I created a one-shot manga chapter that includes roughly 20 pages and a cover. A manga is a style of comic books that originated in Japan and is read from right to left. A one-shot manga specifically is a type of manga that has the entire story included within the lesser amount of pages given for the story. They are similar to a television pilot as one-shot manga are often written to be submitted in a writing contest and can possibly develop into a full-length series. My capstone project addresses the SLA core values through the messages in the story. The teacher of the main character is constantly asking questions to gain a better understanding of new knowledge. The teacher and their family’s constant research over generations is the reason they and the people around them were able to progress in the world they live in. Collaboration is shown through the peace and bonds built upon successful collaboration of a community. Presentation was shown through character interactions as well as my best attempt at paneling and drawing. The main character undergoes growth stemming from self reflection. The teacher’s application of these core values is what allows the main character to succeed, displaying the benefits of the SLA core values. The steps I focused on were meeting with my mentor, organizing my ideas in a google document, practicing drawing, and researching the manga creation process.

I decided to base my capstone on mental health. Specifically, women facing Domestic Abuse. The inspiration for why I based my capstone on Domestic Abuse, was due to having close relatives and friends who had previously gone through this traumatic experience. Countless stories are being told every single day. But I wanted to take the initiative to uplift those who have once experienced Domestic Abuse. Mental Health is one of the most important elements of well-being. After hearing story after story, and some of the mechanisms people do when they’re in a state of anxiety, shame, guilt, and so on, people tend to make decisions that they’ll either later regret or get trapped in a state where they keep every emotion “bottled up”. For my capstone, I did countless research on safe havens I could potentially reach out to and form activities. That had been one of the most challenging factors I had to endure. Although it had been challenging, I learned that networking is one of the most important skills a person should have throughout their lives.

Volunteering at a safe haven came with many rules and regulations. For instance; Certain pictures and recordings aren’t allowed due to the safety of each woman, which is why my visuals are only a few images, one recording of an interview I did with one of the staff members, and a resume I had created for one of the girls. My visuals represent some of the activities The Girls and I did.

For my capstone, I filmed and edited a video on the history, core values, and benefits of Science Leadership Academy. I wanted to make something for possibly people looking to apply, or anyone who wants to know more, really. I interviewed Mr. Lehmann and some students to get not only my own perspective, but the perspective of many others about the community and history of SLA.

https://drive.google.com/drive/u/1/folders/13G8bA2bdnKWx6JpWviC21qjo-H8UlCq_

For my project i wrote a fantasy story. I read through and edited it twice and had someone else read through it as well. I learned that writing is hard, writer’s block is a difficult obstacle to get by, and to always make sure that you are enjoying what you are writing, because it gets significantly harder if you aren’t.

For my capstone, I wanted to make sure it’d be something I’d enjoy, which led me to the thought of having an art show. There are a lot of artistic students at our school, so I wanted my capstone to allow students in my school to show their creativity and thoughts through their work. Sort of like an outlet for others’ art. My process was difficult for me, especially in the beginning . I decided to collaborate with my art teacher, Ms. Angeles, to bring people’s attention to art done by others in SLA. I had to learn to put myself in front of people and advertise my show, something I’ve never done before till now. When it came to setting up the show in April, I had great help from some underclassmen. Having an art show is a great way to get people to connect and spark others’ minds. That is something that we need in the world, and I decided to start by doing here.

To see photos of the Art Show, click this link: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1spqXeyU48u4uFCxwKK3BfdmzBas2tWw6bMui46NVuSA/edit?usp=sharing

For my capstone, I wanted to connect with my community, and learn from others. This website is a collection of audios from many different kinds of people, answering the question “what would you do if you could speak to your younger self?” The interviews are either in English and in Spanish, and each one is transcribed in both the original and translated language. They are organized by age on different pages. With such a broad scope of topics, my hope was that anyone who wanted advice or a specific question answered, they could find it here.

Link to website: https://sites.google.com/scienceleadership.org/liadunakin-capstone/home

For my capstone, I designed a series of posters that aimed to educate kids about animals in a playful manner and put these posters up at Smith Memorial Playhouse and Playground. I collaborated with a mentor who works at Smith, and ultimately created ten posters, each one focused on an animal that can often be spotted at Smith. For every poster, I chose a fun fact relating to that animal’s behavior or anatomy, and included a brief description of this characteristic. Then I created a play prompt relating to the characteristic. This prompt allows the signs to be both informative and engaging for the visitors. Throughout my research for this project and the work I did on it, I learned about the importance of play-related education for young children and was able to combine my appreciation for Smith’s unique play space and my childhood fascination with animals.

For my capstone I decided to immerse myself into the process of learning the basics of creating and designing a game without previous education. In my work, I aimed to create all the core elements of an interactive experience, that being an original soundtrack, originally designed sprites, as well as creating the code itself. With no prior background, I was not able to fully complete a finished game within the capstone work time, however I have developed a large collection of personalized artwork, a complete soundtrack, as well as a list of useful sources for others who might be looking to begin their virtual development journey. My process began with a brainstorming phase, just as any other large project would, however instead of doing research prior to my work, I found that it was much more effective to conduct research as I progressed with my capstone. That way I can problem solve and fit my need for personalized issues. As my ideas progressed, code creation became much more time consuming and these obstacles became more complex, resulting in more research. All this has led me to be very knowledgeable in the most efficient learning sources while working in this subject matter.

Link to access work: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Fi5AEzNHVIGTUvFi41Mvz5-vuHoJTTw0?usp=sharing

For my senior capstone project, I restarted the SLA Selfcare Club. This club started in my sophomore year but due to the struggles of getting used to in person school, it did not continue. Due to the slow start up of the club two years ago, I knew that I wanted to bring the club back for my capstone. The origin of this club started over zoom in freshman year where everyone was in isolation and going through a huge change. The goal was to bring people together as a community but also improve oneself. Throughout the year, the SLA Selfcare Club has held two workshops, two spirit weeks, a fundraiser and also a freshman advice sheet. All events took a lot of brainstorming and planning which paid off in the end when the club would have many students engaging. My capstone project took a lot of dedication and promotion in hopes that it will enlighten the SLA community with new opportunities to build itself up. Through the club events, I was able to provide an engaging and loving space for all students to interact and spread kindness to one another.

Below shows he SLA Selfcare Club instagram page where new events would be posted. Along with the SLA Selfcare Club Calendar with all the events hosted. This is the link: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1p87XrqfxoCHvbkETzEADeGxpxpqicalJGKCD3duzboQ/edit?usp=sharing

This is the link to my bibliography: https://docs.google.com/document/d/19hoQ0fM6UJ3lepeOHgAu6_nTo07Hvdt4hXL2Hfe-eTI/edit?usp=sharing

My capstone project “Building Bridges Through Illustrated Stories” was created with the intention of exploring and sharing my Sudanese culture with an audience, specifically children. For my project, I wrote a children’s book titled “The Lost Heirloom: A Sudanese Story” and worked with a small group of students at Penn Alexander School to help create the illustrations. The children’s book follows a young girl named Miriam embarking on a journey with her grandmother to explore Sudan. The book is written in a way to engage and educate a younger audience about Sudan and allow children to learn about celebrating culture and heritage. I was able to learn more about my culture through my family and learned about the power of storytelling and how important it is to share these cultural experiences with others.