Senior Experience Guidelines '13

Click here for Senior Experience Guidelines for the Class of 2013

• Each Experience will take place a minimum of five days per week and a minimum of 5-½ hours per day (includes 30 minutes for lunch). If a company’s policy allows for a longer lunch break, the additional time must be added to the 5-½ hour time requirement. Exceptions to the time requirements must be approved by the Director.
• No wage or salary will be accepted by the student.

• An Experience that is clearly in the scope of true service to others is strongly encouraged.

• Generally, there should be only one Walsh Jesuit senior at an Experience location. Large law firms and medical facilities are notable exceptions. The Senior Experience Director will make the final determination on this issue. Also, a parent should not serve as the Community Sponsor for their son or daughter; someone else from that business should be the actual sponsor.

• It is Walsh Jesuit’s expectation that the development of the Experience with the community sponsor will be the work of the student, not his/her parents. This is a student-oriented project.

• In planning the Experience, consideration must be made regarding obligations the senior will have during the month of May. Students are excused from attending their Experience if they are taking an AP exam. Experience requirements must be fulfilled before attending an athletic practice or one’s work schedule; consideration is given, however, for approved school meets, games, or matches that may conflict with a particular student’s Experience.

• An Experience outside the Akron/Cleveland area is permissible. The Senior Experience Director will serve as the adviser on such projects. The senior must complete an Out-of-Town Project form (see the school’s website), as well as all Senior Experience requirements. Those planning an Experience of this type should inform the Director as early as possible.

• The following sites are strongly discouraged or rejected as a Senior Experience project: anything resembling an apprenticeship in the traditional trade groups (carpentry, plumbing, home construction), recreational project sites (country clubs, tanning salons, recording studios, health clubs). Appeals to the Senior Experience Director may be made.

• While involved in the Experience, each Walsh Jesuit student is expected to dress as deemed appropriate by the Community Sponsor.

• Walsh Jesuit seniors will be bound to the obligations of confidentiality that govern the activity in which they are involved. They should clarify these obligations with their community sponsor.

• While conducting the three-week Senior Experience, each senior is responsible for the following requirements:
  
  • A daily journal must be kept during the course of the Experience. In a spiral notebook (8 1/2 x 11), the senior will write one paragraph (c. 250 words) describing the day’s events and one paragraph (c. 250 words) of personal reflection on these events. Both paragraphs must total one full page as a minimum. This journal must always be in the senior’s possession during the Experience. The faculty visitor will examine the journal at each visit. If entries are not up-to-date, the student will need to return to school to see the Senior Experience Director that day.
  • A faculty or administration member will make contact with the senior during the first week of the project and follow up with a personal visit (as much as possible) during the remaining two weeks. Therefore it is imperative that the senior report by phone or email to the Senior Experience Director any variation in the time or location of the Experience as soon as possible. It is not a good thing for the visitor to show up and the senior is not at the specified location.
  • A three-page typed evaluation of the Experience is required at the occasion of the senior’s final evaluation hearing.

Senior Experience Calendar '13

Click here for Senior Experience Calendar Overview (January — June, 2013)
All Senior Students and their Parents need to complete the following online forms at the Walsh Jesuit website (www.walshjesuit.org). Failure to meet the deadlines set for these forms results in a $25 fine payable to Walsh Jesuit High School through the Business Office.

• The Community Sponsor Form (completed by the Sponsor on the website)
• My Senior Experience Project Form (completed by the Senior on the website)
• Senior Experience Contract & Parental Liability Waiver (completed by both parent & student on the website)

Monday, March 11, 2013 – The three online forms listed above are due to the Senior Experience Coordinator. A $25 fine is assessed for this missed deadline.

Monday, March 11 to Friday, March 15 — Students are required to make their appointment for a faculty hearing to approve their Senior Experience proposal. The available times are posted in the Commons during this period of time. Hearings will begin prior to Spring Break.

March 18 to April 30 — Faculty meet with each student to approve his/her Senior Experience project; failure to attend the hearing (including failure to have all relevant materials satisfactorily completed) results in a $25 fine.

