The Knowledge to Drive Progress
In late May, the Middle School’s classrooms buzz with excitement as students and teachers sideline their traditional schedules to embark on Project Week. With the final trimester’s coursework complete, each grade level dives into an interdisciplinary challenge designed to synthesize their learning and apply it to real-world problems. The projects — Building the Future (grade 6), Exploring Wellness (grade 7), and Leaving a Legacy (grade 8) — push students to think big, work collaboratively, and transform their ideas into action.
“Project Week is an experiential learning process that integrates themes from the entire school year,” explains Head of Middle School Michelle Merson P’28. “The week-long experience shows students how their academic growth is applicable to real-world endeavors.”
Building Community on Mars
While studying space exploration in science class or reading Andy Weir’s “The Martian” in English, sixth grade students might not realize these assignments are strategically preparing them for their final project of the year. Yet all of this coursework informs their Project Week experience, developing a three-stage Mars exploration program that culminates in plans for a large-scale human civilization on the planet.
In small groups, students create and pitch detailed proposals that consider the mechanical, social, and environmental challenges of life on Mars. “This capstone project invites students to show us — and each other — what they’ve learned in sixth grade in a student-centered way,” says English Teacher Pam Onest P’21,’25. During the week, students rotate through classrooms with teachers from different disciplines (science, social studies, mathematics, and English) to touch on the knowledge and skills they need to complete the week’s work, including research skills, facts about Mars, collaborative teamwork, persuasive writing, and public speaking.
While teachers are available to offer guidance, Project Week requires students to trust their knowledge and critical thinking skills so they can sit in the driver’s seat. “Student accountability and engagement are intrinsic to project-based learning,” Onest says. The result? An opportunity to grapple with issues that have significant real-world meaning.
“I’m so impressed with the students,” says Science Teacher Matt Brunner P’20,’22,’25. “They’re working through complex challenges scientists have grappled with for years. It’s incredible to see their level of understanding.”
The project extends far beyond the classroom. Trips to the Carnegie Science Center’s “Mars: The Next Giant Leap” exhibit, the Moonshot Museum — where students saw a lunar spacecraft under assembly — and Astrobotic Technology, a pioneering space exploration company in Pittsburgh’s North Side neighborhood, connect classroom concepts with cutting-edge innovation happening locally. Students also heard from Connor Colombo ’16, a Shady Side alumnus now working at Astrobotic, who shared insights into his career in space exploration, and from Sonja Michaluk, a student researcher involved in Carnegie Mellon University’s Iris Rover project. Together, these real-world experiences and personal stories show students that this work isn’t science fiction — it’s their reality. “It lets them know that opportunities to work on these problems exist beyond school,” explains Middle School Computer Science Teacher Tim McGuigan P’28,’32.
The Agency to Be Well
While sixth grade students look outward to space, seventh grade students spend Project Week directing their gazes inward. Their task? Design an original product to support youth wellness — and then market it.
The week begins with an introduction to The Wellness Wheel — a framework that encourages holistic thinking across multiple dimensions of well-being. Students then participate in a team-building challenge at Camp Guyasuta, designed to strengthen trust, communication, and collaboration. These experiences lay the groundwork for the creative challenge ahead: applying design thinking and persuasive communication skills to tackle real wellness challenges facing adolescents.
“We ask students to apply their creative design thinking, and collaboration skills to develop a wellness innovation,” says English Teacher Lauren Cannon. “We live in a fast-paced and often stressful world, so we want them to think about what it takes to live healthier, more balanced lives.”
Throughout the week, students hear from business and community leaders whose work aligns with different aspects of The Wellness Wheel. Highlights this year included a virtual visit with Bryan Leach, CEO of Ibotta, who spoke about the financial wellness spoke of the wheel and offered candid reflections on the challenges and rewards of entrepreneurship. Shady Side alumni Jordan Foley ’07 and Charlie Magovern ’07 also joined as guest speakers to share their story of founding Let’s Chow, a nonprofit that supports veterans transitioning to civilian life through culinary training, mentorship, and food truck ownership. Their presentation powerfully illustrated the generosity spoke and the real-world impact of purpose-driven work.
We live in a fast-paced and often stressful world, so we want them to think about what it takes to live healthier, more balanced lives.
Lauren Cannon
English Teacher
Students work in groups to identify a wellness issue facing young people, develop an innovative product to address it, create a prototype, craft marketing (such as a commercial or presentation), and publicly present their idea. “Our seventh grade students focus heavily on public speaking and persuasion throughout the year. During Project Week, they have to use all of the persuasive skills they learn to perform before a panel of judges,” explains Cannon.
Like the Mars Project, the Wellness Project sharpens civil discourse skills. “We emphasize collaboration. We want to reinforce that one of the most vital skills students can have is listening, working well together, and building off of each other’s ideas in a team setting — something that models the professional world they will enter one day,” Cannon says.
