A Milli

For the the last Action Project for my senior STEAM course, Economics: Risking Value, I was given a scenario where I was gifted an amount of money that was growing in an saving account for 18 years. In this scenario, my guardian angel left me $49128.87. With that money, I had to invest in companies I believed in, and hopefully make a good amount of money off of them. I’ve learned a lot during this course that I will carry on with me in my lifetime. I learned about investing, compounding money, and how to save money and time more effectively. What I struggled with was finding companies to invest in. How I overcame that problem was researching, and thinking about companies I like; and use on a daily basis. I enjoyed this term and can’t wait for the other Senior STEAM courses. I hope you enjoy my project:

My guardian angel gifted me with $49128.87. With that money I’m going to invest companies I believe will benefit me within 25 years. My plan is down below:

1-year goal: I want to reach $5,000 in my savings. That money can go towards college. I want to save more than I spend. 

5-year goal: I’ll be 23 years old. Hopefully I’ll be done with college. I want to have $30,000 in savings and that will go towards paying off college debt. 

25-year goal: I’ll be 43 years old I would want $100,000 in savings hopefully a little more saved. My college debt would be paid off, I will be living happily, and I can go traveling.

I value profit-driven companies, but I also like companies that are passionate. They set goals and try their hardest to meet that goal. I also value environment-friendly companies that want to improve the world and really make an effort to do that. I want to invest in companies that have a constant flow of money coming in. If I invest in companies that are stable, there is a higher change I can make a lot of money because the same amount of money would keep coming in, and not make a huge drop. Disney and Apple have a huge amount of money, and hopefully that will keep happening. 

The first company I chose to invest in is Walt Disney Corporation. Disney is a Entertainment stock. They bring quality movies, music and stage plays to consumers throughout the world. The mission of The Walt Disney Company is to be one of the world’s leading producers and providers of entertainment and information. I’ve been watching Disney since I was a little girl. They have some of my favorite cartoons and TV shows. It would be great to invest in a company that I love. I think Disney is going to make a great amount of money with the Star Wars series and all the other movies that they will be releasing at the end of this year and next year.

Disney Stock Price. 2016. Via Google.

The second company I picked is Apple. Apple is an innovative stock. Apple has historically been a growth stock meaning it was constantly on the rise. Apple hit its all time high at 134.54 in May of 2015. It is now a safe assumption to say Apple is a value stock. I picked Apple because their price number has been stable. They’re changing the world with brilliant ideas. I think both companies can continue to grow and come up with even better ideas and projects to give to the world.

Apple Stock Price. 2016. Via Google.

My first year, I will invest in Disney 50% and Apple 50%. The ROI for Disney is 12.5%, and Apple’s ROI is 24%. My ROI for investing in both companies for the first year is 18.25% Working towards my 1 year goal, I will invest $4, 228. 

Created by JV Pie Chart, 2016. 

For my 5 year plan, I want to invest in Disney 75% and 25% for Apple. My ROI would be 15.375% The 5 year in investing I will spend $14,676. 

Created by JV Pie Chart, 2016. 

For my 25 year goal I will invest the same proportions as I did in my five year goal. 75% for Disney, 25% for Apple. The amount I invested would be $26,753.87. If my plans play out right, all my money will get compounded. I will end up with $955,380.689 in return. That is a great amount of money! Both companies I picked are investment vehicles. They bring in huge amounts of money and, lucky for me, I think I choose the right companies. My money will be compounding over the years that’s why I will end up with a little under a million dollars. The amount seed money I was given, turned into a huge of amount of money and that shows what investing can do. 

Created by JV Pie Chart, 2016. 

 I know my plan sounds a little risky, but according to the Rutgers University’s Risk Tolerance Quiz, I have average/moderate tolerance risk. I’m willing to take these chances. 

Created by JV, 2016. 

Overall I enjoyed doing this project, and seeing how much money I would make in investments. I think my plan worked out really well!

Citations:

"Walt Disney." csimarket.com. N.P. N.D. Web. 27 Oct, 2016.

"Apple."csimarket.com.N.P. N.D. Web. 27 Oct, 2016.

