Senior Leadership Experience

The Fox Cities Leadership Academy (FCLA) offers a rigorous, contemporary, interdisciplinary curriculum that culminates senior year with a student-designed Capstone Project to further develop:

Critical thinking skills - Problem solving abilities - Leadership capacity

• Earn a Wisconsin Youth Leadership Skills Certificate issued by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction
• Rigorous curriculum means all courses have asterisks on your transcript
• Develop a professional leadership portfolio and resume
• Complete internships as a way to explore post secondary and career options
• Join a non-traditional learning community grounded in interdisciplinary coursework, contemporary issues, and students working collaboratively with other students, staff, and community members.

FCLA Senior Capstone Overview and Requirements

What is the purpose of the FCLA Senior Capstone Project?

The FCLA Senior Capstone Project is designed to provide you with an opportunity to apply all that you have learned in the four years of high school to a project, which will extend your learning, stretch your potential, and challenge your abilities. It is also hoped that through this rigorous project you will gain the following skills that will prepare you for your post-secondary experience:

• Project Management
• Responsibility
• Critical Thinking
• Discipline
• Creativity
• Leadership

The Four Main Outcomes of the FCLA Senior Capstone Project Are:

Product

• Performance/Event
• Demonstration
• Design
• Service

For example. . . A possible FCLA Senior Capstone Project for someone who might be interested in English Language Learners might be to investigate how people acquire a second language and produce a bilingual book for young children about a cultural event (Cinco de Mayo, Chinese New Year, etc.). This product will require you to write the story, translate the story, illustrate the story, and bind the final copy.

Paper

• Documented Research Paper of some kind (works cited)
• Type of paper you do will be determined by your project

For example… If you plan to produce a bilingual book, would it be important to know how culture impacts the acquisition of a second language? You might want to write a research paper entitled “English Language Learners: The Role of Culture in the Acquisition of a Second Language.”

Presentation

All capstone presentations will be done during the final seminar round of the school year and will include a senior exit interview with a community member as well as an evaluation of your final senior portfolio

Documentation

• Evidence of your journey
• Evidence of community experience
• Detailed Project Logs and accurate records
• Typed notes
• Highlighted articles, etc…
• Lessons you’ve learned and personal growth

Requirements:

• Has to be at least 1 credit minimum
  •  1 credit = 180 hours
• Must be research-based and solve a problem: there is a driving question/thesis
• Designed to be completed with guidance of a mentor or expert in the field (primary resource other than your FCLA teachers)
• Needs to be a “learning stretch” for you
  • Challenging
  • Something you’ve never investigated before
• Needs to incorporate community based experience
  • May include internship or service learning opportunities (Job shadow, volunteer, interview/create primary source)
  • Minimum 10 hours of experience off campus
  • Additional credit can be earned for completing an internship or service learning experience.
• Include a Reading Portion
  • Choose a novel or piece of literature that corresponds with same theme as project

How will I receive approval for my FCLA Senior Capstone Project?

• You will complete and submit a Letter of Intent to your FCLA senior capstone teacher for approval by the rest of the FCLA staff.
• You will need to include: why you selected your topic, what you will research on your topic, what product or performance you will produce, how this is a stretch beyond your current knowledge and skills, and a pledge to avoid plagiarism.