Senior Ryan Costello opted to learn how to crochet for his Grad Challenge, with assistance from his community consultant Carol Jean Poulin. Ryan opened his presentation with a brief history of the craft, and explained what he had learned during his grad challenge. "You don’t want to start [crocheting] using yarn that is too dark," Ryan shared, going on to explain that a beginning crocheter cannot easily see the stitches or patterns, and invariably misses the mistakes when using dark yarn. Samples of his work were on display, clearly showing his improved skills with the progression of the projects.

Megan Westphalen chose to "try on" a career and worked with the event planning staff at Double Tree Hotel for her Grad Challenge. She was involved with the process, planning, and execution of special events at the hotel, leading her to enhanced awareness of how many people are involved in assuring the success of an event.

"All departments are involved – and they need to be," Megan said. She went on to outline pricing and ordering food, table layout, and the myriad details overseen by an event planner at a major hotel. She served as a waitress during a wedding reception and also worked at a corporate holiday party to experience the finale of the planning process.

Colleen McCarthy organized a tennis tournament to increase awareness of autism. Working with Linda Luxenburg, director of the New England Autism Center, Colleen coordinated sponsors, advertising efforts, and designed a brochure for the event that raised $700.

"There is a lot at stake when you are personally involved in a cause," she explained. Colleen’s brother was diagnosed with autism, which was the motivating factor in designing her Grad Challenge. She explained that passion helped her to overcome obstacles. "It was a struggle for me to ask for donations, but my passion helped – I maintained eye contact and transferred my passion for the cause to others."