"Investment Risk Tolerance Quiz."njaes.rutgers.edu. Grable, J. E., & Lytton, R. H. 1999. Web. 14 Oct, 2016. 

Blast From The Past

The second Action Project in my Journalism class, was to produce a podcast to tell a story of a voice important to the 20th century. We also had to interview someone and ask them why they think that person/ band was important to them. I chose to New Kids On The Block, and I interviewed my mom. This Action Project was very time consuming. It took me 3 days to complete this Action Project. What I enjoyed was interviewing my mom and her telling me why she liked the band so much. What I struggled with was editing and managing my time. I over came those challenges by pushing myself and getting my work done. Overall I enjoyed completing this project. I Hope you enjoy!

Past, Future & Life

My first Humanities course for Senior year is called Journalism. The first unit we focused on photojournalism and how that can help us see the world. We took on the role of a photojournalist, practicing both the essential skills of photography and the critical thinking. On the first Field Experience, we went to a photo gallery. We meet the photojournalist, and her series is called “#Killing Season Chicago. She documented shootings that happened during the summer of 2010. The exhibit was amazing it catalogued where people got killed. Not one photo had a person in it. Each photo was a memorial for the people who died that summer. That exhibit guided us to our Action Project. The purpose of the first Action Project was to take on the role of a photojournalist and capture, through a photo the point of view of someone that I believed had an important/interesting/unique view on the meaning of life. I interviewed my younger sister Jiselle. I chose my sister because she’s really unique and wise. I love hearing her speak and her telling me all her ideas. She has a very different way of thinking and I loved to hearing what her meaning of life was. What was most challenging during this Action Project was taking the perfect picture of my sister. I didn’t just want to take a picture, I wanted to take one picture that really captured my sister's personality. That picture is below, I hope you enjoy!

Photo taken by JV. Past, Future & Life. 2016

The interview was taken in my kitchen on September 25, 2016. It was around 10:00 am. The house had an aroma of Cafe Bustelo, my sister and I favorite coffee. We sat at the kitchen island table. I began to ask her some questions.


What is the meaning of life to you?
The meaning of life to me is the way you live it. You can’t have regrets, you can’t hate, and judge yourself. You have to accept the mistakes you have made and move on. The meaning of life is you, you’re the one who is living, you only have one chance at life, might as well make it everything you want it to be.

Has life always meant the same for you, or did this meaning change to you?
The meaning of life to me has definitely changed. I use to think life was everything my parents told me. I use to listen to everything they said, and believed everything they said. I still listen to my parents, I still value their meaning, their thoughts. As I got older I realized that I had my own meaning of life, my own thoughts, and I starting seeing life in a totally different way. I realized that I was my own person and I could make my own decisions.

What are your values in life?
My values in life is to stay true to myself, I want to be the best vision of me and I’m still working on that. I want to reach all my goals, I want to have a good future, and I want our family to be proud.

We were eating french toast during the interview, my sister’s favorite breakfast meal. My keyboard was getting sticky from the syrup; I’m kinda a messy eater-I must admit. I was trying to type every exact word she was saying while eating, but I’m not so great at multitasking. My little brother, on the other hand, was also sitting at the table, eating french toast, watching I Love Lucy on his tablet, and also listening to what we were talking about. He’s 10 years old, and in my opinion a great multitasker. We took a little break and finished up breakfast. We had to move locations because, our Mami kicked us out of the kitchen to clean up. We relocation in our bedroom that we share together. For those that don’t share a room with a sibling I am truly jealous.

The interview began again,

What do you want most out of your life? I want to be happy; I want to travel to all the places I have in mind, so that way later in life when I’m older, I won’t be saying, “ I wish I went here or there” because I’ve already went to all of those places.

What do you like most about yourself? I like how I think, and how I handle situations. I like how stronger and independent I am as well. I like how im very outgoing, and spontaneous, I also like how I make people laugh.

