Senior Project 2011

Dear Families,

This time every year, I take the opportunity to introduce to you or remind you all of the Senior Project Program which occurs every spring.

LREI’s mission statement reads, in part, Our goal is to educate students to become independent thinkers and lifelong learners and to pursue academic excellence and individual achievement, in a context of respect for others and service to the community.

The Senior Project sends Twelfth Grade students into the world to actively pursue and demonstrate lifelong learning outside of the classroom, beyond the four walls of high school, and to live the life of the mind. Specifically, the Senior Project at LREI is an opportunity for students to pursue a particular area of interest or passion in an independent format.   In keeping with the school’s mission statement and progressive philosophy, the Senior Project emphasizes experiential learning and real-world application of knowledge.

As last year, all seniors participate in a Senior Project preparation class with me in Trimester II because the Project is comprised of several components, each of which requires student to plan, research, write, and reflect.  By the end of the Project, students must demonstrate their new learning in multiple ways, including but not limited to: publishing (on a Google site), performance, and presentation.  Projects will be approved and evaluated by the Senior Project Committee, which is composed of high school faculty and administration.  Once the proposal is approved by the committee, a faculty mentor will be assigned.  The faculty mentor will personally advise and assist the senior through their experiential component, which runs from Wednesday, April 6 through Friday, May 13, 2011.

LREI encourages and teaches our students to probe, to challenge and to develop one’s own interests and passions, and certainly the goal of the experiential component is to express our educational experience to those in the world of work or service.

In the past, our Seniors have enjoyed internship opportunities at Bleecker and Sullivan Advertising, Random House, Harlem Hospital, Mary Ellen Mark, DDC Lab, Democracy Now!, Public Theater, The Center for Constitutional Rights, Amnesty International, the UN Development Program, the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art (MoCCA), the Harlem Success Academy, NYU School of Medicine (Departments of Pathology, Dermatology and Cell Biology), Balthazar Restaurant, WNYC, and many, many more, thanks to the generosity of parents and friends of the school.

Even though we have been very successful in the past with placing our students in experiences that have matched their passion and interest and have made an impact to them, we could use your help!  Currently our seniors are expressing interest in the following fields:

  • publishing
  • journalism (print and other media)
  • community service working with disadvantaged children
  • education (specifically teaching ESL or related to older students or adults)
  • animal rescue, animal behavior
  • cultural studies
  • graphic design, web design
  • social justice
  • theater, film, dramatic arts
  • digital art
  • food service, catering

Some seniors have already secured their spring project, but some have yet to find that opportunity.  Can you offer an internship in any of the above fields?  Do you know someone who could use an exceptional and engaged intern in any field, including those listed above?  Please email me, rjurgensen@lrei.org,  in the coming weeks as we work tirelessly to help provide assistance to those seniors still looking for an opportunity  from April 6-May 13, 2011, for at least 20 hours a week. Our students are interested in a wide range of things. Therefore no opportunity, whether it be in an office setting, participating in field work or community service, is too big or too small.

As we grow our list of opportunities for the Class of 2011, we will also accept offers of internships or community service opportunities for all of our students for the summer, winter or spring breaks, or after school.  If you would like to offer an opportunity to all of our high school students, please let me know.  Many thanks in advance!

All the best, Ruth

Updates and Announcements:

1.  Our Knights are Red Hot!!
All teams are having a great season so far with exciting games both at home and away.
Come out to see them all in action next week as they face the faculty at the LREI Spirit Game!!
Also next week:

  • Friday, 1/28 at 3:30pm: SPIRIT GAME — All are welcome to come and cheer as our 7th-12th grade basketball teams take on the LREI Faculty! Please see flyer for details.

2.   Karamu! is this Friday, January 21st… Karamu! is LREI’s annual multicultural event of music, dance, and food celebrating the diversity of our school and community. Tickets are on sale … Karamu! always sells out; get your tickets early (discounted tickets available – contact multiculturalcommittee@lrei.org). We need food and volunteers! …Sign up boards will be in the 6th Avenue Lobby – please volunteer and join this wonderful community building event!

3.  If your contact information—address, phone numbers, email addresses—has changed since we distributed the directory in September, please contact Mary Shea, mshea@lrei.org, as she is preparing an updated directory for distribution in the coming weeks.

4.  Our new community cookbook, Downtown Potluck, a compilation of recipes from our talented parents and teachers, has been garnering praise in the media, including Time Out New York Kids and Esquire. It will be on sale at Karamu! and other upcoming school events. It will also be available through the school store, and in the Sixth Ave. lobby shortly before Valentine’s Day (perfect for gift-giving!). The book costs $25; supplies are limited. Email cookbook@LREI.org for information.

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