Pitch

This is the only Action Project for my Social Entrepreneurship course. This is the third STEAM course in the senior series. Unit one was titled the clearing and investigated what our passions and skills are. Unit two was titled the entrepreneur and focused on transferring ones passion into a business venture. We examined hedgehog concepts which help to organize integral elements of a business. Unit three was titled the business case and analyze how everything comes together to form a business. This unit allowed students to learn about necessary business steps, skills, and practices. The final unit, pitch, focussed on taking everything we learned and combing it to make a business pitch. The unit was about taking action on our plan. The action project asked students to conceptualize a social venture and then pitch it to investors. This entire course was filled with great guest speakers who greatly impacted the flow of the course. We learned so much from them along with other great online resources. I was able to learn about my field and all the logistical elements it contains. The action project was very rewarding for me as it allowed me to go back and reflect on earlier work in the course. I loved the overall freedom in both the course and the AP. I utilized my love for the arts to push myself through this course and project. I am very happy with my work ethic and final product!

Survival Manual

This is the unit 3 Action Project for my Endurance course. This is the third humanities course in the senior Global Vision series. Unit 3 was titled Apotheosis, which means becoming divine, and focused on investigating the endurance of survivors. We utilized their experiences as inspiration for our personal missions. The unit was guided by the survivors stories. We examined how survival changes ones mind and heart. After clearly determining my mission in unit one and working on it in unit two, I needed to figure out how my mission is going to survive. The action project for the unit called upon students to create a survival manual for their mission with the hope of guiding themselves in addition to inspiring others. I really enjoyed this unit as it exposed a lot of the challenges in a mission. This unit emphasized the reality that life is hard and in order to succeed you need to have a clear vision and work towards it. This course has helped further develop my perception of self. The action project allowed me to dive deeper into my mission and think about how it'll unfold in time. I really appreciated the individuality and practically of this project. I think that this was a wonderful way to conclude the unit and move into the next stage of my life!

Service Hours

Every GCE student is required to complete one hundred hours of service work before graduating. In order to complete my hours I worked in the backroom of tasty works, a brokerage firm, in the Fulton Market area of the city. I worked alongside the customer team and did a variety of filing jobs. My biggest and most consistent task was taking piles of customer information and scanning them to an internal database. I needed to learn their scanning and sending systems in order to increase my efficiency. It took me a few times to get settled into my role and feel comfortable. I began my internship just after the company launched in January. My schedule was Tuesday's and Thursday's after school. I would work shifts between four and five hours. These longer time periods allowed me to emulate what the real life workforce feels like. There were times when screams were tossed across the room, phones constantly ringing and then there were times where it was very still. These fluctuations needed to be dealt with. I had a task and I needed to stay on track in order for other people to do their job. There was little room for error or play, It was business all the time. One of the biggest difficulties for me came after I thought I had completed scanning a huge stack of sheets before being told by one of the team members that I had missed a significant section. It was wake up calls like those that kept me on my toes the whole time. I felt integrated into their business and felt like a vital member of the team. The empowered me by giving me a task with real implications. I worked as apart of the customer team from January to May. The experience was tremendously empowering and taught me a lot about the professional world. I was happy to learn a lot of new skills while being helpful to those who needed it. Overall it was a wonderful endeavor accumulating my service hours.

