High school student designs diploma

Carson High School's first graduating class of this millennium will have an original diploma to celebrate the new century.

"I figured the new millennium comes every thousand years," said Scott Waters, 15. "It seemed like too big of an event not to mention."

Waters, a sophomore, designed the diploma as part of a contest in Mikel Lopategui's graphics design class.

The entries were submitted to the seniors on the student council. They narrowed the entries down to three, then selected the final winner.

"I was really surprised," Waters said. "I'd seen a lot of the others and they were all really good."

Principal Glen Adair said he decided to allow the students to design their own diploma simply because they could.

"With the knowledge and skill of the instructor combined with the ability of the students, we recognized that all of the sudden we had the capacity to have a diploma designed by students and selected by students," he said.

Adair said the cost of ordering a factory-made diploma and the cost of creating an original are about the same.

The diploma features the state of Nevada resting on top of the Sierra Nevada mountains with 2000 in block letters above.

"It's outstanding," Adair said. "It's classy."

Waters said designing the diploma was a process.

"I ran with the millennium theme to start off and sketched what I had in my head," he said. "I took it to the computer and fooled around with it. Before I knew it, I had a finished product."

Lopategui said the assignment taught the students more than just design.

"I thought it was great because it's actually a real-life project," he said. "Our goal is to teach the kids skills they can use in real life."

He said the process of designing the diploma is similar to how things operate in the real world.

"By Scott designing it and submitting it to a panel and working with the printer, he went through all the stages that a graphic designer would go through," Lopategui said.

This may be just the beginning.

"I think it's the start of a new tradition," said Cheryl Stoddard, activities coordinator at the high school. "We'll design our own diploma every year."

The diplomas will debut at Carson High School's graduation June 10 at 10 a.m.

Other area graduation date and times:

- Dayton High School-June 9 at 7 p.m.

- Virginia City High School-June 10 at 2 p.m.

- Pioneer High School-June 6 at 6 p.m.

- Douglas High School-June 16 at 4 p.m.

- Fernley High School-June 10 at 11 a.m.

- Smith Valley High School-June 9 at 7 p.m.

- Yerington High School-June 10 at 10 a.m.

- Galena High School-June 9 at 8 a.m.