Brylee Kennedy: “For my passion project I decided to do nails. I learned designs, shapes, and overall communication skills. It allowed for different and fun experiences and for me to meet new people. I really enjoyed this project because it’s something I am going to continue doing with my life in the JTED cosmetology program and gave me an opportunity to try it out before the real thing.”

Rodrigo Villaescusa: “For my passion project I decided to learn a new language which is Japanese. I have always wanted to learn a new language other than English since Spanish was my first language. I also have always wanted to travel and specifically to Japan. There are so many cities I want to visit and they vary from popular big cities to small local country villages. I had many challenges when trying to learn this new language and although I haven’t learned much in the given time I still want to continue to learn.”

Hailey Leota: “This passion project was something that I loved doing because I used to want to run a bakery when I was a little kid. This project came with life lessons like patience and economic growth. I made many mistakes along the way but I have learned from them. This has given me a new goal for when I am old and settled down to maybe make cookies for everyone. I loved baking and selling them because I made new friends and learned new things.”

Colton Bunch: “I chose creative writing for my passion project- or poetry in simpler terms. I created 7 pieces of work over the semester, one of which was digital, but each and every one of them I put my soul and effort into. They range from opinion based responses, short poems and stories, and personal experiences. My personal favorites being Butterflies in Wartime and What it Means to Run. This was a project I’m glad I got to participate in and I hope future students who do also participate find something they really enjoy.”

Analeya Machen: “Since I can remember my mom has worked in the dental industry, my first exposure being Rosens Orthodontics, where my mom worked as an assistant. I developed my interest and passion due to always being surrounded by my moms passion and love for her work. She now works with 3DSmiles, this company makes dental prosthetics as shown in this photo!”

Mackenzie Salmen: “I decided to learn how to cut and color hair for my passion project as it has always been inspiring for me to see vibrant hair colors. In these photos you can see how I learned to dye hair and how to cut off a lot which was challenging getting it even once it was short. This passion project has inspired me to potentially do this for a career after high school.”

Ethan Geoffroy: “My experience with this project was very fun and I liked it a lot. I learned to cut my own hair and other peoples hair. It helped me make friendships and bonds with people. I would 100% want to do this project again. I can see this being something that carries on for a good amount of time. It was definitely a struggle but it was worth it.”

Arturo Valenzuela Waters: “I choose to learn to read, write, speak, and understand the language Dutch. I like to learn bits of different languages and enjoy being able to speak a different language a lot. I really did not know what to do when we were choosing our passion projects and the only thing I could think of was to learn a language. Eventually I settled on Dutch because I have a friend that lived in the Netherlands and it seemed interesting enough to be the subject of my passion project. It was really hard to keep up doing the project but I did do it and I enjoyed it, I will continue to learn more languages in the future and probably over the summer.

Lynnea Montgomery: “I did this project because I’ve always struggled with my hair and I thought I’d be nice to learn how to do other people‘s hair. My grandma is a hairstylist so I was kind of already set up in that direction just to make it easier for me. I definitely had some previous experience because my grandma would make me help her with her clients that would come to the house. And having her around was a big help because she could guide me while still letting me do my own thing. I definitely would not make this a career because hair is not something I would enjoy doing my whole life.”

Zamauri Robinson: “My passion project was learning how to play the guitar. Throughout my childhood, I remember my grandpa always playing it when I came over, it looked and sounded amazing. As I started learning the instrument myself, my biggest struggles were time management and staying motivated. For my song, I chose Lover, You Should’ve Come Over by Jeff Buckley because I really enjoy it. In the last few weeks, I found myself enjoying playing again, so I plan to continue learning the guitar this summer when I have more time.”