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My capstone is called Black Excellence in Action. It was a non-profit event on February 1st, an event kicking off Black History Months centenniel anneversery. It was a mindful celebration of Black Culture and Black history, allowing for a closer community by elevating local black businesses, showcasing local Black artists, and promoting local community organizations. I wanted to unite and ignite the month-long celebration of Black Excellence with the themes of Resistance, Pride, and Joy. The event was exciting, joyous, and motivational.

Link to the essay and bibliography: https://docs.google.com/document/d/11uQJCFIv1G5ryCddlBsAnMkg0Z7y9-1BMIDzufrV_RY/edit?tab=t.nbsqp28smlqh]

Here are some photos from the event as well

This Capstone is an encapsulation of the SLA art community, along with the importance of creativity and art in a school setting. The goal of this project is to allow people who have an interest in SLA to see how the school functions as a community and how art plays a major role in the academics at SLA. The final product is a website that allowes anybody to see the ways that students are able to express their creativity through art and art-based creations. My hope is that this website can answer questions that future SLA students may have about what SLA is truly like as a high school and how creativity is often prioritized.

https://sites.google.com/scienceleadership.org/slaartcommunity?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/document/d/16aG07BSIGdBEJJSFGUIqwD67k7w1C1TNW1Tpzfn9EQA/edit?usp=sharing

The goal of my capstone project was to improve the mental health of the staff and students of Science Leadership Academy. In order to do this, I planned and executed monthly events that I knew could help improve their mental health and give them something to look forward to. In February, I hosted a yoga session led by Ms. Siswick, in March I did bake sales where I altered between free treats and treats for sale,In April I hosted an “acts of kindness” week for people to send kindness notes to each other which included a fidget toy, and in May I provided free nail services to help with prom for juniors and seniors, and an art session. I chose this project because I find myself struggling mentally at times so, I know how much of a toll it can take on you with nobody even noticing. To execute the events I came up with I firstly gave myself a time frame of when I’d do each event because I knew I wanted to do multiple things. To let everyone know about my events I made flyers that I hung around the school, and sent them out in emails to try to let everyone know as best as possible.I’m glad to say I’ve left my mark at SLA in the most positive way possible.

Click the link below to see all the pictures and videos I’ve accumulated over the year!

To see a more in-depth view of my Capstone, click this link to view my planning doc.

For my capstone, a friend and I worked together to build a series of devices we called nodes that would sync together in a mesh system that would allow people to communicate with each other without the use of cellular service, mainly focused on people who enjoy the wilderness, where service may be spotty depending on location. To do this, we used the basic software of an open-source project, mixed with added elements like a GPS antenna and our own cases to store everything in.

This capstone taught me a lot about building a product and the engineering process for perfecting one. While I’m not sure I want to pursue a career where I have to invent new things, this experience building my own invention will help me find new creative ways to solve problems. This project also taught me how to store and analyze different data points to better understand how the nodes were working and what we could do to improve reliability.

For my capstone, I created Cheer Foundations, a beginner-friendly website designed to teach the fundamentals of cheerleading through instructional videos. My project focused on making cheer more accessible, specifically to beginners, by providing clear, step-by-step lessons on motions, jumps, and tumbling, while highlighting safety in each lesson. Throughout the process, I researched proper cheer techniques and safety guidelines while also filming and editing my own instructional videos. I faced challenges during the project, including weather conditions while filming outdoors, and recovering from a pulled ligament in my ankle, but I reworked my schedule and continued working on other parts of the website. From this experience, I learned about time management, leadership, and the importance of clear communication in teaching, especially when teaching physical skills. My final product is a professional website that encourages beginners and people who are less fortunate to learn cheer safely, confidently, and at their own pace.

For My Capstone I wanted to do something that educates people. I decided to make a website that focuses on the history of evolution of African-American hair. care has always been more than just a style and a black community, it represents identity, culture, creativity and self-expression. When I leave SLA I want to become a licensed cosmetologist, and making this website talks about things we don’t really hear about anymore that includes the history of African American hair. I created this Capstone to inform people of the significance and beauty of something I love doing. I also want people who do want to work in the beauty field in the future to know the history of what they love doing and just like me. A style isn’t just a hairstyle, it has a meaning behind it, it has a history behind it. Hair connects to confidence, representation, and definitely culture and it will continue to be an important part of African-American culture.

