Adrian College Senior Capstones highlight lessons learned

Aug 24, 2020Around the Mall, Featured

U.S. News & World Report once again listed Adrian College as a top regional college in the Midwest (No. 18, tie) and ranked the institution in seven categories for 2020, including Senior Capstone, a new designation this year, where the Bulldogs ranked 20th in the nation.

In 2019, U.S. News & World Report invited college presidents, chief academic officers, deans of students and deans of admissions from more than 1,500 schools to nominate up to 15 institutions with stellar examples of senior capstones. Only colleges and universities that received 10 or more nominations were ranked.

A senior capstone is a final assignment where students demonstrate and synthesize what they’ve learned. Capstones vary in form depending on the major. The project might be a thesis, a performance or an exhibit. The capstone is intended to apply all of the knowledge and skills gained over a college career in one assignment.

“This national ranking from the U.S. News and World Report shows just how much our faculty cares about their students,” said Dr. Andrea Milner, Adrian College Vice President, Dean of Academic Affairs. “Our professors went out of their way to ensure the senior students were able to finish and submit their capstones after a very sudden transition to online studies due to the coronavirus pandemic.”

This national ranking from the U.S. News and World Report shows just how much our faculty cares about their students.

Dr. Andrea Milner

Vice President, Dean of Academic Affairs

Ashley Johns, of Brownstown, Mich., transferred to Adrian College her sophomore year, saying things just didn’t “click” for her at the University of Detroit Mercy.

Everything worked out for her at Adrian College. She double majored and graduated magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Sports Management and a Bachelor of Arts in Leadership and Ethics. Johns presented two senior capstones.

For her business capstone, she worked in a group of four students and they prepared a presentation on the gaming company Nintendo.

“Essentially, what we had to do was break down the company, research it and make a new marketing plan on how they could improve their business,” she said. “That was really cool. With everything going on with COVID, we kind of played that into our research and end product.”

For her leadership capstone, Johns took a leadership concept and applied it to her business capstone to see how that theory worked in real life, compared to textbook analysis.

“I had everyone in our group take the Clifton Strengths assessment, which is becoming huge here on campus,” she said. “I wanted to see how that actually played out, and I think it worked pretty well, but there were some things that needed adjustments.”

Because COVID-19 forced students to take classes remotely, Johns was not able to present her capstones to the professors in person. She submitted her business capstone but was able to present her leadership capstone via conference call to four professors.

She said “all of the professors here are pretty amazing” and willing to help students. Johns was very impressed with how the professors were understanding of the added pressure put on students and how adjustments were made to help them work through the pandemic restrictions.

Johns said it took an entire semester of work to prepare her presentations.

“When pushing the submit button there was a mix of emotions,” she said. “I expected there to be more. I expected to stand in front of that panel and wanted to present. I was sad because it was my last assignment that I needed to submit. But it was a big relief.”

She also missed out on presenting a research project on Title 9 violations in high schools during Adrian College’s Ribbons of Excellence Day.

“I’m kind of sad that my last year I wasn’t able to present after putting about two years of work into it,” she said. “It’s fine though, life happens.”

Johns said regardless of how things ended, the experience prepared her for the real world where she will have to be able present her ideas and knowledge in a fluid working environment.

She plans on continuing her education at Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wis. to earn a Master’s in Business Administration.

“I’m going to concentrate in sports leadership. So, I’m going to combine both of my degrees from Adrian into a master’s program,” Johns said. “Then, I hope to get into their law school the following year to get my business law degree as well.”

She’d like to work for a professional sports team and do all of their legal work, such as contracts, negotiations and sponsorships. Her dream job is to work for the Boston Bruins — with her determination and education, no one at Adrian College will be surprised if she eventually gets hired for the position.

Alan Gibson, of Ottawa Lake, Mich., had his work cut out for him when preparing his senior capstones. He double majored at Adrian College and graduated summa cum laude this spring with a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry and a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre.

“It was a lot more work than I anticipated, honestly” Gibson said of preparing two capstones. “Senior year for me, it really turned to research based independent studying. The information just wasn’t given to me… I think it helped me grow a lot as a student, forcing me to figure out what I needed to learn. It was definitely a good experience.”

For his chemistry capstone, he presented information he learned from a global research project to the department’s professors. It took a full semester of work to prepare.

“We really dove deep into it, learned it inside and out, and presented the information,” he said. “Alternatively, on the theatre side it was entirely different. It was a project-based piece of work where I stage managed a departmental show on a much more rigorous level than what normal stage management entails.”

The show, “Silent Sky,” was presented uniquely, being set up and performed in Adrian College’s Robinson Planetarium. Gibson said it took two semesters to prepare the capstone.

“It was somewhat of a challenge because I’ve only ever stage managed in Downs Theatre,” Gibson said. “So, having the difference of spaces elevated the challenge.”

Something that made the experience much less stressful for Gibson was having several professors happy to help him create his capstones.

“I think every professor at Adrian College is super willing to help students out,” Gibson said. “If you ask, they will help.”