What are your strengths? My strengths are school, work, and being independent. I like going to school, and getting good grades. I like to study and make sure all my work is done on time. I also like working and making money, so that way I can get all the things that I need. I also like how im independent. I look up to you, and sometimes wonder how you handle school and work at the same time, because I’m still getting use to it.

What are your weaknesses? Mmh, weaknesses would be my shyness. Staying quiet, being a little awkward at times. I’m working on my weaknesses, and I have gotten better but everything takes time, and growth is very important. Like I said before realizing your mistakes, and making them better. I would say the meaning of life would be myself. I am a living, I am breathing. I value my life so much I am very grateful that I am living.

This interview went well. I did have to force my sister a little bit with staying on topic, and yell at her to stop being on her phone and to talk to me!

The photo was taken after the interview, around 1 o’clock pm. The location was Wilson Park. The park is really close to our house. I took this picture when my sister was off guard, and I think those are the best pictures. She is a very sassy 17 year old and that kind of shows in the photo. I love her pose and the lighting of the photo. The shadowing is what stands out the most. The brightness can represent future and the darkness can represent the past.

She reminds me of myself sometimes. She is very independent like myself. Even though I’m the oldest and we are only one year apart; I look up to her sometimes. She’s amazing and I love her very much, people always thought we were twins when we were younger, and I remember we use to hate it LOL. I remember her always telling “hold my hand” when we were little. Although we are both young adults, Jiselle will always be my little sissy Selle.

After High School

My first STEAM course for senior year is called Economics. The first unit is called Utility and Value; this unit taught us how to make our own decisions when it comes to money and our future. We learned the meaning of utility as a way of modeling choices, and we also learned about economic and mathematical concepts like supply and demand, calculating with a matrix, continuously compounding, and simple compounding, and continuously compounding interest. On our first Field Experience, we went to the Federal Bank of Chicago. This FE was interesting;I learned a lot about the market, deflation, how much money Illinois shreds everyday, and how much money the FED bank carries. I can’t wait to see what the other FE’s are going to be like for this class. The purpose of this Action Project is to look at a reality that I will consider to be my future profession. I choose to pick two different paths for my future and see which one will benefit me the most. I calculated the real cost of college based on the two colleges I picked. What I found challenging was the calculations, but I overcame that struggle by meeting with my teacher and asking questions. What I enjoyed about this project was seeing what path is better for my future.

Day Care Shenanigans.

Over the summer I completed my community services hours. I volunteered at my best friends, aunts day care. It was an amazing experience, I got to bond with beautiful kids and learned how to have so much patience for them. I love working with little kids, they're so much fun and silly. The owner of the day care lives in Jefferson Park, which was awesome because I live in that neighborhood as well and all I had to do was walk to her house which was awesome. I started volunteering in August and would volunteer on weekdays. I did 8 hours each day. There were two main kids at the daycare that I took care of. A girl named Samara who is 2 years old, she was born in Haiti and just recently moved to America. She is the sweetest little girl I’ve ever meet, she’s so patient and quiet. She will listen to you and wants you to play with her. Even though she’s only 2 years old she is so driven and wants to know everything that’s going on. She also picked up English and Spanish really fast, which was really surprising to me. She is a very bright little girl. Sebastian is the other kid I took care off. He is 4 years old, and such a silly little boy. He loved jumping around and voicing his opinion. He is very adventurous and loved to play with me and Samara. Getting to know these two kids was such a blessing. I got to teach them how to read, write the ABC’s, write their names. and how to count to 10. I also looked after them as they played taught them how to be nice to one another and got to feed them, and cleaned up after them.

Playground. Taken by JV. 2016. 

My last date at the daycare was September 18, 2016. It was really hard for me to say goodbye to the kids. I actually went over my community service hours because I enjoyed being with them so much. Ely is the owner of the day care, and I want to thank her for letting me join her and helping her out. Ely is so sweet and I can tell she really enjoys her job, and she loves the kids she looks after. I would definitely go back and volunteer there again. I loved the experience and I loved meeting the kids.

Toy Area. Taken by JV. 2016.

1857

Policy was my last humanities class as a Junior at GCE Lab School. The last unit was called Judge, in which we learned about the purpose and powers of the judicial branch, and how those powers have been executed throughout history. I learned so much throughout this course; the concepts I learned really changed my view on how society works. Learning about the different branches, of ablement American politics works made me feel like our country is still a very racist country. America needs to change; we need to stop electing people who have racist mindsets, and start electing those who that truly want to change America to become a better place for all people. The last Action Project in the course was to document a historical Supreme Court or international tribunal ruling and analyze how it has affected society since. The case I chose was Dred Scott vs Sanford (1857), I chose this case because it’s very important in US history in terms of race relations and citizenship. I’m glad I picked this case; I learned a lot from it. What I’m proud of is how I’m developing as a writer and researcher, and I’m excited to see myself continue to grow.

  

The New Damen Silos

The third unit in Urban Planning was called Flow, the title of this unit is really about everything we learned throughout this term. We learned about different cities, their history, and where they came from. We also dived deeper into urban planning and learned about how we can change a city to make it better. The last Action Project asked us to pick a city and use everything we have learned about urban planning to improve a space that we have chosen. What I struggled with was building my 3D model. It was a challenge but I pushed myself to get it done. What I’m proud of is how my project came together. I think my idea is cool, I really liked working on this project, even though it was really stressful at times. I enjoyed taking this course, I learned a lot about my city, and about Urban Planning.

3D Model of Redesigned Damen Silos Created by JV, 2016*

Chinatown is an area in Chicago that shows the culture of Chinese people. The area has many shops and restaurants that are Chinese. This area is very touristy, has venues that host many concerts, has pretty good transportation, many buses in this area, two redline stops, the highway, and the river is nearby. I would say this area in Chicago makes a good amount of money, but where is it all going? The strengths this area are the culture, and the architectural design is very nice. The shops and restaurants in Chinatown are another big strength, whereas some weaknesses are segregation, and it has lots of abandoned buildings that could be used for something useful. Lots of factories are around that area, not many parks are nearby, and the area has a lot of pollution. The space needs more parks, it also needs something new and exciting that really stands out but also incorporates Chinese culture.

2D model Before Created JV, 2016*

The High Line Park in New York City inspired me, because they transformed an area that contained industrial and toxic waste, infrastructure no longer in use, into an elevated park that has lots of greenery. Gas Works Park in Seattle Washington is another project that inspired me and was built on the location of a former coal gasification plant in 1965. The abandoned plant was converted into a picnic shelter complete with tables and fire grills, while a former exhauster-compressor building was turned into an open-air play barn that houses a maze. This inspired me to change the Damen Silos into an indoor park. The changes that I will make to the Damen silos will really improve the Chinatown area. I will leave the original structure of the building, but I will repaint it, adding more colors, like red, gold, and bronze, to bring life to the building. There is so much graffiti all over the Damen Silos but I will leave some of it to represent Chicago street art. There are underground tunnels in the building, and these will become an underground slide park. I will add some Chinese art designs into the building so that way the indoor park mixes into the culture of Chinatown. I will also add a huge stage almost like a theater on the first floor so that way concerts can be held there, bringing in money for the area and city.

2D model After Created by JV, 2016.

I calculated the area of two rectangular prisms put together, and a cylinder. The height of a silo which is the cylinder is 87 ft. The base of the triangle the main building is 693 ft and the height is 722 ft. The equation for the area of the whole space was ½ x 693 x 722= 250,173 ft^2. The equation for the volume of a cylinder is 𝝿 x radius2 x height which was 3.14 X 10^2 x 87= 27,331.85 cubic ft. Since its diameter is 20, its radius would be 10. To find the volume of an irregularly shaped building, I multiplied the length, width and height of the rectangular prisms which was 28 x 28 x 25=19,600 and 75 x 50 x 25= 93, 750. Then I added both measurements and got 113,350 cubic ft. Over all I did enjoy working on this project, it was really stressful and I feel like the timing was a bit rushed. What I would do differently is really take my time with the prep work, so that way towards the end of the project everything would go much smoother.

                                             3D Model of Redesigned Damen Silos Created by JV, 2016*