We are excited to announce the students who have been selected to join the Senior Ventures Program for the 2026-2027 school year.
Senior Ventures is a year-long academic program built on a framework of leadership, innovation and community engagement. Through a proven, self-guided exploratory process, seniors whose proposals are selected for this program work independently to develop a project that’s interdisciplinary in scope and is connective, performance-based, investigative, or entrepreneurial.
Please read below to learn more about the students and their projects.
Student Name(s): Callie Dempsey
Project Title: Hands in Motion
Mentor(s): Brie Mauer, Justin Bruce
Project Summary: My project will provide resources and a place for people to practice and grow their knowledge of American Sign Language. My goal is to spread awareness on accessibility for the deaf and hard-of-hearing community and foster a community of learning while also developing my own ASL proficiency. By spreading this awareness and knowledge, this project will enrich our community’s accessibility and encourage people to grow in their learning.
Student Name(s): Cora Fannin
Project Title: The Tiger Trail Initiative
Mentor(s): Brant Evans, Owen Kinney
Project Summary: For my project, I will be working to clean up, maintain, and upgrade Darlington's Trail System to be used by the Darlington community of athletes, faculty, and students, and families. This will allow for more appreciation and use of the trails for both recreation and hands-on, outdoor education. I will also be making trail maps more accessible and partnering with teachers to include historical and scientific information on the maps. My goal is to ultimately maximize the use of the wonderful outdoor spaces we have at Darlington.
Student Name(s): Thomas Hargett, Emmett Holcombe, and Brooke Temple
Project Title: The Darlington Athletics
Mentor(s): Maddie Chastain, Ethan Pender
Project Summary: Our project will continue to elevate the Darlington Athletics Instagram account while expanding in several areas with a focus on storytelling. Our team of three aims to add videography as a main component of the account and include interviews with athletes, coaches, fans, and more. We are planning to provide livestream footage of some sporting events and create more documentary-style videos that highlight the athletes and their big moments.
Student Name(s): Julian Lansdell
Project Title: Reimagining Chapel
Mentor(s): Tara Inman
Project Summary: I am working to enhance the Darlington chapel experience by creating organized, meaningful programs that center on monthly themes and engaging speakers. This will include elements like prelude music and follow-up advisory discussions and activities to help students connect more deeply with each program. Through this work, I hope to increase student involvement. Ultimately, I aim to make chapel a more impactful and engaging experience for the entire school community.
Student Name(s): Chaebeom Lim
Project Title: Hydrogel Research and Community Wildfire Prevention with the Green Team
Mentor(s): Jaclyn Haynes, Owen Kinney, David Rawlins
Project Summary: This project transitions my materials science research on fire-retardant hydrogels into a community-based wildfire prevention initiative through hands-on educational workshops and local emergency partnerships. By establishing a fire-resilient native garden and a demonstration zone on campus, I aim to transform scientific theory into visible, student-led mitigation strategies that enhance local safety and environmental awareness.
Student Name(s): Mary Nguyen
Project Title: Tiger Care
Mentor(s): Monisha Patel
Project Summary: My project focuses on raising awareness about early detection for various types of cancer among both upper and lower school students through different events and activities I will host throughout the year. Through this project, I will also work with a team of student volunteers to provide care packages for hospitals that support both patients and healthcare staff. I hope to encourage lifelong preventative habits and empower students to take responsibility for their health and advocate for the well-being of their families and community.
Student Name(s): Sara Jo Pierce
Project Title: Connecting Students Through FCA
Mentor(s): Brant Evans
Project Summary: My Senior Ventures project will focus on increasing awareness, inclusion, and sustainability of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) group across the Darlington campus. The project’s goal is to create a student-led leadership initiative that focuses on expanding student engagement, connecting students from all areas of school life, and designing a plan that supports long-term impact. This will be accomplished by creating and implementing a year-long engagement model that includes campus-wide gatherings, coach and faculty appreciation events, middle school mentorship, and community partnerships.
Student Name(s): Matthew Sanker
Project Title: Empowering Young Students with Learning Differences
Mentor(s): Jess Laliberte
Project Summary: For my Senior Ventures Project, I will work alongside Mrs. Laliberte in Darlington’s Teaching & Learning Center to empower middle school students with learning differences. I will do this through planning fun, critical thinking activities and outside-of-the-box games that are designed to challenge students and utilize their creativity. Throughout this process, I want to share my story of how I adapted to having learning differences and encourage students in their overall learning confidence.
Student Name(s): Jay Watters
Project Title: Boosting Community Through School Spirit
Mentor(s): Melissa Smyly
Project Summary: For my Senior Ventures Project, I want to create a culture of community support through school spirit. This project will focus on the celebration of all sports and arts events, and getting more people to show up to games, plays, and performances, not just football and basketball games. My goal is to make Darlington an even greater community than it already is by bringing people out of their shells and getting them involved in our community by cheering for their school and encouraging their peers.
Click here to learn more about the Senior Ventures program.
