Published in Print: May 1, 2007
By The Associated Press
The Oregonian

Seniors meeting new Oregon graduation requirements

OREGON CITY, Ore. (AP) —From behind her tripod and camcorder, Kathryn Marxen shouts to Adam Grishman, "Can you walk this way again?" The apprentice trainer at Guide Dogs for the Blind leads Binny, a 14-month-old yellow Lab, toward her.

Marxen, 17, is making a how-to video for community volunteers interested in training guide dogs. Most of the video will feature her demonstrating commands with one of the guide dog puppies she has raised herself.

The video is her career project at Oregon City High School, something she needs for graduation.

Under a little-known state rule, she and some 43,000 other Oregon public high school seniors must complete an extended career-related project that highlights what they learned in class.

"It gives students a way to explore careers and life after high school," said Theresa Levy, career learning specialist with the Oregon Department of Education.

The state adopted the rule in 2002, but some schools put off planning, knowing that they weren't required until this year.

Portland Public Schools didn't start moving until early 2005, when former Reynolds High School Principal Steve Olczak was hired to develop career programs in the high schools. The district's complete program won't be available until the class of 2009.

Projects vary widely. Zyan Silver of Brookings-Harbor High School raised 120 two-spot octopuses in his garage, selling them to cephalopod lovers all over the United States.

Chris Jacobs, Devin Daniel and Wesley Imlay, seniors at the Center for Advanced Learning in Gresham, developed a prototype tool to speed production and diminish chances of workplace injuries at the nearby Pella Window & Door plant.

Tiny Adrian High School in Malheur County -- 85 students -- has required seniors to do career-related activities for years, doing job shadows, a community project and a research paper that must pass inspection by a judging panel of community members.

The high school has forged ties with businesses and professionals as far away as Ontario and Vale to give students access to mentors and chances to explore careers.

The new requirements are in addition to those already needed for graduation.

Students, with advice from counselors and teachers, must create an education plan that guides their path through high school with an eye toward their postgraduate goal.

They must complete at least one career-related learning experience, from attending a job fair to interning in a workplace. And they must do something called an extended application, which at Oregon City High School is the senior project.

In Oregon City, with 480 seniors, school officials realized they would have to establish a class that would give students a framework to meet the requirements.

"The No. 1 lessons kids learn in this process is how bad a habit procrastination is," said Jamie Lee, a health teacher who leads a senior projects class.

Marxen hopes her video will be good enough to be used by Guide Dogs for the Blind as a training tool for the volunteers.

Marxen has raised three guide dog puppies and knows the training regime well. She has put 30 hours into her video so far, writing a 25-page script and consulting a videographer.

And she loves animals.

The chance to work on a real-world problem at Pella motivated Chris Jacobs and his classmates at the Center for Advanced Learning.

"It was more than just reading the textbooks or creating a poster," he said. "It meant something."

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