Mindfulness, a practice that utilizes observation to increase control of thoughts and feelings, might be one of the answers to the achievement gap. Closing the achievement gap and creating more opportunities for students is crucial because many students face disparities and setbacks in school that come from a variety of factors such as poverty, prejudice, low-quality schools, and language understanding which correspond to stress and mental health levels. Existing evidence suggests that mindfulness is linked to decreasing anxiety and improving cognitive performance for students. To further research the effects mindfulness has on the achievement gap, students grades will be compared between pre-meditation use and post 6-weeks of daily meditation practice. The results of student experiences will be recorded by using an existing survey, the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale.

The history of redlining and real estate discrimination in our country is a huge issue. Throughout history African Americans and other minorities have been denied fair realty services. The impacts of this are seen today through the achievement gap, health and access to healthy food, overall wealth, and diversity within communities. This project will highlight the effects that redlining continues to have decades later in the East/Palo Alto community as determined by an interview of a community member.

The goal of my research project is to attain a better understanding of how representation affects the LGBTQ community. There has been quite a bit of research into LGBTQ underrepresentation, but not a lot has been done into the impacts that that has. The percentage of films that include LGBTQ characters is extremely low, and those that do do it through over exaggerated and overused stereotypes. The fact that the LGBTQ community is often represented poorly, if at all in most movies, can have a variety of impacts on the members of the community, including a lack of self esteem and subconscious behavioral shifts. This research project focuses on personal accounts from members of the LGBTQ community to be able to see the extent of these problems and to discover if there are more.

Nigeria has one of the highest populations in Africa, yet it suffers from a crippling amount sexism. While the ratio of male-to female members in the workforce is near equal, women still face sexism at home, in their workplace, and at school. While this is a phenomenon seen almost across the globe, I specifically choose Nigeria, because it is the country and the culture I know best. All this begs the question of why? Why despite progress is Nigeria still, for the most part, stuck in the archaic ways? Through rigorous research, and the help of a few surveys, I hope to prove my hypothesis that culture and the way we see life and others around us plays a huge role in sexism and also contribute to finding a long-lasting solution to the problem that many societies face today.

Have you ever wondered why some people make more money than others? This question will be addressed in this research project. It explores if adults with bachelor's degrees tend to earn more than adults with little to no college experience. The question is relevant to many students wondering what college/career paths they should consider upon exiting high school; and may give students a different perspective than what they may be used to. The research methods used include reviewing data from previously submitted surveys or interviews related to this topic, and then determining an action project to share findings with a group of seniors at a local high school to determine if their interest in attending a 4-year college has changed.

Back in September of 2020 Eventing Nation released an article on the recent call for a name change of the Plantation field horse trials venue in Pennsylvania. The issue arose from the recent conversation with the affiliation the name “plantation” alone has to slavery. The venue name and location have no affiliation to slavery but Eventing Nation brought the issue to the United States Eventing Association (USEA) in hopes to start creating more awareness of names such as these and the lack of diversity within the equestrian sport. Due to the naming issue, USEA has lost the venue to host horse trials. While many eventers around the country are unhappy with the loss of such a high end venue, something much more important has come out of the loss of Plantation Fields: conversation about equity and privilege, especially in respect to the lack of diversity within the equestrian sport. We have seen similar name changes within the Palo Alto Unified School District and the National Football League that publicly show how representations with negative connotations, racism, and inequalities need to be addressed in our country. This project is about the effects of naming a venue based on negative connotations and how powerful backgrounds and meaning can we do our part to create understanding in the important conversation of not repeating history through changing big organizational names?

Even in the 21st century, “modern slavery” or “human trafficking” is still extremely active and making about $150.2 billion per year through the 25 million people being enslaved. This “hidden crime,” human trafficking, is a major problem in the world because so many traffickers force people, especially females, into sex, labor, and other different acts to make a profit for traffickers while the world barely can recognize or identify the victims of these terrible crimes. Because of the lack of knowledge about human trafficking, many people are not cautious and thus become victims. In addition, because people do not know how to identify victims, fewer victims are rescued. There needs to be evidence-based research on what people already know about human trafficking, and about identifying and helping victims. This survey will also investigate what people believe are the best methods of raising awareness on this subject. This survey is digitally sent to people of all different ages, genders, and ethnicities.

Athletics give children needed skills such as discipline, teamwork, leadership and other benefits related to health, hard work, and friendships. However, many athletic opportunities are not available to students in lower economic status communities. Additionally, since the specialization of sports begins at younger and younger age, children with lower socioeconomic status miss out on these advantageous lessons and experiences. This research project focuses on identifying solutions for low-income students to access and to participate in high school sports. The project will aggregate data from interviews of coaches from a few different high schools in the bay area to determine next steps.

Mental health problems can negatively impact a person's ability to function in social situations, the ability to combat problems, and ultimately affect their sleep patterns. Therefore, a study about how the lack of resources for adolescents with mental health living in low income areas compares to adolescents with mental health outlets is required to take action research to address this inequality. The research method for this project is to interview an employee from the Ravenswood Health clinic to get data about accessibility for adolescents living in low-income areas, and determine next steps to help ameliorate the situation.

The state of California has seen rates of chronic sadness and suicide ideation increase at the high school level and although the state continues to focus efforts at that secondary level, the numbers have not changed. In fact, according to the California Healthy Kids Survey, certain California middle schools find themselves struggling with an increase in the number of seventh graders experiencing chronic sad or hopeless feelings, (about 1 in 6), and in the number of those seriously considering suicide (about 1 in 10). This project seeks to look closely at the availability of mental health education and resources for middle schoolers in one California district. Following interviews with district administrators, teachers, and counselors and a review of educational programs and availability of support, this project will provide recommendations to the district and possible lesson plans for future use.