Senior Celebration       One student poses with article clippings of her soccer career at Lakeside High School. She will be attending Eastern Washington University in the fall where she will continue to play soccer.

As part of the State’s Essential Academic Learning Requirements (EALR’s), seniors at Lakeside High School participate in Exit Interviews or “Senior Celebration.” Goals three and four of the EALR’s have a career and school to work component. A culminating “Senior Project” is now a state graduation requirement. Each school district is allowed to determine the scope of the project.

For our seniors, the exit interviews/presentations were given in front of a panel of Lakeside faculty and community members. Each senior presented a portfolio of his/her high school experience, which included academic accomplishments, extracurricular activities/hobbies, and community service/volunteer work. Some students included PowerPoint slide shows as part of their presentation. Then, they were to outline their post graduation plans, be it college, work, or military service. These presentations were to be about ten minutes.

One teen plans on translating his love of motorcycles into a career. He will be attending Motorcycle Mechanics Institute in Arizona to learn motorcycle mechanics. He hopes to have his own shop one day. In high school, wrestling had a big impact on him. He learned discipline and hard work pay off; he qualified for the State Tournament two years in a row, placing eighth and fifth, respectively.

The 2008 class valedictorian shared that her favorite classes at Lakeside were AP English, Current World Affairs, and Spanish. She participated in soccer, track, FCCLA, International Club, Knowledge Bowl, and National Honor Society. She spent her junior year in Germany as a foreign exchange student. She will attend Eastern Washington State University and plans to earn a teaching credential to teach English as a second language. After college she would like to volunteer in the Peace Corps.

For another student, sports have been a big part of his high school experience. He has played three sports: football, basketball, and baseball. He is most proud of earning sportsmanship awards at State tournaments in both basketball and baseball. Even while playing three sports, he has worked part time at the Warehouse in Spokane as a referee/scorekeeper/clean-up man. He plans on attending Spokane Falls Community College to earn an AA, then transfer to a four year school. He would like to become a teacher and coach “any sport.”

At the end of the presentations, the panel was able to ask questions to either clarify points or to delve further into a certain area. A grading rubric was provided, with the seniors graded on Attire, Preparedness, Research of Career, and Ability to Answer Questions. Through projects such as Senior Celebration, Lakeside High School’s students are provided with the opportunity to plan for their future.

Special thanks to all the community members who served on a panel.