence of the intellectual diversity that Milton celebrates. The topics engaged during the final stretch of seniors’ time here transcend the normal confines of high school curricula and prepare students for success outside of the academic sphere.