MS, Printer/Scanner, 2017

MS, Office View, 2017

VLOG : Mission In Action

This is the unit 2 Action Project for my Endurance course. This is the third humanities course in the senior Global Vision series. Unit 2 was titled Katabasis and focused on how to dive into your mission. The first unit was about identification and this unit was focused on action. Katabasis means diving into the strange underworld with dangers all around. We utilized Dante's Inferno as a key resource throughout the unit. It was extraordinarily moving for me and allowed me to further understand the heroes journey. Parallels were drawn between Dante's journey and my own. I began to take the story and relate it to my life. It was one of the most influential texts I've encountered during my schooling. The unit also investigated the the journey of remarkable individuals who endured seemingly crazy missions. David Blaine is a remarkable example of someone we learned and talked about. Seeing his feats and then hearing him talk about his mindset and the process behind them made me very excited. The things he accomplished were mind-blowing to me and he explained that through practice, handwork, patience, and a will almost anything can be done. For the AP, students were asked to work on their mission for at least 12 hours and document it. I decided to paint my largest canvas ever. My mission was to provide people with the keys to unlock their own doors of perception and I determined the best way to do so was with a large painting. I really enjoyed this project as it allowed me to work on something I truly love. In addition to the painting, I really liked making the video. It allowed me to utilize a different side of my creativity. The project was definitely challenging at times but my passion kept me engaged and moving forward. I adored this unit and believe this is one of my best AP's ever!

My Big Audacious Goal

This is the only Action Project for my elective course M.A.G.I.C. which stands for mentoring achievement of goals and inspiring champions. The purpose of the course was for students to identify a guiding light and analyze their life in order to better understand themselves and live out their dreams. The course allowed students to get inspired, state a goal, create a plan, and put it all into action. Success and failure was a common theme in the course. Quantitative and qualitative data was used throughout the course. A variety of guest speakers came into class to inspire us and answer our questions. M.A.G.I.C. utilized significant figures from throughout history as the educational foundation for teaching students about their life. This class was constantly exciting and deeply impactful. Overall, I was very pleased with the entirety of the course as well as my AP.

SWOT Analysis

This is the unit three Action Project for my STEAM course Systems and Models. Unit three was titled Organization and was guided by the question how does one find personal flow within a larger organizational mission or movement. We examined the synergy between individuals ands groups.  The class studied I-O psychology and many of its relevant findings. For the Action Project students were asked to conduct a SWOT analysis on a part of GCE. Students got to behave as an organizational consultant and do a full on analysis of a selected portion of the school. I chose to conduct my analysis on GCE's building. I really enjoyed this unit and thought it did a wonderful job of tying the entire course together. This action project was very fun and interesting because it allowed me to view the school in a brand new way. I'm very satisfied with this course and project!

Demographic Analysis

This is the unit two Action Project for my STEAM course Systems and Models. Unit two was titled Group and focused on analyzing how groups function and the methods used to better groups. We learned about team and relationship building as well as how Psychologists use the scientific method during their studies. The AP asked students to create and conduct a research study based on group observations. I loved having the freedom to take my interests into account when creating my study. The research portion gave me a quantitative understanding of what I ultimately compared my data to. I think the length of the project was easily overcome by the time allowed for work and the dedication I had towards it. I really enjoyed this unit and think this was an intense but beneficial AP to nicely finish it off.

Textbook Chapter

This is the unit 1 Action Project for my Humanities course Equality. Unit 1 was titled history and was guided by the question "What is the history of the fight for equality?" In class we explored the history of race, gender, and class. We had conversations about current issues in our society and studied wonderful of equality fighters from across history. The Action Project was focused on telling a story. Students were asked to recount a significant historical event. Students were asked to create a chapter for a textbook focused on marginalized people. I selected a topic I was previously interested in but not well versed in. I really enjoyed the first unit of this course and thought the action project was a creative way to finish up the unit. It was interesting to do an AP in a new format, a textbook chapter. This project wasn't too difficult but it did take a long time to complete. Overall, I am happy with what  I learned and the project I produced to show my mastery.

Self Portrait

This the unit one action project for my second senior STEAM course titled Systems and Models. Unit one was titled individual and focused on how psychology can help us think about ourselves in a plethora of ways. We all say we know ourselves but how many of us really do? We investigated ourselves through a variety of assessments and experiments. We became aware of how we fit in to society as well as how we work with certain types of people. The tests we took helped us all learn more about ourselves and how we function. I really enjoyed the entirety of this unit. I really liked the balance of math and science with philosophy and psychology. The action project asked students to take all that they've learned and make a self portrait with an artist statement. This was my favorite AP at GCE and it made me incredibly happy to do. I loved all aspects of the project even the difficult ones because I was constantly engaged and excited. Below is my piece and statement. Hope you enjoy !

