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THE GRADUATION PROJECT AT
ALEXANDER CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL: STATEMENT ON
STANDARDS OF QUALITY
1. Alexander Central High School provides all seniors with a Graduation Project
Handbook, available from the student’s English teacher and in online form on the
school web page. Please read this document carefully for information on the
processes and requirements of the graduation project.
2. The Graduation Project consists of the following four components:
a. A research paper in MLA format;
b. A juried presentation to a panel of teachers and volunteers from the
community selected by the Graduation Project Committee;
c. A research-based product which may be physical or non-physical; and
d. A portfolio documenting the activities associated with the project.
3. The topic for the Graduation Project emerges from the student’s interest and
demonstrates global readiness and 21st century skills, and may involve activities such
as entrepreneurship, self-enrichment, job shadowing/career exploration,
volunteerism, or construction of a physical product.
4. Each student will select an ACHS faculty member to serve as his/her Academic
Advisor, and an adult from the community to serve as his/her mentor. Included in
this manual are documents that clearly outline the functions of the academic advisor
and mentor. Also involved in assisting students and parents throughout the project
are the teachers serving as graduation project coordinators and as members of the
graduation project committee, the student’s English teacher, and the ACHS
administrative team.
5. Copies of the presentation, portfolio, and product rubrics are included in this
manual, clearly defining the expectations of each component of the project. The
presentation is graded by the panel of judges, the portfolio is graded by the
student’s academic advisor, and the product is graded by the student’s mentor. The
research paper, typically written in the 11th grade, is graded by the student’s 11th
grade English teacher. Each of the four components counts as 25% of the project
grade. The four elements of the project, listed above (paper, presentation, product,
and portfolio) are averaged together and recorded as the student’s final exam grade
in 12th grade English.
6. Alexander County School Board Policy 3460 requires all students to successfully
complete the graduation project in order to receive a high school diploma.
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7. Alexander Central High School will partner with parents to ensure that
consideration is given to Exceptional Children, Limited English Proficient students,
and Section 504 students as needed throughout the project.
8. The Graduation Project product requires documentation of 15 hours of the
student’s time and collaboration with a mentor who has demonstrated some
expertise in the student’s field of interest. This collaboration may be face-to-face, by
mail, or by electronic means such as phone or e-mail. The mentor is NOT required to
spend all 15 hours with the student. The product is intended to be the student’s work,
done under the guidance of a mentor who does not need to be present for the bulk of
the experience. Mentors are welcome to spend as much time with the student as the
mentor and parents deem necessary for successful completion of the project, but
mentors need not feel compelled to spend the full 15 hours with the student. Mentors
should, however, collaborate with the student enough to verify that the project takes
a full 15 hours and that the work is the student’s own.
9. Teachers and administrators will collaborate with parents concerning
modifications for transfer students when the circumstances of their transfer clearly
impact their ability to complete a part or all of the Graduation Project.
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THE PURPOSE OF THE GRADUATION PROJECT:
The Graduation Project at ACHS is an opportunity for you to demonstrate what you
know and to showcase your achievement. It must be successfully completed, which is
required for all graduating seniors. Through the project, you are able to demonstrate
accumulated skills in time-management, research, problem-solving, human interaction,
organization, and public-speaking, the very skills and abilities which you will be
expected to demonstrate as college students, employees, and/or as military personnel.
THE FOUR PHASES OF THE GRADUATION PROJECT:
Each phase must be completed successfully prior to Presentation Night.
Research Paper: documents information on a subject of your choice -- a subject in
which you have an interest, but are not already an expert. Your research must be a
worthwhile stretch beyond what you already know. You will complete this portion in
your Junior English class.
The Research Paper will be graded on a Pass-Fail basis by your English teacher, for
the purposes of Graduation Project requirements. If you do not pass the first time,
you will need to resubmit your paper to your English teacher until you do pass. Your
English teacher may also evaluate your paper on the A-B-C-D-F scale for purposes of
assessing a research grade for English class.
Prior to researching your subject, you are required to submit the Project Proposal for
approval to the Graduation Project Coordinator. Your Proposal must be approved
before beginning work on your project.
All work on the Research Paper and all parts of the Graduation Project are required
to be your own work. Plagiarism and/or any other form of cheating will not be
tolerated.
Product: requires you to apply the information you have gained from your research
by developing an actual physical product, a performance or demonstration, or a
service. There must be a clear relationship between your research and your product.
The product development is required to take a minimum of 15 hours of student time,
as verified by the Mentor. Select a product within your financial budget, keeping in
mind that you are not expected to spend money in order to complete the
Graduation Project.
Once your Project Proposal is approved, you may secure a Mentor and begin
working on your Product, even if you have not completed your Research Paper.
However, to receive credit for the Product, the Research Paper must be completed
successfully.
Your Product and/or Project may not be changed without approval of the Student
Academic Advisor, English teacher, and Graduation Project Coordinator. It is
essential that you make a firm decision on your topic from the beginning.
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The Product is graded by the Mentor. The Product Verification and Mentor
Evaluation forms must be completed and faxed or mailed to Alexander Central High
School, Attn: Graduation Project Cooordinator, These forms should NOT be turned in
by the student, only by the Mentor. However, it is your responsibility to make sure
your Mentor knows the deadlines and has plenty of time to complete these forms. It
is extremely important that you do not wait until late in the semester to complete your
Product.
Portfolio: contains records of your journey throughout the entire Graduation Project.
These documents include personal notes, photographs, time logs with your mentor,
journal entries, receipts, letters, your research paper, etc.
All forms and all required elements of the Portfolio must be completed and in the
Portfolio before it can be graded by the Advisor. The Product must be completed
and related forms signed and faxed or mailed to the graduation project coordinator
in plenty of time to allow inclusion in the Portfolio by its due date.
Once the Portfolio is graded, it is returned to the student for Presentation Night. The
graded rubric is turned in by the Advisor to your English teacher for documentation.
Presentation: once all three of the above phases have been successfully
completed and all rubrics and evaluations submitted, you will be scheduled to
present your Graduation Project on Presentation Night. This will be a speech that is a
minimum of five minutes and no longer than 10 minutes, given before a board of
judges, selected from the community. You will receive instruction and practice on
your speeches in English class.
You will present your Portfolio, Product and visual to the judges on Presentation
Night. You will be expected to dress in a manner befitting a job interview and
showing respect for yourself, your teachers and your school as a senior soon to
graduate and enter the working world and/or world of higher education. If this
poses a hardship for you in any way, your advisor will be glad to work with you on
this.
Grading: When all 4 elements of your project are completed (paper, product,
portfolio, and presentation), your English teacher will average the four grades
together, and this grade will count as your final exam grade for senior English. Final
exams count as 25% of the course grade, so it is very important that you complete all
components of the project at a high level of proficiency.