I initially thought my Capstone project would be entirely focused on a political topic. After all, politics was my main interest and what I planned to study in college. Yet, on the very first day of my Capstone class, Mr. Schott recommended that I think about studying economics instead. As someone who had never taken an economics class, (nor a calculus or statistics class), I did not think I was going to be able to do this. But, I quickly developed a strong interest in the subject. I read college textbooks, economists’ own works and theories, and listened to lectures from experts.

I met with Dr. Amyaz Moledina, an economics professor at the College of Wooster. After learning a more about the basics of economics, I decided to focus my project on how social assistance programs could be used to reduce unemployment. I viewed this to be an interesting topic that combined my fascination with politics with my new interest in economics, and I believed this was an often overlooked topic of study. I did more research on this topic, looking at studies conducted by different governments and reading the theories published by prominent economists, then started drafting a paper on this subject.

After a few months, I submitted my abstract of this paper to the Cleveland Federal Reserve to apply to present at their annual Economic Scholars Program, and was selected to present my research there. I was the only high school student selected to present, and all the other applicants and presenters were juniors and seniors studying economics in college. In preparation for my presentation, I worked with Mr. Corsaro, Laurel’s economics and government teacher, who reviewed and provided feedback on my presentation and helped me prepare for questions on my topic. I am very grateful for his willingness to help me on my project and for all of the assistance that he provided.  I also received Laurel’s Joan D. and John T. Scott Fund, which allowed me to have access to additional resources and materials that I used to complete my project.

Since presenting my project in May, I have worked on making edits to my paper in order published my work at the Journal of Student Research.  Capstone is a truly wonderful educational experience, and I am so glad that I was able to participate in it. This program is how I first learned more about economics, and it is because of this program that I now plan to study it in college.