Academics
Upper School

Senior Projects

The Senior Project, the final graduation requirement for every St. Andrew's student, has always been described as a gift. It's a gift of time, independence, and opportunity.

The Gift of Time

Every May, seniors leave the classroom to pursue a project entirely of their own design.
This month represents a bridge between the structured learning of high school and the self-directed work they'll encounter in college and beyond.

Students identify something they're passionate about, develop a plan, secure a faculty mentor, and spend four weeks fully immersed in bringing their vision to life. They return to campus in late May to present their experiences to the community, sharing not just what they created but what they learned in the process.

The Possibilities

Senior Projects take all kinds of shapes and reflect the unique interests of each class.

There are maker projects—they build furniture, compose original music, paint, sculpt, write children's books, design clothing lines, or craft canoes. There are service projects, when seniors give their time and talents to others by teaching ESL classes, organizing donation drives, preparing meals for those experiencing homelessness, or cleaning local waterways.

Many students pursue internships or research projects, shadowing professionals in fields like medicine, law, architecture, or sustainable agriculture.

They write academic papers on topics that matter to them, develop apps, create podcasts, earn certifications in scuba diving or yoga instruction, or produce one-person shows. The variety is as wide as the students themselves, making Senior Project Presentation Day one of the most exciting days of the year.



Example Projects, 2024-2025

List of 7 items.

List of 7 items.

  • Exploring the Craft of Bread-Making

    "Sourdough, focaccia, naan, & conchas! I learned about baking techniques, cultural traditions, and scientific processes through bread making."

  • Hand-Crafted Tiki Mask

    "I created a hand carved tiki mask using basswood. No electronic tools were used so as to make the carving as traditional as possible."

  • Metalsmithing and Creating a Jewelry Line

    "I learned all about metalsmithing and jewelry-making. My project showcased the technical and creative processing of designing, creating, and manufacturing my own jewelry line."

  • Poker Night: A Short Film

    "A short film directed by me about a poker night: as the night continues, tensions rise, and the stakes do too."

  • Pupil Planner: An iOS School Planner App

    "I created an iOS app to manage tasks and plan your school life. I documented the programming, design, planning, and documentation process."

  • Stranger Than Fiction: A Podcast About Unbelievable but True History

    "The history you were never taught! I mapped out and recorded a podcast uncovering some of history's weirdest and most bizarre tales, trends, and secrets."

  • The Lost Art of the Album

    "I created an album of original music - all killer, no filler. I wanted to explore the art of a cohesive record, rather than a bunch of singles slapped together."
"I learned that people are more generous than I thought."
"I learned that nobody is going to help unless you ask for help."
"I learned that things are bound to go wrong."
"I learned that a month goes by way too fast when you’re doing something you enjoy."

Lessons That Abide

The lessons that seniors learn are the true curriculum of the Senior Project. 
They learn lessons about resourcefulness, resilience, time management, self-reliance, and so much more. After years of teachers crafting much of their learning experiences, this is the moment when they truly hand the reins over to students. The result isn't always perfect, but it's always meaningful. Students teach themselves hard and true lessons that emerge and stay with them long after graduation.

Authors of Their Own Learning

The Senior Project program honors the creative, ambitious, and sometimes wonderfully unpredictable nature of young people on the edge of adulthood.
It's a final stone in the building of their academic foundation and a first step toward the independence they'll need in their next chapter. Whether projects are ambitious or modest, carefully executed or adapted along the way, each one represents a student's choice to spend a month becoming the author of their own learning. Senior Projects are where students practice being adults: making decisions, living with consequences, and discovering what they're capable of when given the time and trust to figure it out themselves.

Lower & Middle School

Upper School