1. Creating Capstone Experiences for Graduating Seniors Presented by Joy Pedersen Harkins, PhD Cal Poly San Luis Obispo June 23, 2009

2. What is a Capstone Experience? “A culminating experience in which students are expected to integrate, extend, critique and apply knowledge gained in the major.” (Wagenaair, 1993)

3. Another Definition “A planned learning experience requiring students to synthesize previously learned subject matter content and to integrate new information into their knowledge base for solving simulated real world problems.” (Fairchild and Taylor, 2000)

4. Examples of Capstone Experiences Academic Courses/Senior Projects Internships Teach for America Volunteer Experiences AmeriCorps Peace Corps Research Fellowships

5. Benefits of Capstone Experiences Reduce the amount of on the job training. Ease the transition from undergraduate academics to career or graduate study. Opportunity to try a professional role. Gain marketable skills. Gain understanding of problems and issues in society. Build experiences for resume.

6. Cal Poly’s Model AmeriCorps 1700-hour commitment 11-month term of service Placement at a non-profit agency Orientation and weekly trainings Two performance evaluations Monthly living allowance Education award upon completion

7. Reflection Activity Create a road map that depicts your career path and highlights the major milestones in your life.

8. Brainstorm Activity Looking at your road map… Why did you choose to include each major milestone? Who did you meet that had an impact on you? What did you learn from each experience? How were you influenced by the experiences? How did each experience shape your future career path? What were the characteristics of each milestone that made it memorable?

9. Who can create a capstone experience? Student Affairs Professionals Faculty Non-Profit Agencies Students Corporations Government

10. Designing a Capstone Experience Step 1: Define the target population and its characteristics Step 2: Determine the needs of the target population Step 3: Write measurable objectives to meet needs Step 4: Determine how to deliver the capstone experience Step 5: Determine the content of the program Adapted from Niles and Harris-Bowlsbey, 2002.

11. Designing a Capstone Experience cont’d Step 6: Determine the cost of the program Step 7: Begin to promote and explain your services Step 8: Start promoting and delivering the full- blown program Step 9: Evaluate the program Step 10: Revise the program as necessary

12. Example 1: Student Affairs Characteristics: Emphasis on whole-student development. Uses career development theory. Concerned with identity development. Seeks educational and occupational exploration and self-knowledge. Concerned with assessment.

13. Example 2: Academic Affairs Characteristics: Academic approach. Draws from empirical research. Concerned with learning outcomes. Working on an academic calendar. Must plan courses 6-12 months in advance.

14. Example 3: A Community Agency Characteristics: Resource scarcity model. Educational partner. Client-centered. Working in crisis-mode. Working on a fiscal or 12-month calendar.

15. Program Development - Group Activity Pick one of the three examples that most closely fits your role. Given the executive summary, needs, and objectives, develop your own program content, expected outcomes, resources needed, and methods of evaluation. Present your program to the group.

16. References Fairchild, G., & Taylor, T. (2000). Using business and issue debates to facilitate synthesis in agribusiness capstone courses. Retrieved June 16, 2009 from http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/bitstream/36460/1/sp00fa02.pdf http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/bitstream/36460/1/sp00fa02.pdf Kerka, S. (2001). Capstone experiences in career and technical education. Retrieved June 16, 2009 from http://eric.ed.gov.http://eric.ed.gov Niles, S.G., & Harris-Bowlsbey, J. (2002). Career development interventions in the 21 st century. New Jersey: Merrill Prentice Hall. Wagenaar, T.C. (2003). The capstone course. Teaching Sociology, 21(3).