Featured Student Projects
Arcadia Computer Game, 2022
Eight Arcadia high school students collaborated to create a computer game based on Arcadia. The students spent almost 300 hours designing, writing, and coding the game. They hope it can be a promotional tool for the school as well as a fun way for Arcadia community members to celebrate Arcadia.
The Northfield News profiled the students and their game in May, 2022.
New School Sign, 2020
For his Senior Project, Eli Vosejpka wanted to give back his school. He hoped to give Arcadia a final gift before saying goodbye to what he calls his “second-home.” He learned how to weld and hand-crafted and painted the Arcadia sign that still welcomes people to the school today. The steel sign is rectangular, 10 feet tall, and includes Arcadia’s recently remade logo. As part of the process of creating this sign, Vosejpka joined Arcadia’s recently formed marketing and recruitment committee. Though the pandemic interrupted the process of making the sign, Vosejpka dedicated his summer to finishing the project.
Eagle Scout Project: Picnic Shelter and Tables, 2019
Arcadia junior Logan Wells chose to build a picnic shelter and four picnic benches for Arcadia as his Eagle Scout Project. He brought together volunteers from the Arcadia and Northfield area to raise the funds for materials and then assemble everything. The shelter and benches are used for outdoor events, outdoor classes, and by students during lunch when the weather is warm. His goal for the project was to make a space that would bring students together.
Arcadia Language Arts teacher and high school advisor Scott Graves with Arcadia junior Logan Wells at his Eagle Scout Court of Honor, when he officially became an Eagle Scout. Logan presented Scott with the Eagle Mentor Pin, an award given to someone you consider an important mentor in your life.
Senior Project: Prairie’s Edge Humane Society Fundraiser, 2016
As part of her Senior Project at Arcadia Charter School, Prairie's Edge Humane Society staff member Shelby coordinated student volunteer hours and raised money for new supplies.
Shelby went shopping with fellow staffers Kendra and Ali to purchase the supplies shown in the photo.
Class Project: Solar Panels, 2008
In 2008, ARTech science advisor Jana Reed taught a hands-on seminar class about solar energy that culminated in a student-led 2.8 kilowatt solar project which installed solar panels that produce 5% of the school’s energy.
Students in the seminar researched solar energy, publicized the project, wrote the grants to fund the project, and drew up plans for the project with the help of Reed and other ARTech staff.
Kaya Lovestrand, a junior at ARTech, spearheaded the grant writing process. Lovestrand applied for and got two $5,000 grants for the project, one from Xcel Energy and the second from Clean Energy Resource Teams.
The project even published a report with photos of the process of mounting the panels which you can see here.
The solar panels were originally mounted on a pole behind the school, but when the school expanded they were moved to back wall.
Greenhouse, begun in 2008
Students began designing and raising money for a greenhouse with the help of Andrew Ehrmann, who served the school as Farmer-in-residence at the time. After nearly three years the greenhouse was up and running. Students have maintained it off and on over the years, utilizing it for projects, science classes, May Term classes, and student gardening clubs.
Click here to see a Northfield Patch video highlighting the project as it got off the ground.
In 2022 a high school group began resurrecting the greenhouse.
(It needed to be dissembled during the school expansion in 2019.)
Just like before, students raised hundreds of dollars with bakesales. They've also utilized the materials that were saved from the original greenhouse.
