Senior Projects

Abem: Restoring habitats, discovering resilience

For his Senior Project, Abem spent several weeks working with local conservation efforts around Lake Sammamish, planting native trees, restoring habitats, and helping care for the rivers and streams that support salmon and other wildlife.

While the work benefited the environment, the experience also helped Abem grow personally. Spending long days outdoors taught him that he enjoys rolling up his sleeves and contributing to something bigger than himself. As he reflected afterward, "I didn't realize that I was down to get dirty and actually do hands-on work."

Abem credits Overlake's Outdoor Education program and environmental opportunities with helping spark his connection to the outdoors. His project demonstrates how meaningful, real-world experiences can help students discover new strengths, deepen their sense of responsibility, and learn more about who they are becoming.

Alexandra: The Life and Legacy of a Song

During her Senior Project presentation, Alexandra noted that she hoped her peers would remember her for her “breakout single” she sang during an 8th grade class trip. Constantly scribbling notes or humming potential melodies, Alexandra has been writing and performing music for years. Continually encouraged by her peers to showcase her work, she would perform for school assemblies, the annual Benefit Concert, and any other opportunity she had to perfect her original songs. To commemorate her last moments as a high school student, she recorded and released one of her songs.

What started out a voice memo on her phone became a full-blown masterpiece as she expanded her process from writing lyrics and melodies, to include recording, mixing, and ultimately releasing her first single into the world on Spotify. 

The experience deepened her appreciation for the work that goes into music recording and creation, and expanded the way she listens to music as she now appreciates the intricacies that go into each piece she hears. During her own process she not only recorded the melody but also acted as her own backup singer, recording her own harmonies to be mixed into the final piece. 

Be sure to listen to her newly released single, Look Up At The Stars, now available on Spotify! 

Brier: Exploring Robotic Control

He always loved robotics and was a member of the Overlake Robotics team, but for his Senior Project, Brier wanted to take his work in robotics to the next level. While typically in a robotics competition, Brier would be working with teammates with a wealth of expertise, and the objective would be stated before the competition allowing for adequate preparation, this time he wanted to take his knowledge to the real world. He built a prototype for a delivery robot that could navigate the Overlake campus. 

In this project, he wanted to dig into a practical application of robotics, troubleshoot navigating an unpredictable campus like Overlake’s, and expand his software skills. This meant everything from navigating the trails of campus while not running off the side of the road, to avoiding unpredictable objects like pedestrians in the path of his robot. 

Senior Projects are a time when students learn a completely new skill, but sometimes, it’s also a great opportunity for a student to build on knowledge they already have and take it to the next level. Brier plans to continue utilizing his skills in robotics as he leaves the nest and this delivery bot is just the first step into his future. 

David: Three Weeks a Peasant 

Anyone can learn a new skill with the resources and knowledge available today, in fact that’s one thing our Senior do during their projects, but for David, he wanted to strip away the convenience of 2026 and experience life as a peasant. Specifically, a peasant living in Asbach, Germany in 1326. 

He dressed like a peasant, slept on a bed of straw like a peasant, and ate and grew much of his own food as a peasant living in 1326 would have. Learning to live on the land and do absolutely everything by hand gave him a fresh perspective on how we live our lives in 2026 with convenience and seemingly limitless resources. While living as a peasant he learned that a peasant would likely eat similar food everyday due to the seasonality of crops and needing prepare everything yourself including grinding your own wheat for flour-a task which he said “takes forever!”. As did tasks like whittling spoons and bowls out of wood. 

He already had an interest in this time period and looked forward to this project for many months, even preparing and planting some of his garden long before his project so he would be able to tend to it and utilize it during his project weeks. Throughout the process he developed a deep appreciation for the work that goes into producing the products we utilize everyday but also appreciated the slower pace of life without the distractions of major technology.

Gabrielle: Building community through a love of sports

For her Senior Project, Gabrielle turned a longtime passion into an opportunity to connect with her community. A dedicated fan of women's sports, she explored how people in the Seattle area can better support and engage with women's athletics, from identifying local businesses that show games to meeting with leaders from the Seattle Storm to learn how professional organizations are growing the sport and inspiring future fans.

What began as a research project quickly became something more personal. Gabrielle discovered how much she enjoys sharing her enthusiasm with others and helping people connect with something meaningful. Along the way, she strengthened her confidence in reaching out to professionals, learned the value of seeking guidance from mentors, and found that asking for help is often an important part of growth. Reflecting on the experience, Gabrielle shared, "I love seeing them learn something that I love and sharing my love for it." Her project reflects the kind of learning that happens beyond the classroom: developing confidence, building relationships, and using personal passions to create connections within the broader community.

Jamie: Following curiosity down the rabbit hole

Jamie's Senior Project began with an unusual question: Could he recreate a luxury fragrance from scratch with little more than curiosity, persistence, and a home laboratory? Fascinated by the world of scent, Jamie set out to reverse engineer Louis Vuitton's Imagination, teaching himself the chemistry, experimentation, and problem-solving required to replicate a fragrance whose formula is closely guarded.

What makes Jamie's story especially compelling is that it grew from a personal passion rather than a classroom assignment. Although he describes himself as "not a chemistry person," he discovered that applying science to something tangible transformed the learning experience. Along the way, he learned the importance of balancing independence with seeking feedback from others. Reflecting on the experience, Jamie shared, "It's really just talk to people about everything and everything." Whether consulting mentors or asking strangers to compare fragrance samples, he found that curiosity grows when it's shared with others.