Seniors in the Class of 2026 shared their research and findings on a variety of important topics in Capstone presentations last week in the Oakwood Room. This project, a requirement to graduate with the Global Scholars Program diploma, involves many components including a written paper, action research and a presentation in front of students and a panel of teachers.
The Capstone Research Seminar supported the young scholars through their first original research projects, a journey which takes students through many sophisticated research techniques. They create research questions on issues of their choosing, form their own definitions of key concepts based on the current knowledge in their fields, and answer their questions with original data collected through interviews, observations and primary source analyses.
Dr. Jonathan Wilson, Upper School history teacher and supervisor of the Capstone program, noted that his students completed “high-quality scholarship akin to what their future college and university professors do day-in and day-out.”
Student presentations were organized thematically in five sessions, which were held Monday-Friday mornings: Frontiers in Education, Global Business and Cultural Power, Visions of Health and Wellness, Equity Across Boundaries, and STEM Power and the People. All presentations were followed by a brief Q&A session during which students, faculty members, administrators and parents asked questions that required the scholars to think more deeply about their topics and potential resolutions to problems. At the end of each morning session, questions were directed to each cohort of presenters, which allowed for more impactful dialogue.
“All our Capstone scholars showed impressive poise and did a great job engaging the audience this week,” Dr. Wilson said. “They had excellent interactions with each other as panelists, too. That reflected the high level of work they've put in throughout the entire year as they prepared for this moment. I've never seen a better group of high school presenters.”
Below is a listing of this year’s Capstone scholars and their presentations:
Panel 1: Frontiers in Education
Tiwa Filchak ’26: How We Define Art: Artistic Values Shaping the Future
Nijiany Genao ’26: Our Impact: First-Generation Women in Education
Mohisha Jha ’26: How Learning Through Song Can Impact Retention Rates
Yash Sachan ’26: Bridging the Gap: A Comparative Study of Mathematics Education in East Asia and the U.S.
CJ Strauss ’26: When Belonging Breaks Down: The Impact of Anti-Semitism on Jewish Student Identity
Panel 2: Global Business and Cultural Power
Chiara Baldi ’26: Label or Lie: Public Perceptions of Food Labels & How GMO Awareness Shapes Consumer Choices
Natalie Chen ’26: Spilling the Boba Tea: Social Media's Influence on the Asian American Identity
Dharren Culver ’26: The Impacts of Tourism on Locals in Developing and Developed Communities
Christian Lee ’26: Teacher Perceptions on Social Media Affecting Student Well Being and Behavior
Angel Lei ’26: Between Mountains and Markets: Bridging Rural Education Through Business and Policy
Panel 3: Visions of Health and Wellness
Kesar Bajaj ’26: Vaccine Equity: Understanding Inequality of Vaccination During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Aditya Basu ’26: How Exercise Affects Teenagers' Moods
Arya Gaur ’26: Hungry for More Than Knowledge: An Exploration of Food Insecurity’s Impact on Education
Ishani Shah ’26: Beyond the Melody: How Music Shapes the Way You See the World
Charlotte Szczubelek ’26: Mind Over Muscle: The Global Rise of Meditation and Visualization in Sports
Panel 4: Equity Across Boundaries
Simran Ahuja ’26: The Economic Standpoint of Global Equity & Terrestrial Priorities
Joanna Jian ’26: Media Representations of Women Entrepreneurs: A Comparative Study of the United States and the United Kingdom
Giannalise Rodriguez ’26: Engineering Health For All: The Disparity of Medical Devices in Periphery Countries
Nitya Sahni ’26: Women in STEM: The Impact of Identity and Environment on the STEM Gender Gap
Panel 5: STEM Power and the People
Harshini Asokumar ’26: From Potholes to Politics: The Impact of Citizen Service Requests on Civic Trust & Democratic Participation
William Wei ’26: Trust and Accountability in AI-Assisted Healthcare
Richard Zhang ’26: Why Is Math Hated?