Gathered around the picnic table at the Polly Hill Arboretum this week, the graduating class of the Martha’s Vineyard Public Charter School reminisced about their time there. The group of six (one was absent) felt like a family. They smiled and laughed as they shared stories of their years at the charter school and spoke of the deep affection they had for the school. They loved the feeling of community, the ability to do their own thing, the self-accountability that the school instilled in them along with a love of learning.

“What I’ll value the most are the things I was able to learn there that can’t really be taught,” said Jess Dupon.

This year’s graduates are Domonique Aaron, Jess Dupon, Sasha Iammarino, Brian Luce, Mattia Phaneuf, Erica Taylor, and Hannah Vanderlaske. Jokey, goofy and exuberant, these thoughtful students had a lot to say about their soon-to-be alma mater.

When asked about the differences between their school and the other schools on the Island, the students singled out one key difference. “While we’re a lot smaller than pretty much every other school, it offers community,” said Hannah Vanderlaske. She said the teachers care about each student individually. “It really is just like having a whole other set of parents,” she said.

The seven seniors will graduate on Sunday in a ceremony at the school that begins at 1:30 p.m. The event is open to the Island community.

Ms. Dupon and Ms. Phaneuf have attended the charter school since first grade, while their classmates started in fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth grades. Most have left the charter at some point in their school careers to attend another public school on the Island or elsewhere in the country, only to return.

Their plans for the coming year are as diverse as the students themselves. Some are heading off to schools like Babson, University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Cape Cod Community College and Sarah Lawrence, while others are taking the year to work. “You can choose to go your own way,” said Ms. Vanderlaske. “They really prepare us to know what we want.”

For an alumna of a more traditional school, the charter school can seem like a pick-and-choose kind of education. Not so, said Ms. Dupon. “We’re still required to learn the same stuff as other schools, we’re just given more freedom to do it in ways that work best for us,” she said.

Robert Moore, the school’s director, elaborated a bit on the theme. “We really work with each of our individual students. We really celebrate their passions and interests. We try to bring that into the curriculum,” he said. Even in their senior year, when senioritis ought to have struck, Ms. Dupon, Ms. Taylor, and Ms. Vanderlaske founded a student government for the high school. They established a charter, ran in the inaugural elections and handed over their positions (Ms. Dupon was president, Ms. Vanderlaske was secretary and Ms. Taylor was treasurer) to the rising seniors through elections this spring. “That was an accomplishment in itself, just getting through the year,” laughed Ms. Taylor.

The students tackled head on what they referred to as misconceptions of the school. Said Ms. Dupon, “This is still school.” Ms. Vanderlaske added: “You can’t come to the school if you don’t want to be here. You have to want to be here in order to make it through.”

Charter school students take a lead role in forming their own education. They meet with their parents and teachers at the beginning of every school year and outline what they hope to have learned by the end of the year and which areas they’d like to focus on. Once they reach high school, the students are expected to complete a portfolio each year that is the culmination of a year spent researching an area in which they are interested — anything from blues music to psychology. They also participate in mentorships with adults outside of school in a variety of different fields. The mentorships allow the students to explore their interests outside of school. Ms. Vanderlaske called the them, “one of the most important parts of our entire education.” Ms. Taylor, for instance, discovered through the mentorship program that her dream of being an architect was not a good fit and has now developed an interest in business. Speaking both of the mentor program and the school in general, Ms. Phaneuf said: “They allow you to explore your options and find out your interests.”

When asked what distinguished their class from the other classes, Ms. Vanderlaske immediately quipped: “We’re loud.” As they shared favorite memories from their time at school, the students laughed, struggling to think of just one. For Ms. Taylor it was trips to Italy and Mexico and the project periods at the end of each year. For Ms. Dupon and Mr. Luce it was the camping trips, particularly to Mt. Greylock. “It’s great to interact with people that are younger in an out-of-school setting,” Ms. Dupon said. For Ms. Phaneuf and Ms. Aaron, freshman year left a strong impression. Ms. Aaron began teaching a hip-hop class that year that proved to be a positive experience. “I had a lot of kids look up to me, so that was worth everything I put into it. It makes me feel accomplished to be someone they look up to,” she said. Working with the kindergartners was Ms. Vanderlaske’s favorite memory of school. She added: “Even if they [memories] are bad we find a way to laugh at it.”

Self-assured and articulate, independent and confident, the only giveaway that these are high school seniors is the occasional giggling fit. They remarked that their teachers make them accountable for their actions and treat them like adults — when they behave like them. Laughing, Ms. Dupon allowed that they do slip sometimes. “They treat us how we act,” she said, emphasizing that the teachers aren’t just teaching but also supporting the students.

And as they chart their various paths after the high school, the seniors seem certain of one thing — they will keep in touch and look back fondly on their charter school years in West Tisbury.