For my capstone I created a documentary about the Philadelphia free library system, showcasing both the flaws, and immense triumphs in the different branches across our city. Filmed mostly on a canon camcorder, I visited multiple different branches of the Philadelphia free library and talked to librarians and staff, as well as people in my life who have heavily influenced my love for reading and the library system. I view this project as an ode to the libraries, which I’ve spent thousands of hours in throughout my almost 18 years living in Philadelphia. As well as a culmination of some of the most, in my opinion, important SLA core values. Inquiry, research, and presentation.

LINK TO DOCUMENTARY https://drive.google.com/file/d/1nnakWMlHshougB7_V57DtzFGFGy0WnfJ/view?usp=sharing

LINK TO BIBLIOGRAPHY https://docs.google.com/document/d/186oG9fsn1RwEQ0AxXeZND2PT7sXhOzm4QqRgZETgVtw/edit

For my capstone project, I wanted to highlight one of the SLA core values that I have grown in throughout my years at SLA; collaboration. My capstone inquiry question is how can students take advantage of CTE programs as a way to collaborate and create something to help those in the community? I decided to explore this question through a documentary exploring accessibility in CTE programs. I documented the journey of collaborating with Amjed and Mashrur, and how we created a harness that will have an extended third arm and leather patch working to make it easier for Mashrur to film in his DigVid class. Collaboration is truly the heart of my documentary. This was inspired by the environment in the engineering room whenever I would work on the vest with Amjed. I not only was collaborating with him, but also everyone else in the room who was working on their own individual capstones. It was the first time I thrived in a space where collaboration flourished and genuinely had a good time. To me, this documentary is a reflection of this project that we have been working on for almost two years. It’s a way to look back and reflect on our experiences collaborating with other students who are in CTE programs and how impactful these programs at SLA really are.

Documentary: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1waSXgYgRgbupgQLbWxnztWLDKqjBuVrS?usp=sharing

Annotated Bibliography: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1wv-9wQNVgNdiygW2AA2WMwFTOaN29mZ6_nSq0okFex8/edit?usp=sharing

Rocketfest is a film festival that is open to all high school students in the Philadelphia School District, it allows them to showcase their work, build a portfolio, and network. It was a day-long event that took place May 1st, 2024 and was open to all district school students as well as the public. This was a highly collaborative effort, with each of us breaking into leadership roles and organizing our portion of the festival. In particular, I became our social media, marketing, and merchandise chair. I began with the question, “How can marketing expand and increase the film community among high schoolers in Philadelphia?” I spent hours researching marketing strategies and how to improve my use of social media to target an ideal audience. Then every week or two we had group meetings to discuss our work and the next steps. May 1, 2024, Rocketfest took place at the Philadelphia Free Library on 19th and Vine, we were able to display films and photographs from schools all over the city and sell hundreds of dollars worth of merchandise that will be put towards the festival next year. Reflecting on this project, we have been able to look at our statistics and strategies to determine steps for those to take next year. We wanted this project to be a fresh start in a line of many Rocketfest Capstones as students began to show more and more interest in this festival.

Rocketfest Film Reel: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rf8JLeTsjd_eppE4TxbVGo44DwTQGo_r/view?usp=sharing Annotated Bibliography: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1aL4X4-6-qNNaIXJH41tQPgKOaDpVUqIsZOQH1QpxiWg/edit?usp=sharing

The wrestling experience is practicing insanely hard every day, and competing for your spot on the wrestling team every week. I began to think about what specific part of wrestling taught me the most, and I came to realize that it was learning how to lose. For me, losing has always been hard, and it’s hard for most people I think. Getting good at losing is a life skill that’s not talked about a lot. The skill of losing, getting up, and training harder than you did before is something that wrestling teaches you immediately. I felt like learning this had a really great impact on me, and wanted to capture that. I decided to choose three of my teammates, who all seemed to have very different personalities.

Documentary: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1c1EzWwgWW6m_iaOgkLVSoNUzH0_9mebi/view?usp=sharing

For our Capstone project, my partner Wiktoria and I created and taught a six-week mini-course about digital video at Science Leadership Academy (SLA) Middle School. We introduced the students to the basics of filmmaking, guiding them through scripting, storyboarding, and filming, culminating in producing four short films. Our goal was to provide middle schoolers with a creative outlet and help them learn more about themselves through filmmaking. This project matched very well with SLA’s core values of inquiry, research, collaboration, presentation, and reflection.

The process involved extensive research on digital video techniques and effective teaching methods, developing a detailed curriculum, and coordinating with staff at both schools. We spent considerable time commuting, teaching, and reflecting on each session to improve our lessons. Despite initial challenges in engaging the students and communication issues with the middle school principal, we adapted and persevered.