Students don’t have to look beyond the Middle School walls to understand that this exercise can have a real-world impact. One of the projects from a recent school year inspired a change at the Middle School. As part of their proposal, a group of students suggested a special currency to incentivize planner use, positive behavior, and homework completion. The idea sparked the implementation of “Ready to Learn” passes last year, which students earn throughout the week when teachers notice them making smart choices. Eventually, the passes can be traded in for special rewards and prizes.
This year’s student proposals were equally thoughtful and inventive. Highlights included Project Recharge, a Middle School initiative featuring a wellness bullet journal, wellness-themed assemblies, and designated time each Friday for students to reset. Other concepts included the Homework Token Timer, a rewards-based tool for managing homework time; Memoz, a pair of smart glasses designed to enhance focus and alleviate academic stress; and the Study Pod, a calming, tech-free space for quiet concentration.
It all culminates in a high-energy, “Shark Tank”-style pitch event, where students showcase their ideas through a live Q&A with a panel of judges. It is a memorable and meaningful capstone to the year — one that emphasizes a deeper understanding of what it means to live well.
Owning Their Legacy
In their last moments in the Middle School, eighth grade students examine their growth and what they hope to leave behind in a Legacy Project. “This is a reflective process for them,” explains Science Teacher Paul Waked. “We ask students to think about what it means to make a lasting impact — something of enduring value that lives beyond their presence or lifetime.”
Leading up to the week, students study memoirs and changemakers, visit Washington, D.C., and consider themes of justice, remembrance, and personal impact. They are asked to photograph an artifact during their trip that makes them think deeply about the world — images that serve as visual anchors for the week’s opening reflections.
“At its core, a legacy is about intentional influence. It’s how our actions echo forward — how others grow, behave, or believe differently because of what we built, stood for, or gave. The conversations and visual representations of various legacies in Washington, D.C., resonate with the students and feed into their work in Project Week,” Merson shares. “We want students to feel, deep down, that their voices matter — and that what they choose to do with their time and talents can leave a lasting mark on the world,” Waked adds.
This year, the week opened with a visit from Coach Dave Gray, who spoke about the power of strong character and how people are drawn to those who lead with authenticity and integrity. After a Q&A, students enjoyed grade-wide games to build camaraderie and trust.
Before beginning small group work, the eighth grade also heard from speakers who have deep ties to Pittsburgh or Shady Side Academy and have created their own legacy through their actions. Students heard from Sloane Davidson ’97, founder and CEO of Hello Neighbor, a nonprofit organization that supports immigrants and refugees in the Pittsburgh area.
Teachers also discuss other Pittsburghers who have left behind a legacy with their work and actions, including Rachel Carson, Andy Warhol, Roberto Clemente, and Charles “Teenie” Harris. A visit to The Andy Warhol Museum helps students explore how Warhol challenged conventional definitions of art, collaborated widely, and left a global cultural legacy — all while deeply connected to his Pittsburgh roots.
When it is time to begin working on their group legacy project proposals, each student chooses one of the group themes: environmental preservation, sports, community service, music and arts, or speeches.
One group focused on the environmental preservation theme, proposed incorporating native species into the landscaping plan for the new Rockwell Middle School building on the Upper School campus. The group also investigated composting and wants to have a gardening and composting club to support these efforts.
Another group of students who selected the community service theme focused on addressing food insecurity, volunteering with the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank. They toured the facility and helped pack 120 boxes — each weighing 20 pounds — for distribution to families in need.
Yet another group that selected the athletics theme worked on ways to promote leadership and community in Shady Side’s athletic programs. They proposed a mentorship program to connect younger and older student-athletes and a “shout board” initiative to highlight teamwork and sportsmanship, emphasizing how character and collaboration can shape the legacy of SSA athletics.
Perhaps the most immediate example of legacy that this week creates is the selection of student speakers for the Middle School Closing Exercises each year. Students who opt to work in the speeches group spend the week crafting a speech. At the end of Project Week, these students share their words with their peers, and the class votes to decide who should represent them during Closing Exercises.
On June 6, 2025, eighth grade student Eira Pathe stood before her classmates to speak about their legacy at the Middle School and the impact they will all have as they transition to the Senior School. Reflecting the spirit of the Leaving a Legacy project, her words offered a powerful reminder that influence isn’t measured by perfection, but by the courage to try: “You might fail in a spectacular, forehead-slapping, heart-stopping kind of way. But you’ll learn something. You’ll grow. And sometimes, you’ll surprise yourself with how far you make it, just by trying.”
That message echoes the purpose behind Project Week itself — an invitation for students to take risks and think boldly. Whether imagining a new life on Mars, designing innovations to support wellness, or exploring the impact they want to leave behind, Shady Side’s Middle School students experience what it is like to apply their learning to meaningful challenges.
Cover Feature
What If School Looked More Like the Real World?
By designing a program that transcends the classroom walls, the Senior School redefines what learning can be.