The Black and White

by Kaylie Martell

The Rhode Island Department of Education mandates the completion of Capstone Projects as a graduation requirement. This initiative ensures that students demonstrate proficiency beyond courses and course work, showing students have developed essential skills such as research, communication, collaboration, problem-solving, critical thinking, reflection, and evaluation. 

Capstone Projects serve as one of the last experiences in a student’s educational journey, incorporating knowledge and skills acquired over their twelve years of learning. These projects are designed to simulate real-world scenarios, preparing students for professional environments. To fulfill the requirement, students must complete a minimum of twenty hours and achieve a perfect score on their annotated bibliography. Pathway students are additionally required to submit four distinct artifacts. 

Mrs. Bernardi, Graduation by Proficiency Coordinator at Pilgrim High School, discussed the overall quality of this year’s presentations, stating, “The presentations were overall very good! ” However, she noted that some students encountered challenges with meeting deadlines. Despite these challenges, as of this writing, the senior class is about 3% away from achieving a 100% completion rate. Mrs. Bernardi emphasized the importance of the Capstone Project as it is a reflection of real-world expectations, such as jobs and job interviews. She remarked, “Capstone Projects are not difficult but they are time-consuming and they are meant to mirror gaining skills to prepare for a job interview, which is what the presentation represents. Like anything in life, you’ll generally get out of your Capstone Project what you put into it.” 

Featuerd below is a rundown of the students achieving distinction level on their Capstone Projects.

Pathways- Distinction

1. Madison Delaroca – Urban Soc & Food Insecurity
2. Avery Donovan – Biotech & the Ocean 
3. Mia Donnell – Biotech & Advances in Science 
4. Leah Eaton – Lifesaver & Life-threatening Bleeding Training for All 
5. Sokhna Amy Faye –  Biotech & Medical Treatment
6. Grace Ferland – Biotech & Cannabis Use Changing DNA
7. Gracelynn Ferreira –  Lifesaver & EMTs Handling Labor Delivery 
8. Camden Forrester – Biotech & Medical Technology Advancements
9. Kamryn Gavin – Choral – Building Structure & Sound 
10. Colin Hlavacek – Band – Music & Memory 
11. Alexandra Howlett – Choral – Grief Processed & Expressed Through Music
12. Misharel Johnson – Biotech & Microorganisms Environmental Interaction
13. Taylor Mark – Biotech & Chemistry in Product Development
14. Brodie McKay – Choral – Music & Brain Development 
15. Kaitlyn Nelson – Lifesaver & Home-Based vs Hospital-Based Labor & Delivery
16. Marin Prest – Biotech & Marine Biology 
17. Juliany Quezada – Studio 107 & Animation
18. Jordania Rivera – Choral – Impact of the School’s Ensemble Program
19. Daegan Shepherd – Studio 107 & Cinematography 
20. Kaley Simas – Choral – Music and Mental Health 
21. Jordyn Toledo – Biotech & Agricultural Practices
22. Alexis Warburton – Lifesaver & Pediatric Physician Assistant
23. Yahaira Wilcox – Biotech & Impact on Urban Societies
24.  Noah Wyman – Lifesaver & Cardiac Emergency Training for All 

Traditional Projects – Distinction 

1. Eliana Araujo- Warwick Pilgrim Senior Center – Facilitated various activities to increase social engagement and improve mental health (29 hours)
2. Keaney Bayha – Girls State Program hosted by American Legion Auxiliary – Demonstrated the inner workings of a state-level senate, wrote a mock legislative bill, debated on a mock senate floor and ran a mock government. (120 hours)
3. Olivia Cliff – Science Exploration in Organic Chemistry on Molecules and Matter in Crime Scenes
   (25+ hours)
4. Dahir Brutus Jourdain – Prepare RI Internship at Refugee Dream Center of RI supporting the mission of center and assisting with the needs of those who utilize the centers varies resources. (300+ hours) 
5. Gianna Chasse – Glimmer of Hope Foundation – Collected 85 Books for Hasbro’s “Good Night Ligths” program & Hosted 2 Christmas Gift Giving Events (23+ hours)
6. Michaela FitzGerald – Co-Developed Pilgrim’s Peer to Peer Club for Mental Health Support Lead by Students (20+ hours)
7. Leah Franchetti – Rhode Island Writing Project hosted by Rhode Island College – help adolescents write stories which were later compiled into individual books of the stories each participant wrote (30 hrs)
8. Henry Iech – Rhode Island Hospital Internship under Dr Jonathan Reichner,  Department of Surgery – Conducted extensive lab experiments that led to the creation of elastic hydrophilic wells, preparation of blood samples for experiments, and synthesis of gels (250 hours)
9. Riley Rastella – PreHabRI Physical Therapy – Trained to understand the mechanisms of sports-related knee injuries with surgical and non-surgical treatment plans. (24 hrs)

Congratulations to the Class of 2025! Good luck as you embark on your future journeys!