Catherine Dark

Mr. Nunes

English

12 May 2020

Reflection On My Senior Project

Although I was never able to truly begin the project portion of this experience, I learned

an insurmountable amount of impactful information from my research. The question I chose to

answer was abundant with various factors that all applied to researching ​How has gentrification

in the Bay Area caused a new diaspora for the lower socioeconomic class? ​There is much more

to this question than simply “prices rise so people are forced to move”. I was able to research

how gentrification begins and the different ways it takes roots in Bay Area communities.

At first, I was rather nervous about tackling an 8-10 page paper. I was not used to having

to write essays of that length, nor having enough information to make it that long. However, the

more I researched, even before my interviews, I soon learned that 10 pages would barely even

scratch the surface of my topic. I am very lucky as I had two amazing interviewees, one of which

was my mentor, who gave me insightful information to include in my paper. Terren Wing, the

graduate student at UC Berkeley, provided more information than my online research. She told

me information that expanded my perspective and equipped me with information I will be using

for the rest of my life. Wendy Stark, my mentor and other interviewee, was also insanely

beneficial to my success. Her teaching experience and amazing personality allowed me a very

straightforward plan to accomplish the project portion. I am very disappointed that I was not able
to complete my project because I was going to help make Mother’s Day gifts with her 5th grade

class.

Ultimately, I had a very good experience working on the research paper and planning my

project. Everyone I worked with including my friends, family, and teachers, all contributed to my

success. There is nothing I would really do differently overall but if I had a time machine, I

would go back to before quarantine to at least take the pictures of the students so they would

have something nice for themselves or for their families. Senior Project taught me a lot of

valuable information about a subject I care a lot about. It further established my passion for

human rights, politics, and working towards an equitable future.