“Me For You”

Acrylic and Ink on Canvas 

48” X 24”

2017
MS

“Me For You” is a large painting that attempts to represent the entirety of my being. My physical and inner self merge into one complexity which occupies the canvas with an array of colors and gestural movements. The piece depicts the totality of my past through a modern perspective. My life and all its phases are incorporated in the background through a process of marbling and fading which is supposed to depict age and change. Throughout the unit, I investigated and took a variety of personality assessments which helped me formulate a more complete understanding of myself. The first test, Myers Briggs, intends to identify its participants distinctive personality type and how they interact with the world. The test contains questions in four categories: favorite world, information, decisions, and structure and uses the participants responses to assign a unique personality type. After concluding the Myers Briggs test, I learned I am an ENFP which is also known as a campaigner. The N, which stands for intuition, is relevant to my creative process which birthed this pure representation of myself. The symbolism and abstraction that makes up the piece arise from the deep connection my inner vibes share with my current moment. The creation process began with intense feelings of confusion and anger which manifested as large jagged stroked and scratches. My campaigner spirit allowed a bit of my maintained madness to flow which allowed me to approach the piece with independence and creative freedom. Another influential assessment that helped shape the piece was the Enneagram. The test assigns participants to one of nine interconnected personalities. After completing the Enneagram test, I found out I am a seven with a four integration. Sevens are also known as “The Enthusiast because Sevens are enthusiastic about almost everything that catches their attention. They approach life with curiosity, optimism, and a sense of adventure, like “kids in a candy store” who look at the world in wide-eyed, rapt anticipation of all the good things they are about to experience.” My approach to this piece was driven by my childlike curiosity and approach to dealing with my emotions through a hands on experience. I represented my enthusiast qualities in several abstract ways also decided to include a big number seven in the piece, can you find it? These tests were an integral part of the creation of the piece which required a lot of self awareness as well as an understanding of my connection to the here and now.

I explored several physiological experiments and case studies to gain insight into other people's behaviors. The marshmallow test is a very famous and simple test that asks participants to sit in front of a marshmallow for a period of time without eating it. If they can successfully use their control and willpower their prize will double. During our in class version of the experiment, I easily waited the time necessary to gain the additional prize. That patient mindset was utilized during the creation process of the piece. I was able to work intensely while still being able to recognize the pieces development and it’s stopping point. Another experiment that influenced my piece was the Stanford Prison Experiment. A Psychologist named Philip Zimbardo created a simulated prison with students participating as either inmates or guards. This experiment inspired me to incorporate as many sides of me as possible into the piece. Several silhouettes and faces are present throughout the whole piece.

An American Psychologist named Carl Rogers described someone who is in a constant pursuit of reaching self actualization as a fully functioning person. A key element to a fully functioning person is a malleable self image. Rogers was a huge source of inspiration for my non representational approach to the portrait. I wanted to crush break all boundaries and be limitless with my perception of self. Another Psychologist whose work inspired the piece was William James. He was one of the Fathers of American Psychology. His writings on happiness were particularly interesting and influential. James talked about how there are two types of people, once borns who are predisposed to happiness and a twice borns who have to work towards happiness. I most definitely identify as a twice born and have had to work tremendously to reach levels of contentment. Creating this self portrait allowed me to have a place to work through a lot of questions and emotions I had which ultimately left me feeling happier and smarter. Following the completion of the piece I reached out to a friend of mine and fellow artist named Stevie Dread. We chatted for awhile about what makes a great artist statement. After a very rich and useful conversation I got the idea that reason and identity are two integral things for an artist statement. Why you did what you did needs to be articulated for the viewer in an honest manner. All these additional sources greatly benefited my project by providing me with new lenses to view myself and environment.