Capstone: https://yadiangeles.my.canva.site/heading

Bibliography: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ESWpflQw0LfZ1pzkiuL7RlL5pCWir4flX6QRH-3EE_A/edit?usp=sharing

For my capstone I decided to work with a young and inexperienced thoroughbred horse named Rakia who is one of the horses owned by Northwestern Stables. Rakia is a four year old gelding who previously wasn’t being worked with frequently which resulted in a lack of exercise. A lack of exercise and activeness in horses has the potential to lead to health complications and behavioral issues, so my goal was to provide a higher quality of life for him. I chose to do this for my capstone because of my passion for horses as well as my many years of experience as an equestrian, so this was an exciting opportunity to do something I love while making a positive impact on my community!

The process involved many training sessions where I had Rakia practice exercises to improve his ground manners and behavior. My goal was to have him become more tuned into his body and the space he takes up, as well as getting him to have more respect for my space as his handler. The final event of my capstone involved my participation with Rakia in Northwestern Stables’ annual spring horse show on May 17th. We competed in the Grooming and Showmanship class where the significant improvements to Rakia’s movement, attentiveness, and condition as a whole were demonstrated at the walk and trot. In the end, our efforts won the two us won a fourth place ribbon in the class! Overall, my capstone really helped me understand how important consistency is to progression, and how even small victories can prove to be very rewarding.

For my capstone project, I created a fitness and exercise education website focused on helping people better understand workout training, exercise selection, and the anatomy behind human movement. I combined personal interest in strength training with research into exercise science, muscle anatomy, and workout programming. Throughout the process, I designed multiple sections of the website, including an anatomy tab explaining major muscle groups and movement patterns, an at-home workout section for accessible training with minimal equipment, and a gym exercise library containing descriptions, targeted muscle groups, and recommended set and rep ranges for exercises. I researched reliable fitness and anatomy sources to ensure the information was accurate and educational while also organizing the website in a way that would be easy for users to navigate. Through this project, I learned more about web design and how difficult it can be for new users. I also gained a deeper understanding of how anatomy connects directly to exercise performance, injury prevention, and workout effectiveness. Overall, this project allowed me to use science, health, and education as a resource designed to make fitness knowledge more understandable and accessible for others.

https://sites.google.com/view/intro-to-exercise/home

My capstone was centered around blending my CTE engineering education and music experience to improve the SLA music spaces. I did this in two main parts; first by starting the SLA Rock Band and then subsequently improving the band room using direct feedback from the musicians using it. It was also important to me to get the SLA band involved in school events so that I could cement it as part of the community. I held rock band practice every Monday, and we played at both the SLA Game Show event and the SLA Art Show in the spring. We also collaborated with Juni’s capstone by playing several hours of music at the fundraiser.

For the engineering portion of my capstone, after playing with the band for a while and assessing what would be the most beneficial, I decided to focus on organization and simplifying the sound system process. Using funding from Braskem, I was able to organize the room using a pegboard and buy new equipment to fix and replace broken instruments. I created a binder to guide students that includes explanations about setting up for a performance, how to fix common issues they might encounter and a long list of song suggestions for future bands at SLA. Overall, my capstone renovated and created a friendly space where experienced musicians and new musicians can play together, as well as simplified the technical process of live music so students are capable and feel comfortable performing in SLA future.

• Below I have attached images of the pegboard I put up in the band room to organize new equipment, the guitars I was able to replace strings on and the secondhand bass we purchased with remaining Braskem funding.

Here is a picture from one of our three sets at Juni’s capstone event!

Here is a link to the information I left in a binder for the band room (to help guide future students):

Band Information

Here is a link to my annotated bibliography:

Annotated Bibliography

I created a 5 part miniseries centering around the 5 core values that have been so ingrained into us students since the first day of high school at SLA: Inquiry, Research, Collaboration, Presentation, and Reflection. As a CTE Digvid student, I put my focus in utilizing the skills I learned in Adobe Premiere Pro and personal art and creative skills to answer the question, “how is growth and development demonstrated in different ways within these core values?” As students, we are always growing. Though we may not know it, we enter high school as vastly different individuals than we leave as. I created this film not only to document my experience but to show other students the ways in which we can learn more about ourselves as we progress.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1MNnyW9hlyzz_vL63c3yO1ysthycwvNx5

