(May 24, 2013) — Seniors filled classrooms as they presented their oral boards in front of a panel of judges this past Friday and Saturday. They had worked throughout the year on their senior projects, and their presentations were the last step that would bring their projects to a close.

Many nervous seniors sat outside classrooms waiting to be called in. For the first time this year, seniors had the option of presenting on Friday. Once the students had finished their presentations, they would come out with congratulatory pin in hand, happy and excited that not only were they finally done, but they had also performed well.

Before Isabella Karaguezian had her turn to present her project on pet overpopulation, she was anxious and excited at the same time. “I just wanted to get it out of my system,” Karaguezian said. After practicing about five times on Friday, she was ready to go.

One of her worries was that, while presenting, she did not want to appear as if she had not done a lot of work and sound uneducated. However, after presenting, she felt satisfied. “I was very pleased. I worked hard and I devoted a lot of time on this [project].”

Thanks to her senior project, Karaguezian said she gained many skills, such as how to communicate with adults, how to manage time and how to develop patience with kids — since she read stories to a classroom of kids as part of her field work.

Eliza Turdzhyan had similar feelings as Karaguezian as she presented her project on the exploration of film making. Despite not having a fear for public speaking, she was worried about not being able to answer the questions that would follow her talk.

One question she feared being asked was how her final product, which was a documentary she filmed and edited, connected with her research paper. Although the judges did ask her that, she was very excited to answer the other questions dealing with film because she knew the answers. “I loved talking about the questions [the judges] asked, especially about the Oscars. My face just lit up,” Turdzhyan said.

From her project, she learned a lot about leading a team and time management. In the end all went well. “I cannot believe I’m saying this, but it went way better than expected. I thought it would be mediocre,” Turdzhyan said.

Presenting his project on pitching a show was Brendan Mallory. Before entering the room to do the oral boards, Brendan said that he was nervous. Mallory was also worried about the questions asked afterwards. “I did not know how responsive to be,” he said. “I did not know what they were going to do.”

However, he found the questions to be valid since he knew the answers. “Do not be nervous because it went so much better than expected,” said Mallory, who also offered this advice to future seniors: “Bring water.”