BASIS Charter Schools are known for their focus on STEM and the arts. Students practice critical thinking and time management skills at an early age to graduate with a plethora of college credits and hands-on experience.
A unique part of the BASIS curriculum includes the BASIS Senior Project, a professional-level research project that allows students to network within the community and pursue their own individual interests.
Isabella Villalobos, alumna from BASIS San Antonio Shavano, attributes where she is in her undergraduate career with her senior project topic.
What was your favorite class during your time at BASIS?
AP Environmental Science was probably my favorite class I took in high school. I always tell people this story because I remember being excited to read a textbook! I’d never felt that in my life! I haven’t had that feeling since AP Environmental Science, and I loved that class so much. It’s what ultimately introduced me to my current career field.
Can you share the moment that launched your love for environmental work?
During high school, I had an internship at the American Fishery Society. My work was with Texas Parks and Wildlife at the A.E. Wood Fish Hatchery in San Marcos, TX. I did a lot of field work most days of the week. I would hop in the rivers, collect fish for health stream assessments for the Texas Parks and Wildlife. For me, a typical day at the “office” included 8-10 hours outside, trudging through mud or wading through wasp-infected river waters in the middle of the Texas summer, and I loved every single second of it. I remember one day I was explaining this to another BASIS student, and he said, “That sounds awful”. But all I could think about was how much fun I had. It was really some of the most rewarding work I’ve done. Working here really kickstarted my passion for conservation work, and it helped me get to where I am today.
The Senior Project is a unique part of the BASIS curriculum. Tell me about your senior project and how it impacted you beyond high school.
I had my favorite internship to date during my senior year. For my Senior Project, I sent a Hail Mary email to Bracken Cave, the largest bat cave in the world. The team at Bracken does a lot of conservation work on the Mexican free-tailed bats which are very common in Texas. Funny enough, I already had declared my topic and had an internship set up to start at the San Antonio Zoo, but I had a strong feeling about Bracken Cave, so I sent them a last-minute email asking to intern with them and it worked! I became their first ever intern.
The very first week of my senior project I was able to visit a few caves and swab for white-nose syndrome, a fungal disease that affects bats in the country and it was the moment I truly fell in love with this work. It was also the most direct interaction I’ve had with conservation work since then. It really made me process that the work I do can have an impact and that I need to continue finding opportunities like this one. It was honestly so life-changing and rewarding to collect data that was going to be used for practical purposes and for science.
Learn more about Senior Projects at BASIS Charter Schools
Thank you to Isabella for sharing her BASIS story! Isabella was also awarded the Udall Scholarship and was featured at Texas A&M University for her extraordinary conservation work.
Explore our recent senior projects and read about how BASIS Charter Schools prepares students for future in the college readiness page on our website!