For my senior capstone, I co-led RocketFest, which is a legacy capstone at SLA. It’s a student-run, city-wide film, photography, and (newly this year) graphic design festival celebrating the creative work of Philadelphia high school students. Working alongside my teammates Henry Blakelock and Desmond Maggione, our advisors, Ms. Ro and Mr. Rivera, and our mentor from WHYY, our guiding question was: how could we expand RocketFest’s annual tradition to uplift and recognize district students’ voices through media as much as possible? Our process began in September, when we started building our social media presence, researching venues, and coordinating community outreach. As head of Communications on our team, I managed all external relationships from reaching out to schools and participants, to partnering with a nonprofit for printed programs, to presenting to Braskem, and speaking at a CTE fair at Temple University! Our biggest obstacle was securing a venue within our limited budget, which kept us without a confirmed location for months. Ultimately, hosting at SLA’s auditorium turned out to be the right call, and on May 15th, we welcomed over 200 people to celebrate student artistry! The most important thing I learned is that a closed mouth truly never gets fed. Every connection, venue, and opportunity that made RocketFest successful came from someone being willing to ask. I grew enormously as a communicator and advocate, and I’m proud to have carried on a legacy that gives young artists, especially those in an underfunded district, a real public platform for their work. 🚀🎥

RocketFest 2026 Photobook

Hi everyone, for my capstone, I decided to do a voting guide for SLA students, which gives them all of the information on how to register to vote and what elections are coming up. I also have sections that talk about the importance of voting and why( for any students who are not sure if they want to register). Voting is something that gives us all a voice, and that voice gives us power, and that’s why I decided to do this as my capstone.

Full voting guide: file:///home/chronos/u-8b5de5fe6926e62fa2df8d87d4823f976178174b/MyFiles/Downloads/SLA%20VOTING%20GUIDE%202026%20-%20Google%20Docs.pdf

Annotated Bibliography: file:///home/chronos/u-8b5de5fe6926e62fa2df8d87d4823f976178174b/MyFiles/Downloads/Capstone%20Bibliography%20-%20Google%20Docs%20(1).pdf

For my capstone, I created an open website, titled Advocate For Change. About Gun Violence and Mental Health. On this website I added resources that students or philadelphia citizens can reach out to. These resources target young people who are also the focused audience of my capstone purpose. Which is to give young people and students a voice about how Gun Violence in the city affects their mental health. During my capstone production I also conducted several interviews and surveys involving SLA students on their perspective on gun violence.

Link to the website below:

https://yadiangeles.my.canva.site/advocate-for-change

My project is a slideshow explaining how to use the weightlifting equipment in Ben Franklin’s weight room. The presentation gives a step by step guide on how to use the equipment, common mistakes to avoid, and a short summary of the history of each workout. The goal is to help people who might be interested in joining the team learn early how to properly use the equipment.

My Senior Capstone was the teaching and revamping of the senior CTE Engineering Kerbal Space Program curriculum. Kerbal Space Program is a spaceflight simulation game, often used by educators due to its accurate physics model. I updated the software on all of the engineering computers, and I created a set of assignments for students to do. Throughout the process, I met with the Engineering teacher, Ms. Baruzzini, to coordinate and plan the lessons. I learned a lot about the responsibilities of teachers and the effectiveness of different types of teaching. During my teaching, I inspired multiple students to use Kerbal Space Program in their own time, which I consider a success. I believe this will inspire future SLA Engineers to pursue Aerospace Engineering.

Link to my Capstone: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1iq084FQSbQJG35lJHnxRF1C1C6p3WyYt?usp=sharing

For my Capstone, I created “Who Is The Image,” a multimedia website examining the representation of women of color in media and social media culture. Driven by my own experiences with harmful stereotypes and exclusion, my project went far beyond a traditional research paper, combining interview narratives, collage art, a podcast episode, anonymous social media submissions, a media literacy guide, and a community resource guide into a single interactive platform. My process involved extensive research into the historical roots of misrepresentation, designing interview protocols, hosting an identity collaging workshop, and collaborating with peers, totaling over 80 hours of work. The project aligns with my future studies in Media and Technology Cultures and reflects SLA’s core values of inquiry, collaboration, presentation and reflection. What I am most proud of is the non-traditional, human-centered approach I brought to my research, building a space for dialogue that treated participants as full people rather than data points. I hope my project models the kind of critical media literacy and community storytelling needed to challenge and rewrite the narratives that marginalize women of color.

