Every year, seniors are required to finish a Legacy Project—a video or paragraph essay about the legacy each senior wishes to leave behind as they prepare to graduate. Most seniors choose to showcase their legacy through an emotional video of pictures and a deep song that allows for the individual to express themselves more clearly and visually than a five paragraph essay being read to the class.

The Legacy Projects are typically shown to everyone in seniors’ English classes. So, of course, part of the grade is the presentation. They’re mostly just really enjoyable to watch, and are a great way of getting to know your classmates a little bit better before parting ways after graduation.

“I think the Legacy Project is a really good way of saying goodbye to everyone,” senior Rachel Occleston said. “It helps us say it because we know we wouldn’t unless it was just our close friends.”

It helps that most seniors enjoy making and working on the projects to show off to all of their friends, inside and outside of class. The projects, after all, are a culmination of four years in high school, and are widely anticipated by underclassmen.

“It’s fun because it’s something I know how to do and I can show people the real me after all these years,” Occleston said.

The fact that Legacy Projects can make people more confident and proud of their high school career is great, because it’s important to look back and reflect on one of the most formative moments of one’s life. The Legacy Project doesn’t allow students to forget, but instead reminds them of everything they have done to get to where they are now in their senior year, about to graduate.

“I’m really glad we get to make these Legacy Projects,” Occleston said. “It’s really fun.”