Wednesday, May 1 & Thursday, May 2 — Senior Final Exams.

Friday, May 3 – Senior Breakfast (WJ Commons)

Monday May 6 to Friday May 24— Seniors attend Senior Experience Program.

Tuesday, May 28 to Thursday, May 30 — Faculty conduct final student evaluations; date and time are randomly selected by the Senior Experience Director. This schedule takes precedence over work schedules.

Wednesday, May 29 — Baccalaureate ceremonies in the Walsh Jesuit Chapel.

Sunday, June 2— Graduation ceremonies for the Class of 2013.

Calendar Explanation

1. Introduction of the Senior Experience Program to students will take place prior to Christmas Break. A Parent Information Night is scheduled for January 16, 2013.

2. The Planning Period: January to March 11 — Each senior will develop his/her own Experience during this time. Students planning an Experience outside of the Akron-Cleveland area will be advised by the Director. Student makes preliminary contact with the individual who will serve as the Community Sponsorat the Experience site. The student and sponsor will work out a job description, work hours (at least 5 ½), and other relevant project details. The Sponsor needs to submit the online form Community Sponsor Form by Monday, March 11, 2013

The Community Sponsor Form includes the following:

• Name or the Sponsor, the business address, phone/fax/email address
• A brief outline of the details of the Experience that the Sponsor & senior have agreed upon.
• Name of the student to be mentored.

     My Senior Experience Project includes the following:

• Senior’s name, email, cell phone (voluntary), home phone number.
• Sponsor name, place of business, address, business phone number.
• Agreement with Senior Experience requirements for graduation.
• Known scheduling conflicts with Senior Experience project.

   Parental/Student Liability Waiver includes:

• Agreement with the terms explained on the form.

3. Monday, March 11 to Friday, March 15 — Students will begin to sign up for a formal hearing with faculty members to approve their Senior Experience project. The appointment times will be made available in the Commons. It is each student’s responsibility to make the appointment during one of his/her free periods or after school.

4. Formal Hearings (March 18 to April 30) — Each student’s proposal must be approved by a faculty committee. A proposal that is not approved means that the content of the proposal does not meet the goals and expectations of the Senior Experience program. Other reasons for non-approval include an incomplete Proposal Form or, in the estimation of the committee, a student fails to adequately understand the requirements of the Senior Experience program. If a student’s proposal is unapproved, a $25 fine may be assessed and the student must make arrangements for a new hearing.

5. From May 6 through May 24 each student will fulfill the requirements of the Senior Experience program. Each senior will be visited regularly by a faculty member who will check the student’s journal and meet with the sponsor.

6. Final Evaluation — During the first week of June, each senior will meet with a faculty committee to formally evaluate their performance. Faculty will judge the evaluation on a pass/fail basis. At this evaluation (15 to 20 minutes in length), the student is required to:

• Make a five to seven minute oral presentation about the experience;

• Turn in a three-page, typed, personal evaluation of the experience;

• Complete a handwritten thank-you note to the sponsor.

2013 AP Exam Schedule

2013 Advanced Placement Exam Schedule

Students planning an out-of-town experience will need to contact Ms. Burgio before March 1. You will need to make arrangements to take your AP exam(s) at your new location.

Monday, May 6 – Chemistry and Environmental Science (8:00 a.m.) Psychology (JVLA) at Noon

Wednesday, May 8 – Calculus AB & Calculus BC (8:00 a.m.)

Thursday, May 9– English Literature & Composition (8:00 a.m.)

Friday, May 10 – English Language and Composition (8:00 a.m)  Statistics (Noon)

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Monday, May 13 – Biology (8:00 a.m.)Physics C: Mechanics & Physics B (Noon)

Tuesday, May 14 – U.S. Government & Politics (8:00 a.m.)

Wednesday, May 15 – United States History (8:00 a.m.)   Modern European History (Noon)

Thursday, May 16 – Macroeconomics (8:00 a.m.)