Annotated Bibliography: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1mPH-A0Y20URyF3SqkkPxWfq4woTYc4WlLV1xKlTJS6k/edit?usp=sharing

Capstone Site: https://judicious-broker-539.notion.site/Who-Is-the-Image-34f1c401f9b08099ab08f46c659df8b7?source=copy_link

Textile arts stretch back thousands of years and are one of the oldest forms of storytelling modern people can still access. For my capstone, I wanted to visually capture a story of SLA’s community and what it has meant to me in shaping my high school experience through a quilted tapestry. Through this process, I also wanted to incorporate an issue that is very important to me, which is sustainability within arts spaces and the issues regarding the current pollution of the textile industry. For this reason, I completed my tapestry using only pre-owned or secondhand materials. In terms of the construction of my capstone, I used a multitude of fiber arts skills including sewing, quilting, looming, interfacing, embroidering, and beading. While I undertook this project with some basic experience, I was able to become a lot more confident both in refining the basics and developing new strategies to work around secondhand and recycled materials.

Bibliography https://docs.google.com/document/d/10KiYzqWOyAAsFDJSiDNy4ZW_lu_FHYkGmYEjd4-Qem8/edit?usp=sharing

An Old Marriage: For my capstone I decided that I would write a book. To be more specific I decided to write a book that covers different aspects of how people receive and show love. The process of making this book has been nothing short of hours and hours of reading and interviews, with various people, on the personal experiences they have had in their lives; while also simultaneously reading dissertations written by human behaviorist and how they studied the brain, observing how interactions drive our minds especially in areas of connecting with people. While I have digged in the nooks and crannies trying to figure out the true definition of human relationships and how we experience love: I’ve come to find myself in my writing. Not only has writing this book helped me understand the people around me it has taught me a major lesson, “no one is looking at you but yourself, and it takes surrounding yourself with people who love you, no matter the circumstance; for you to realize that you are enough.”

Best, Mila Rosario

Sports and Media have been the essence of my four-year journey here at SLA. Having been raised in an environment where sports have consistently been the thread that brings us together, I’ve always been captivated by the impact sports can have in forming a community. As a Digital Video student, it was important to me to make my Senior Capstone reflective of this, thus I set out to plan, organize, and host Media Days for our athletes here at SLA. There were certainly some unforeseen challenges that arose, such as real-life situations where we had scheduling conflicts, miscommunication, and even personal struggles with managing time. Despite not being able to document every sport that I had initially set out to, I would never give up. Overall, the goal of this project was to ensure that my peers felt recognized and honored for their efforts. This Capstone allowed me to gain invaluable experience in accountability and professionalism when it comes to planning and executing projects. This project has taught me the critical nature of holding yourself accountable, even if there will be some bumps along the way.

Annotated Bibliography: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1d-mcaThLrYz84OcKzSaO6ItaEEuFUKl0EBfc1-Id9nI/edit?usp=sharing

For my capstone, I partnered with fellow senior Kade Cao to create a website, called College Compass, to help juniors and seniors with the college application and decision process. The website contains information about FAFSA and deadlines, resources like Xello, college myths, workshops, networking, advice and experiences from alumni, and much more. I also created a youtube channel for the post-secondary office that can be used by future CALs as another platform to share information with the SLA community.
While going through the college process myself, I realized how stressful and confusing it was. Though SLA provides numerous resources for students, it can be hard for everyone to be seen and for one person to handle all of the college needs of seniors and juniors. My goal for this project was to create a product that could be edited as things changed over time, but mainly provided additional support and information for students. I also wanted it to open students’ minds about what to consider and what other options are available to them. My portion of the capstone was to interview SLA alumni about their college application experience and how they’ve adjusted. In order to host productive and useful interviews I needed to do a lot of research about questions to ask, the differences in kinds of schools, and also research other post-secondary options. I ran into some trouble while trying to get in touch with alumni because many of them didn’t use their personal emails. However, I overcame this by finding alternative ways of getting in touch with them. One thing that I wish I did differently was include information about trade schools. I wasn’t able to get in touch with any alum who chose that path, but I included information about other options like schools abroad and gap years.
Through this project I gained a lot of helpful information for the transition to college that I’m about to make and also advice that I wish I had heard before going through the college process. I also gained a lot more confidence in my own voice and talking to people that I either don’t know or don’t know very well.

College Compass Website Link: https://vssyen.wixsite.com/college-compass

My annotated bibliography:

One of the problems I saw at Sla was the lost and found we have. As someone who loses everything that he owns, I need a place that I can be sure I can go to find my property. Our old lost and found was just a flimsy coat rack and a recycling bin; not only was it inefficient, but it also didn’t fit many clothes in it. Throughout my years at Sla, I have lost many things, from water bottles to sweaters to even coats, and because of that, I chose to fix this problem. Completing this capstone project was difficult. There were many challenges that I was forced to overcome, but by overcoming them, I was able to complete my capstone. Some of the steps I took to complete this project were first finding a good mentor. I personally found my mentor, who specializes in engineering, which was a big help in finishing my project. Something I did learn was how to figure out a solution when a problem appears.

