Update on Status of The Graduation Project Requirement

   Session Law 2009-60, ratified in June, prevents any student from being required to work on the graduation project as a state requirement for graduation until July 2011. The legislation authorizes a study of the project – the results of which are to be shared with the General Assembly by July 2010.

   Since the philosophy of the Graduation Project specifies a four-year experience, the project as a requirement has been delayed until at least the graduating class of 2015. The State Board will be reviewing the status of the project over the next few months, and schools will be receiving further information during the fall.

   Durham Public Schools will not require students to complete the project until further direction from the Department of Public Instruction.  The SBE continues to hear from university partners as well as business and industry that the project is the best assessment in the state’s assessment portfolio.

Northern Graduation Project Coordinator:
Erin Hensler
click here to email Ms. Hensler

560-3956 x56211

DPS Graduation Project Site

NC DPI Graduation Project Site

High School Juniors Need Graduation Project Mentors!

   Attention Durham community members!  Durham Public Schools is looking for 2,500 Graduation Project mentors – and you could be one of them!
   An entire class of high school juniors is now required by the State Board of Education to complete a graduation project,  including a paper, portfolio, product and presentation.  Also, students are required to find a mentor to coach them in the project.
   This project is required for graduation, so it is of the utmost importance that community members invest in students and their education by becoming a Graduation Project mentor.  By volunteering to be a mentor, you help ensure that high school graduates have the skills needed to succeed in today’s workplace.
   As a Graduation Project mentor, you would agree to coach students for one to two years as they develop a topic, write a paper and put together a product and presentation.  Qualified applicants are 21 years or older and have expertise in a field that a student is researching. 
   This is a great opportunity for you to invest in a student’s education in a vital and strategic way.  Even if you are unable to invest the time to be a project mentor, Durham Public Schools needs professionals to serve as members on a review panel for the projects.
   For more information visit http://www.dpsnc.net/volunteers or contact Sheila Miglarese at 919.560.3816 or her email.