Phase #1:
 
Blog Entry #1:

I had a somewhat lackluster summer vacation, as did almost everyone my age due to the COVID-19 pandemic that swept the planet. I took an online college-level macroeconomics course, finished my University of California application, and played my keyboard piano a lot. 

Coming into Project Lead the Way for the fourth time is both exciting and easy to predict. I am looking forward to making a change in my school with the resources and time this class will grant me. But, I already have an idea of what this class will end up being. 
 
I am most excited to see how the school handles distance learning and student/parent feedback, seeing as the last semester (while done with a valiant effort) was a nightmare. Will the school assign more work or less, will teachers fight back against unfair policies? It is a truly exciting idea.

Blog Entry #2 

My capstone project is moving along somewhat slowly, but smoothly. My small group has a relaxed attitude, but would work diligently if requested or realized. One of the main flaws of the project is the issue of it being a subjective problem. The basis for our project is one out of curiosity and concern, not of one out of real, hard-proven fact. It's just out of observation of the people around us.   

One problem that I see coming from a mile away is my group's willingness to stick through the problem. Seeing as our capstone idea isn't particularly about engineering may hurt my group's longevity. Additionally, finding resources and professional sources will be difficult, especially when it comes to gathering actual data that is relevant to our problem.   

I have already completed my University of California application. I am currently working on the Common Application, which most private schools take. As someone who is applying to Yale as an early decision, I need to get the Common App done with haste. I also plan on completing the CSU application, which is the simplest out of the three. I wish someone had told me how easy the application was to get done, because I would have began last year instead of this past summer. 

Blog Post #3

Today, the world is about to ignite.  The date is November 3rd, also known as Election day. Tensions are high, no matter your socioeconomic position or political stance. Specifically for me, I have just finished submitting all of my applications to universities around the state of California. In order to stay on top of everything, I have burnt the candle from both ends. Describing my current state is an emotional interpretation, and a rough one at that. I feel as if my mental state is hanging off a cliff, hands superglued to the edge. Constantly dragged down by the gravity of hours of work but forced to endure by my dreams of success and prosperity.  

The comic seen to the right, commonly titled "This is Fine", describes my predicament perfectly. Surrounded by flames, holding onto whatever sanity remains. I do hope the world's situation improves, and the American people decide to do what is right. 

Blog Post #4

Today, life is a painful drawl.  

The date is December 11th, over five weeks past election day. While the outcome of the presidential election was a welcome one, my personal life, work and family included, has taken a turn for the tedious. Now that I am past college applications, I will share what I have learned. I have learned how to advocate for myself in a truthful and positive way. I have learned that no matter what school you get in to, if your try your hardest to put yourself out there, you will go to the school that you belong.  

One thing that I wish I knew about these applications is on the topic of subjectivity. Every person is unique and different. While many share educational and extracurricular qualities, everyone has different strengths, perks, and weaknesses. How fair is it to allow a biased audience, such as the admissions board for some colleges, to make the decisions based off of someone's testing scores, instead of incorporating their toils and troubles in order to make up or explain any numerical blunder. One recommendation for future seniors: Do college apps as early as possible. Get them out of the way. I did it and I'm not sure if would've been able to keep up with everything otherwise. I am most excited about having a fresh slate in college, being able to live and socialize without the fear of prejudice.

Lastly, this little gif represents life right now. Hopefully life will be less confusing in the coming months.

Phase #2: 

Blog #1:

It is currently the second of February 2021, and life is no different from before. Everything is going by both fast and slow. But specifically, this project is going fine. In terms of mental health ideas and services, we think ours will serve our school well.

Our group has learned over the past few months that some of these services already exist, but some are paid. Products made for profit are, by definition, for the gain of the company. This tailors their approach and services for their own gain instead of the user/average consumer. For example, Better Help (one of our chosen competitors), is a paid service. Their help, while professional and justified, it is also a for-profit service, meaning they partially choose to service themselves. An example of a non-profit service is Teen Line, a service with the same objective as our own. 


Blog #2:

The largest challenge that I'm facing on this project is motivation. Ironically, while the purpose of this project is mental health, the energy and time it's taking is also affecting my own mental health. I'm proud of how far we have come so far, but I am also not proud of how long it took us to get here. If we had chosen to work harder and faster, we would have reached this point last year. If I could give anyone advice about projects like these, it would be to set hard deadlines for yourself. Due to the pandemic, our group utilized our school's lenience on deadlines to our advantage. If we had set deadlines for ourselves, we wouldn't have had to work so hard in the back-end of our project.

Blog #3:

This is the final blog post of this website. I'm wrapping up my time at Santa Monica High School, and this project. I will no longer be located in Santa Monica and my passions have shifted towards a more organic science. I am going to Cal State Northridge under a biology major. I plan on making the most of it, working harder than ever before to get to my personalized future. I am most proud of my willingness to stick with this program, PLTW. I've had many rough patches in this class, it being my lowest grade multiple times. Even now, I'm trying to pull it out of a dangerous C.

If I had one takeaway from this class, it's the idea that doing work matters. You can try to convince and debate your teacher to raise your grade, as I have many times within school. But in this class, work matters. Do the work, get the results you want.

Thanks for reading this.  

Good luck, and take care of yourself.       
        - Cameron Williams