Finished product:

Link to my Annotated Bibliography: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1nZotaKQ2S4pIVaev-hG57BvjgRok0o5fkspPymQD88s/edit?usp=sharing

For my Casptone, I painted the SLA core values on the stairwell. WHY? Well, I recently conducted a survey/interview with students at SLA from every grade, and I planned to get everyone’s opinions and quiz them about SLA. So I asked people if they knew the SLA core values, and I noticed everyone gave the same response: “I don’t know. “I’m not sure,” or them naming a couple, then give up. So I notice this is a big problem because these values are what make our school what it is today, along with our community and our students’ lives. Because of that, I wanted that to change while using art, and so that’s how my project came about.

Throughout this process, I’ve been brainstorming about what I wanted to do, what the sketches of how I wanted it to be painted looked like, then tracing, executing, and bringing it to life. Throughout my process of making this happen, the biggest thing I learned was not to wait until the last minute. For instance, don’t start your capstone two months before it’s due, and I thought my project wasn’t gonna take as long, but it was longer than I anticipated, so everything was kind of cramped in, and I would stay after school for like 4 hours, then come home at 8 o’clock. Overall, what I learned was to manage my time better.

This Capstone project was undertaken with the goal of improving the engineering room as a place of learning. To accomplish this, three models were created for four air and spacecraft: a realistic model, an artistic model, and an educational model. The realistic models were designed in AutoCAD Fusion 360 and produced using a 3D printer. The artistic models were created as unique posters for each craft in Adobe Photoshop, and the educational models were presented as websites containing the history and functionality of each aircraft.

This project was selected due to the personal significance of the engineering room. More time was spent in Room 601 than any other room at SLA — not only for classes, but also for lunch, lab sessions, and after-school studying. As a result of this connection, the project was shaped by a desire to give back to the space and to Ms. Baruzzini, and to leave the room in a better state than it was found.

Link to site: https://sites.google.com/scienceleadership.org/milesbleicapstone/home

For my 2026 capstone, I hosted three workshops throughout the month of March through the creation of the SLA Art Lounge. The first workshop on March 10th was button making. Students had the opportunity to create as many buttons of their own design and creativity as they wanted. The second workshop on March 17th was bedazzling. Students brought their own personal items to bedazzle whether it was sunglasses, school chromebooks, lipstick, and much more! The third and final workshop hosted on March 24th was decoden! Students had access to charms, decoden cream, and objects that could be decorated on such as jars, trinket boxes, and picture frames! At the end of my workshops, every student kept their personalized and decorated items home to adorn their rooms, phones, and backpacks!

For my Senior Capstone project, I created and taught a mini course titled “Music and Performance 101” while also organizing a schoolwide showcase called “SLA Centerstage”. The purpose of my project was to highlight the importance of the arts at SLA and create opportunities for students to express themselves through music, dance, and live performance. Throughout the process, I developed lesson plans, created an Understanding by Design curriculum, organized rehearsals, recruited performers and volunteers, coordinated stage crew and lighting, and collaborated with mentors, students, and staff members to bring the showcase to life. In the mini course, students learned music fundamentals such as rhythm, chords, songwriting, piano, and guitar basics before forming bands and preparing performances for the final showcase.

Alongside the course, I organized additional elements including a dance team, cheerleader performances, a DJ, intermission activities, and a Senior Tribute section featuring a live musical medley and Senior Sign-Off video. Throughout the process, I faced challenges involving scheduling, communication, performer attendance, and last-minute changes, which taught me the importance of flexibility, organization, and leadership. Despite these obstacles, the showcase was highly successful and positively impacted students, staff, and administrators throughout the school community. Through this project, I learned valuable skills involving teaching, event planning, collaboration, communication, and adaptability. Most importantly, I was able to create a meaningful experience that celebrated creativity, strengthened the arts at SLA, and hopefully established a tradition that future students can continue for years to come.

Links to Videos and Pictures of both the Showcase and Mini Course: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1zy3hYZSqpYzSUYKeHxx79BhYacJo14BY?usp=drive_link

Link to Annotated Bibliography: file:///Users/destinyharris/Downloads/Destiny’s%20Capstone.pdf