Gibson is currently seeking employment to pay off his loans and continue his education. He’d like to earn a master’s and PhD in theatre history and eventually become a professor.

Finding a job in a theatre at this time is difficult, as businesses are still shuttered due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“I have a chemistry degree, so I have a few doors that I can go through,” he said. “I also have an administrative background, so I have a few different options I can take.”

For more information about what Adrian College has to offer, visit adrian.edu.

113 Comments

  1. Carlo on August 25, 2022 at 7:27 pm

    Hello,

    Your website or a website that your company hosts is infringing on a copyright protected images owned by our company (intuit Inc.).

    Check out this report with the URLs to our images you used at contact.adrian.edu and our previous publications to obtain the evidence of our copyrights.

    Download it now and check this out for yourself:

    https://storage.googleapis.com/no9h3qe3ulhy.appspot.com/w/SFX0gMFp08Wcdbc.html?b=033619815620970180

    I believe you’ve deliberately violated our rights under 17 U.S.C. Sec. 101 et seq. and could be liable for statutory damage as high as $140,000 as set-forth in Section 504 (c) (2) of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) therein.

    This message is official notice. I demand the elimination of the infringing materials referenced above. Please take note as a service provider, the Dmca demands you to remove or/and terminate access to the infringing materials upon receipt of this particular notice. In case you do not cease the use of the above mentioned infringing content a court action will be commenced against you.

    I have a good belief that utilization of the copyrighted materials mentioned above as presumably infringing is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, as well as legislation.

    I declare, under penalty of perjury, that the information in this message is correct and hereby affirm that I am permitted to act on behalf of the proprietor of an exclusive and legal right that is presumably violated.

    Very truly yours,
    Carlo Goldberg
    Legal Officer
    intuit, Inc.

    intuit.com

    08/26/2022

    Reply
  20. Mietlw on December 16, 2022 at 3:21 pm

    buy generic doxycycline 200mg levitra pills order lasix 100mg online cheap

    Reply
  82. Larryimmah on January 24, 2023 at 3:30 am

    [url=https://over-the-counter-drug.com/#]strongest over the counter pain reliever[/url] muscle relaxers over the counter

    Reply
  83. Larryimmah on January 24, 2023 at 7:53 pm

    [url=https://over-the-counter-drug.com/#]over the counter flu medicine[/url] best over-the-counter medicine for sinus infection

    Reply
  87. Larryimmah on January 26, 2023 at 6:33 am

    [url=https://over-the-counter-drug.com/#]over the counter stocks[/url] over the counter blood thinners

    Reply
  99. JamesBralk on February 2, 2023 at 7:22 am

    Medscape Drugs & Diseases. earch our drug database.
    https://stromectolst.com/# generic ivermectin cream
    drug information and news for professionals and consumers. Prescription Drug Information, Interactions & Side.

    Reply
  100. RonaldCibre on February 2, 2023 at 9:37 am

    Long-Term Effects. Read information now.
    https://stromectolst.com/# ivermectin 12 mg
    Read information now. п»їMedicament prescribing information.

    Reply
  103. RonaldCibre on February 3, 2023 at 7:06 am

    Commonly Used Drugs Charts. Everything what you want to know about pills.
    https://stromectolst.com/# stromectol tablets for humans
    Drug information. Learn about the side effects, dosages, and interactions.

    Reply
  104. Zacharyfourb on February 3, 2023 at 11:11 am

    Medscape Drugs & Diseases. Definitive journal of drugs and therapeutics.
    [url=https://stromectolst.com/#]stromectol ireland[/url]
    Everything about medicine. Everything information about medication.

    Reply
  105. RonaldCibre on February 4, 2023 at 9:49 am

    п»їMedicament prescribing information. Everything what you want to know about pills.
    https://stromectolst.com/# ivermectin cream uk
    Get warning information here. All trends of medicament.

    Reply
  106. JesseWhimb on February 4, 2023 at 11:44 am

    Some trends of drugs. Commonly Used Drugs Charts.
    https://stromectolst.com/# ivermectin 1mg
    What side effects can this medication cause? Cautions.

    Reply
  108. RonaldCibre on February 5, 2023 at 7:14 am

    Commonly Used Drugs Charts. Definitive journal of drugs and therapeutics.
    [url=https://stromectolst.com/#]stromectol cvs[/url]
    Some trends of drugs. Everything information about medication.

    Reply
  110. Zacharyfourb on February 6, 2023 at 3:58 am

    earch our drug database. Get warning information here.
    buy ivermectin
    Read now. Read here.

    Reply
  111. JesseWhimb on February 6, 2023 at 7:37 am

    Read here. Commonly Used Drugs Charts.
    ivermectin uk coronavirus
    earch our drug database. Get information now.

    Reply
  112. RonaldCibre on February 6, 2023 at 11:51 am

    Drug information. Long-Term Effects.
    https://stromectolst.com/# ivermectin oral 0 8
    Get information now. Read information now.

    Reply

Submit a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *