Graduate profiles serve as the roadmap for what success looks like for students in each district or school. These profiles define the knowledge, skills, and dispositions students should have upon graduation and are tailored to local cultures and community needs. By outlining clear expectations, graduate profiles can help schools make the shift to a competency-based education system that is both more relevant and more equitable. 

In Zuni Public School District, the graduate profile centers on Zuni language and culture. The profile was developed through extensive community engagement, including 20 focus groups and a survey of over 500 respondents. The district’s graduate profile is illustrated by a graphic of a Zuni student with a bow and arrow taking aim at their future. The graphic is in both English and the Zuni language. This graduate profile has become the anchor for all district efforts, from integrating Zuni language and cultural competencies into every class to creating capstone projects that reflect these values.

Robert F. Kennedy Charter School (RFK) also tapped into their community to create a profile of a graduate. The process involved focus groups with parents, teachers, and community members and input from a student design team. After the charter’s board approved the final language, the school ran a contest for the profile design. The student design team continues to be involved in setting benchmarks at different grade levels to define expectations for demonstrating the profile elements. 

Future Focused Education has written about two other New Mexico examples: Peñasco School District and Lake Arthur Municipal Schools. Future Focused also developed a graduate profile process that many districts are using through their Community of Practice: 

1. See the System through a Graduation Assessment 
2. Determining your "Why" 
3. Community Engagement
4. Data Analysis
5. Design
6. Using your Graduate Profile

Following the lead of these schools and districts, 2024 New Mexico legislation recently updated the state’s high school graduation requirements and now requires all charter and traditional schools to include graduate profiles. The move shows that Innovation Zone prototypes can inform changes across the state’s education system. 

Capstone projects in New Mexico allow students to delve into personal, family, or community issues that resonate with them - making education more relevant and engaging. Kristen LaVolpa, a consultant with Future Focused Education, champions capstones as a way to engage students in long-term, meaningful learning experiences. She notes that capstones “shift the student experience and mindset around what education can and should look like. Students are asked to lead their learning, which may have never happened before.”

Capstone projects, which involve research, interviews, and creative presentations, culminate in a demonstration of the student’s learning and readiness for life beyond high school. For example, a student at Health Leadership High School in Albuquerque worked on reducing dropout rates among students of color by creating a public health video documentary. Another student at RFK Charter School developed a website offering tips for healthy social media usage, while a peer designed a business plan for a small clothing and jewelry enterprise. These projects highlight how capstones offer flexibility for students to explore their interests while developing essential skills like problem-solving, communication, and self-management.

Capstones also allow for culturally responsive learning. At Zuni High School, students collaborate on group capstones focused on tribal sovereignty and cultural revitalization. One group created a Zuni Attire Construction and Design course, integrating traditional knowledge with entrepreneurial skills. Similarly, at Cuba Independent School District, students choose between capstones focused on bilingualism or career exploration, such as building a greenhouse to provide fresh produce for the school cafeteria.

The work in New Mexico doesn’t stop at defining graduate profiles or implementing capstone projects. Future Focused Education has been instrumental in supporting schools by developing resources and building educator capacity to ensure equitable access to these initiatives. Their efforts include creating a Community of Practice for capstones, co-designing curricula with local nonprofits, and funding paid internships that can count toward capstone completion.

To further support this work, Future Focused Education recently received a grant to develop an AI-enabled database to help schools implement capstone projects in culturally relevant ways. The database will center language and tribal sovereignty, allowing students, teachers, and administrators to access resources that reflect the communities they serve. Similar to the collaborative work to date, this database is being developed with and supported by a Community of Learning made up of teachers who are committed to performance-based assessments and capstones.

The state’s commitment to these innovations is evident in the recent changes to high school graduation requirements. In 2024, New Mexico updated its requirements to allow capstones as an alternative to standardized tests, providing more flexibility for students to demonstrate their learning. This move, informed by the success of Innovation Zones and graduate profiles, is a step toward system-wide adoption of competency-based education.

As more schools in New Mexico adopt capstone projects and graduate profiles, the impact on student engagement and success is becoming clear. Future Focused estimates that as of 2023-2024, approximately 75% of the Innovation Schools had created a graduate profile or were almost through the process. These tools, combined with capstone projects, allow schools to focus on more than just academic standards - they emphasize transferable skills, cultural relevance, and real-world readiness.

Capstones offer the chance for students to connect with their communities and pursue opportunities beyond the classroom. As one student from Estancia High School, a rural community about an hour southeast of Albuquerque, explained, “Sometimes you really only need to meet one person outside of school to make a difference… Kids know what they want, but they don’t have the opportunity. We want to see better opportunities.”

By continuing to build the infrastructure and support for capstones and graduate profiles, New Mexico is paving the way for a more inclusive, student-centered education system that honors the unique strengths and aspirations of every learner.

This is the second in a three part series that Laurie Gagnon has written about Innovation in New Mexico after recent visits to the state. Stay tuned for more! 

The original series, which has five parts and is more detailed, can be found here. 

Sign up for Aurora Institute’s email updates here. Check out their upcoming symposium here.