On Wednesday, November 20, Athens Academy senior Emmeline Land successfully

defended her Capstone project, “Continued Service to the Special Needs Population with a Focus

on Speech Pathology.” Emmeline has volunteered regularly with the local organization ESP since

she was in sixth grade, and it was through her time spent with non-verbal participants that she

developed an interest in speech pathology. For her Capstone project, Emmeline’s goal was two-

fold: she sought to share her love of service with her classmates while also learning more about

speech and language therapies and how they can improve the lives of those with special needs.

Emmeline’s love of service and her passion for her faith have blossomed during her time

volunteering with disabled people. In February 2024, she served at the Young Life Capernaum

Camp in Brevard, North Carolina: “Serving at [Capernaum] allowed me to help people with special

needs know Jesus better and have deep conversations about the gospel.” As part of her Capstone,

Emmeline shared these experiences with her friends and classmates at Athens Academy by

hosting Java Joy coffee cart visits to campus; through her ACAD Talk about her service experience;

and by setting up a sensory bottle booth at Festival Day in April, so that children could make a

sensory bottle for themselves and one to be shared with someone at ESP. Her mentor Joseph

Whitaker helped to guide her throughout the Capstone process.

For the second part of her project, Emmeline shadowed Marcie Cochran once a week at her

clinic during the spring semester of her junior year. She discovered that an SLP’s job is very

different depending on the setting in which they work, and through the Capstone process, she

realized she would prefer to study nursing in order to work in a faster-paced environment.

Emmeline has applied to colleges with a nursing program to bring this dream to fruition.

Overall, Emmeline cites her efforts in spreading the joy of volunteering at ESP as one of the

most important contributions she has made with her Capstone project. “Service is purpose-driven

work. It isn’t about changing the world, but it is about showing up and being a small part of

someone’s daily life.”

Congratulations to Emmeline for her dedication to bringing awareness to her school

community, sharing her faith, and working with those in the greater community who are in need of

support and compassion.

The Capstone Project is an opportunity for Upper School students to explore a passion via

four criteria: research, mentorship, experiential learning, and an outward contribution. Eachstudent details their work extensively in a portfolio, including a research paper; they then defend

the project before a committee of faculty and administrators, similar to a Ph.D. oral defense.

Students whose projects are approved by the committee receive the Capstone designation at

commencement in May.

Athens Academy is an independent, co-educational school for students in K3 through 12th

grade, located on a beautiful 152-acre campus in Northeast Georgia. Now in its 57th year, Athens

Academy pursues its mission of “excellence with honor” through academics, athletics, fine arts,

and service and leadership. Ranked the #1 private school in Athens, #9 college prep school in

the state of Georgia, and #1 private school in Northeast Georgia (Niche.com).

For more information, please contact Kelley Cuneo, communications director, at

[email protected] or 706-433-2410.