My thought process for creating this piece was fairly straightforward: Get in the studio and just begin working uninhibited. I calmed my mind and body through deep breathing and allowed the flow of energy to take control. I believe that you are your energy and if you find a way to tap into it and unleash it, the end result will be a wholesome representation of yourself. The final piece has dozens of layers each with a different purpose and story. I began with huge strokes of paint that covered the canvas. Color choices were made solely on what was closest to me at the time. After a base layer was laid, I began scratching and carving away at the wet paint. The next few layers were primarily touch ups and and additional background detailings. The foreground of the piece is comprised of many abstract strokes and shapes. The foreground is where the chunk of the story resides. It is the location I decided to include the most faces and structures. Direct elements that came about from my research are included as well as more abstract ones. My visual work represents me and my story by being unpredictable, deep, and engaging. This piece was made with the intention of sharing myself to all those who view it. I wanted to create a piece with a size that I felt would engage the viewers. As a fan of art, I love the bigger pieces and wanted to bring some of that scale to my viewers. I want to engage them in an internal dialogue with themselves. I would feel accomplished if I could arise feelings of discomfort and confusion because I believe those are emotions that impact a person. I’m trying to instill a certain feeling of hope in people. I want them to love themselves and have a desire to dive deeper into their psyche and soul. I hope that I can provide them with the keys to unlock their doors of perception.

Sources:

"Stevie Dread." Telephone interview. 19 Jan. 2017.

Personality Test Site. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Jan. 2017.

"An Overview of the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument (TKI)." An Overview of the TKI | Kilmann Diagnostics. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Jan. 2017.

"The Myers & Briggs Foundation - Sensing or Intuition." The Myers & Briggs Foundation - Sensing or Intuition. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Jan. 2017.

"Type Seven." The Enneagram Institute. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Jan. 2017.

Https://www.facebook.com/verywell. "Who Was Psychologist Carl Rogers?" Verywell. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Jan. 2017.

"William James." Biography.com. A&E Networks Television, 14 Nov. 2014. Web. 21 Jan. 2017.

Gerhard Richter Painting Review

This is the action project for the elective course titled Ollywood. Ollywood is the suffix for Hollywood, Bollywood, and Nollywood. The course investigated various movies and analyzed how stories are told through film. We discussed several films and gave them our thumbs up or down. Amazing discussions were had during and after each movie we watched. Getting to hear all my classmates perspectives was very eye opening and added to my overall positive experience in the class. We examined the three stages of movie creation, pre production, production, and post production. Students learned about what takes place before the camera start rolling and all the work that must take place to create a movie. During our study of production we took on the role of director and focused on framing and lighting. The last stage of movie creation, post production, is where all the final edits and changes are made. We went on a wonderful FE to Morningstar where we met with their in house video team. Getting to see professionals do their work and hear them speak was a pleasure and added to my overall understanding of many of the concepts. The course had one culminating action project that asked students to utilize skills from all three units. Students were asked to select a movie and conduct a review of it. I selected one of my all time favorite films titled, Gerhard Richter Painting. Below you can find my review of the documentary: Gerhard Richter Painting Review from Max Sheridan on Vimeo.

Influential Voice

This is the unit two action project for my journalism course. Unit two was titled sound and investigated how radio has spread news and worked to connect us and bring us all together. I enjoyed getting to play the role of a radio journalist and learn the techniques used to spread news and stories. Our class went on a wonderful field experience to the journalism department at Columbia College. We met with a professor and got an inside view of their tv studios, sounds studios and news paper room. It was incredible getting to see college students working hard on various journalism projects that were relevant to our studies in class. We listened to a variety of podcasts and analyzed various stories and the power they posses. I enjoyed learning about Journalist Ira Glass and his ideas about how to tell a good story. He was interesting to study because he constantly touched on the need to take risks and fail in order to grow and succeed in life. The unit culminated with a very relevant action project where students were asked to profile an influential voice from the 20th century. I loved this action project because I was able to explore the life and mind of an artist I've adored for a long time. I thought the project required a tremendous amount of effort and dedication. Although it was hard, I felt I worked through my challenges and produced a very nice final piece. Overall this was a fantastic action project that I am very satisfied with.