I am most proud of the connections I made with the students, witnessing their growth and enthusiasm for filmmaking. This Capstone matters because it introduced students to new skills and boosted their confidence. This experience taught me to expect and adapt to unforeseen challenges and the importance of allowing people to grow beyond first impressions.

ANNOTATED BIBIOGRAPHY:https://docs.google.com/document/d/1tKBcOvol9HUX0q8EnRwa6A4QQdmjFSw5_ZLpOiHwydE/edit?usp=sharing

Have you ever had that reminiscent feeling because of a certain smell, sound, or anything that can trigger that emotion? Well, for my capstone, I wanted to base it on that feeling called Nostalgia. Before I started bringing those memories back to individuals, I had to research the benefits and drawbacks of Nostalgia. I learned that when indulging in too much of Nostalgia, it can be tough to appreciate what you have currently. However, Nostalgia could also help with an individual’s self-esteem and promote a more positive mood. You just have to find that balance between how much you can indulge.

Capstone: https://mie248.wixsite.com/project-saudade

Annotated Bibliography: https://docs.google.com/document/d/144j3wSqIILklUf8wOqek8eo1PFNSZTR0RTJLDeYQc84/edit?usp=sharing

ABSTRACT:

For my Capstone I made a documentary. I wanted to know how someone would go about pursuing the arts after highschool excluding the college track. It’s a question that I have personally thought about for my own future and even though I’m not going down that path in the end, I still wanted to understand this experience.

Despite the many forms of media I could have done to explore this question,I chose a documentary to challenge myself for not fully participating in our documentary DigVid unit last year. I wanted to make a documentary of my own…but it didn’t go as planned.

I got in touch with a person taking a gap year and pursuing work in the media through Ms. Ustaris. Since January I have followed Gabby, the person I based my documentary around and collected footage of them at events as well as interviews with them. I would shoot mostly on weekends and Wednesdays and Thursdays. Deviation from the original storyline was inevitable after my initial meeting with them since I had issues with a large amount of my footage being lost.

Although the quality of the documentary was not what I’d envisioned, I am proud of the skills I picked up for shooting outside of SLA. Having shadowed someone involved in the media world in Philly showed me a different side of media creation and outlets for creators not in a DigVid course which I think made up 90% of my media reaction perspective.

As part of my capstone project, I undertook a position in a three-person team to carry out Rocketfest, a film and photography festival. In this project, I was the chair of Submissions & Selections and Media Production. Which meant that I was responsible for handling students’ submissions, selecting the final films to be shown at the festival, and editing the film reel for screening.

Throughout the process, we focused on equity, collaboration, and presentation. Some challenges I came across included refining communication skills and designing certificates for Rocketfest’s’ winners, which I overcame through persistence and teamwork.

The final product was a successful event, made possible by the Philadelphia Free Public Library, that showcased students’ talents and encouraged community engagement. As for my personal growth, I improved my editing skills, improved how to communicate with others, and learned valuable time management effectiveness.

Reflecting on the experience, I realized the importance of successful communication and collaboration when taking part in managing a project. Additionally, I gained a deeper appreciation for media production as a way of bringing people together.

Overall, organizing Rocketfest was not only a fun event to be a part of, but also a meaningful experience that strengthened my skills and improved my understanding of teamwork and community involvement.

LINK to Bibliography: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Cu4GaxE5oVBXLwyB0Kcq5eq4QShzlb_5ZEKEuqxteaQ/edit?usp=sharing

LINK to Rocketfest’24 Films: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rf8JLeTsjd_eppE4TxbVGo44DwTQGo_r/view?usp=sharing

(Screenshot from experimental film “Eyes Wide Open” by Jet Muhammad from CAPA submitted to Rocketfest)

ABSTRACT

For my Capstone, I created a podcast, titled the Rocket Record. The podcast has a total of twelve episodes, constituting a first season. Every two weeks, a new original theme would be announced in the Advisory Memo, after which I would go around during lunch periods to interview students, making sure to have diversity of grade level; each episode would be around three minutes long. On Fridays, I would publish something called the “Friday Spotlight”—where I would interview a single senior on the same topic, in a more conversational manner; these would be around ten to fifteen minutes long.

LINK TO PODCAST: https://www.slamedia.org/?s=Rocket+Record+Podcast

LINK TO BIBLIOGRAPHY: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1q1TQxj8-xBtGqHKBltPIo50Jw9dO5pUwNHTR0tuSnCo/edit

BELOW: Photo of the average format of a podcast episode (top to bottom: title, podcast logo, episode player, podcast summary)