Graduating Class at Charter School, Four Strong, Is Confident,
Motivated

By C.K. WOLFSON

It took them six months to come to a consensus about the music to
choose, but on Saturday morning, dressed in white and blue, garlands in
their hair, they will stroll in to the sound of Dreams, by the
Cranberries, and when the ceremony concludes, walk out to the Beatles
singing, In My Life.

The Martha's Vineyard Charter School Class of 2004: Anna Ward
and Emily Kavanagh will speak, Katrina Brown has decided to pass, and
Robert Blood will probably offer a few words of thanks.

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Other than following the traditions in place for the three preceding
charter school graduations, the four graduates collaborated on the
details of the ceremony. Everything is personalized, including the menu,
catered by Jan Burman for the reception.

It is the natural expression for these diverse and fiercely
individual students, all of whom have grown up moving to the rhythms of
their unique personalities and are now poised to take on the world.

Robert (Bobby) Blood, who spent seven years sailing with his family
on a 26-foot fiberglass catamaran, will be going to Maine Maritime
Academy. When he graduates with a bachelor of science degree and a
license to captain a vessel up to 500 tons, he'll be ready to
captain a schooner across the Atlantic.

Dark-haired, outgoing Anna Ward, with intentions of being an
actress, is hoping to attend Marymount Manhattan College in New York,
although she isn't declaring drama her major, saying, "I
feel as if actors who have more worldly experience are better
actors."

Katrina (Trina) Brown, a tall, smiling, quiet blonde, is going to
Bridgewater State College in Massachusetts to study early childhood
education, with the goal of starting her own child care center.

Thoughtful and intense Emily Kavanagh will attend University of
Massachusetts at Amherst. Her ambitions, still undefined, revolve around
writing and photography. "With the majors I'm looking at
I'll probably be waitressing until I'm 40," she says,
laughing.

In conversation, each appears self-confident, motivated and centered
- all comfortable with who they are.

As they share their impressions, they first note the benefits of the
school's academic program. Bobby most appreciates being able to
individualize his studies. Each credits the school with fostering
qualities of self-motivation and confidence through freedom of choice,
an embracing school community and the supportive faculty.

"Everything is self directed," Anna explains. "You
decide what you want to learn and you have to plan how to do it."

At first Emily didn't want to attend the charter school.
"For me it was more that I wasn't comfortable with myself in
connection with the other students because I didn't know
anybody," she says. "And that was really awkward for
me."

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She notes that students can't hide at the charter school
because there are so few of them.

Anna and Trina, best friends since childhood, attended the charter
school in fifth grade, the first year it opened. "I have very good
parents, and they taught me early on to be aware of how things are, and
if I'm not happy with them, there's always a way to change
it," Anna says. "So when the charter school first advertised
it was a really good option."

She adds: "I think there's a misunderstanding that
because we're such a close community we don't have outside
relationships. But we have really close friends at the regional."

She describes her classmates as being "very proactive,"
making class discussions in-depth and animated. "We've been
in the same class for years, so we know how everybody is going to react.
We know who is going to say what, so it becomes a very well developed
argument."

Their personalities and the process of their charter school
education are most dramatically demonstrated in the five portfolios and
one juried project the graduates each produced, with guidance from an
advisor, during their junior and senior years. The portfolios, which
take several months to complete, represent individual areas of study,
chosen and customized by the student.

Trina, whose volunteer work involves children, explains, "You
pick something that you love, and you just go off on it." She
produced a portfolio on child development theorists Jean Piaget, Erik
Erikson and Lawrence Kohlberg, and researched stages of child
development; another on child abuse and neglect; and another on HIV and
AIDS, causes, treatment and prevention. For her juried project she
contrasted war and peace in an exhibit of mixed media and collage
paintings.

Bobby, who spent the winter living on a 28-foot British cutter as a
caretaker, focused his portfolios on boating and sailing-related
projects: a detailed plan to sail the Atlantic. a journal of his
apprenticeship with Myles Thurlow in helping to build the Mabel, an open
28-foot Noman's Land Boat, used by Vineyard Voyagers to sail down
the Hudson; a series of model boats, which he designed, built and tested
for drag and hull speed. His juried project was building a 12-foot,
hard-chine, V-bottom skiff, with double planked, herringbone planking.

He looks up from where he's working on a wooden boat in Gannon
& Benjamin's schooner shed to admit he doesn't
"hang out" much. He will spend the summer as first mate on
the When & If.

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Emily, who did volunteer work for the AIDS Alliance and
Women's Support Services, wrote a short story, The Montpelier
Girls, set in Vermont where she formerly lived. She also completed a
research project on female genital mutilation in Africa and submitted a
journal of her experience living with a family in the rain forest of
Costa Rica.

For her juried project, Anna wrote and performed an original
one-woman, one-act play, Generations. "I worked for months getting
it down to where I really wanted it," she says, describing the
plot as "kind of complicated," about parents fleeing Bosnia
during a siege and immigrating to New York.

"Basically it's a story of each family member overcoming
her past," she says, explaining she was influenced by her
involvement in the national model United Nations program in which the
school participated. "It interested me how people around the world
can overcome tragedies."

In addition to most of the group's interest in photography,
all have demonstrated social and human rights consciousness, in part
reflected in their required weekly mentoring choices.

Charter school director Bob Moore says he thinks the distinctive
aspect of the class of 2004 is its volunteerism and community service
for both the school and the Island.

Each graduate forms a separate and clear impression. Mr. Moore
refers to Bobby as "focused and engaging," Anna as
"inspirational and gracious," Emily, "honest and
impassioned," Trina, "a positive spirit - only
smiles."

And so, as family and friends settle into their seats Saturday under
the tent behind the school, Mr. Moore will extend the traditional
welcome. Board president Susan Phelps will offer comments, and charter
school teacher Lori Shaller will present awards. The class has chosen
Jane Paquet to give the address. There will be the presentation of the
class gift to the school, something being designed by the four
graduates. But this year the graduates have requested that donations be
made to UNICEF and Amnesty International in lieu of the traditional
individual gifts from the classes.

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Anna and Trina agree that graduation is a very personal occasion.
"Being in a class of four people has some difficulties,"
Anna says, "but makes you stronger friends. Maybe we would have
had more friends if we were at the regional, but not as close as we are.
The charter school is a small community, but so is the Island and
we're part of the Island community."