OHS seniors begin work on exhibition projects for graduation

It is usually about this time of the school year when a common ailment called ?senioritis? begins to settle in among the majority of graduating seniors in any high school; however, for senior students at Onaway High School, this is the time of the year when they embark on a second semester full of research, writing, and gathering new knowledge to share in their senior exhibition projects, which are a requirement for graduation.

OHS SENIOR Jessica Mason is starting off her second semester just as most of her classmates are ? by deciding what her exhibition will be all about. According to OHS officials, the exhibition projects stem from the English 12 course taught by Emily Cummings. Students are required to give an approximatly 10- to 15-minute presentation on a topic that is of interest to them, or an area that could be career related. In Mason?s case, she has chosen something that has been of interest to her since she was in elementary school.

?I?ve been fascinated by the Titanic story ever since the third grade,? said Mason. ?We watched a documentary about it in school, and since then I have been buying books on the Titanic, and watching movies ? I?m very interested in its story.?

As part of her exhibition project, Mason is required to have a mentor teacher guide her through the process; Mason?s mentor teacher is Mary Diller. Mason also is required to have an expert in her topic who can help steer her in the right direction. For this person, Mason had to look no further than the Great Lakes Lore Maritime Museum headquartered in Rogers City, where she found director Dave Erickson, as well as museum board member Steve Witucki, who have been more than willing to offer Mason information and tools she can use in her project.

?WE HAD a model of the Titanic that Jessica can use

for her presentation, and she is planning on creating a model of how the ship was after it sank,? said Erickson. ?Dan Hall (singer and songwriter) has wrote a song on the Titanic that can be shared, and Steve (Witucki) put a video together on the Titanic for her use.?

Mason will work with both Diller and Erickson throughout her project, meeting with them to share ideas, receive guidance, and help with the written report. When the projects are completed at the end of the school year, the mentor teacher and expert will be asked to join the student, along with two panel ?judges? for the final presentation.

Students will present a portfolio, which is basically a large scrapbook of their educational career. Students can show samples of their work, awards, and/or extra curricular activities. Lastly, the students will present their exhibition projects, and all of the months of hard work and research will be shared with the judges before the senior students take that one last walk as OHS students.