Senior Projects

Senior Showcase 2016 is Wednesday, April 20, from 5:00 p.m.-9:00 p.m. at Republic High School.  

Click here to sign up as a volunteer judge. 
You can judge as many or as few presentations as you wish.

Class of 2016: Making Their Mark

A visual aid sample from one student presentation. 

It's time for our 6th Annual Senior Project Night and Senior Showcase at Republic High School. The Class of 2016 has been a creative one—from stained glass-making, to turbo jet engine design, to preserving Missouri owl populations to prosthetic hand design--you’ll find among our students novelists, engineers, scientists, volunteers, coaches, historians, activists, artists, musicians…and the list continues. The RHS Class of 2016 is ready to make its mark on the 21st Century. And we need your help to review the work these students have created in their year-long Senior Project.

Why is your help needed? 
It's every school's mission to develop productive citizens. Not only do we want to teach our kids math, history, science, and English skills, but we also want them to be able to do them. We ask our students to face challenges where using those skills will be necessary. To be a productive citizen, a student must be capable of performing such meaningful tasks in the real world, and the best judge of this real world is you. We invite you, our community members, into our school to visit with our students, to talk to them about their learning and ask them questions about their projects. Dive into the challenges they faced and notice how they solved them. Look into their curiosities and listen to how research helped them come to answers, or perhaps further questions. Come visit us on Senior Project Night and you will not be disappointed. You might even be encouraged in the future of America and inspired by the next generation!

Click here to sign up as a volunteer judge.
You can judge as many or as few presentations as you wish.

What are you judging and how do you do it? 
You will watch a 10-minute presentation from each student you select to judge. During the presentation, you will learn about the students research, you will see the product the student

A panel of four judges in 2014. 

created based on the researched conducted, (a natural extension of the research,) and you listen to the student explain the connection between the two as well as the academic growth and challenges he or she faced throughout the year-long process. Following the presentation, you, along with the other judges in the room, will engage the student in a 5-7 minute question/answer session. The students will also present you with a portfolio that includes a letter to you, an overview of their work, a copy of their research paper, and a reflection on their overall project. This portfolio is provided as further evidence of the work.

You are not alone in judging. Scores are averaged for each student. We ask that you leave comments for each student on the score card. Here is a sample scoring guide.

Judges Packet Contents:
Welcome Letter
Judging Procedures
Clarifying vs. Probing Questions: A Resource Guide for the Q & A Session.

Click here to sign up as a volunteer judge. Over 100 judges are needed!
You can judges as many or as few presentations as you wish.

What is the Senior Project? 
Students enrolled in a Senior Project class demonstrate reading, writing, speaking, accessing and processing information, thinking, self-discipline, problem-solving, organization, and implementing technology throughout the course of their capstone. These skills are showcased through a three-phase process that includes research and writing; creating a related physical product to demonstrate a natural extension of learning; and a presentation, which synthesizes the first two phases and is given before a review panel composed of administrators, teachers, school staff, and community members. Every senior must complete a paper, product and presentation. The Senior Project topic is based on new knowledge and provides growth through a new learning experience.

Writing/Producing Music

Research/Raising Money for Autism

Click here to sign up as a volunteer judge. 

Ms. Daugherty's History with Senior Projects

The senior year is a momentous year. In 2004, Willow Springs Schools, a small district in South Central Missouri, with "radical" ideas about student learning, asked me to teach seniors in English IV with this caveat: implement a Senior Project. After a meeting with co-teachers, administrators, and colleagues from the Southwest Regional Education Board, I planned deadlines, wrote curriculum, and created a Community Showcase to implement this year-long capstone research project. My students and I blindly embarked on what became my identity in teaching. In my teaching memoir, it will not be memories of years with bad or good test scores, nor will classes be defined by behavior, instead, I'll never forget how Jordan, from the class of 2008, raised over $3000 for her Relay for Life team, and in the meantime, created a Kansas City-worthy BBQ sauce she sold at the Dinner Theater she organized. Nor will I forget how Dallas made Biofuel and ask the school district to run a bus route on a tank of his homemade concoction. I've had the joy of riding a racing lawn mower, being led down a dark hallway by horse guide, and traipsing through streams to collect samples for water quality projects. I love the Senior Project because it is the ultimate MAKE. The ultimate in Project-based Learning. And the ultimate in differentiating AND individualizing educational instruction.

In 2009 I was hired by Republic High School to implement the same standards and curriculum we developed at Willow Springs. Serving twice as many students enrolled in English IV courses, the Senior Project involves parental and teacher support as well as student initiative and self-discipline. With careful planning of time, avoiding procrastination, and staying focused on process and goals, the Senior Project can be an enjoyable learning experience. 

I currently serve as the Secondary Literacy Specialist for Republic R-III Schools and support the roles of the English IV teachers as serve their students in the Senior Project. 

Ms. Kristin Howard, Senior Project Coordinator, 2015-current

Since RHS started Senior Projects in 2010, Ms. Howard has been a strong supporter and teacher of the Senior Project curriculum. Currently, she has taken the lead as the Coordinator, planning the lessons, leading the English IV curriculum, organizing the Senior Showcase event, and answering questions for the students, faculty, and community along the way. Ms. Howard has a solid expertise and love for helping students find a path to learning what they love and challenging them in ways they never expected.

Mrs. Katrina Townsend co-taught with Ms. Daugherty and has served on Senior Project committees and in the English IV classroom since 2011, helping all students complete their projects. She is an integral part of student success. Mrs. Laura Johnson is in her first year as English IV teacher and Senior Project Advisor. Together, these three ask for your help on Senior Project Night.