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Senior Exit Portfolio

Jaylah Cheeves

Career Objective
Open a private charter Montessori school for LGBTQ+
students with a PsyD in Child and Adolescence studies.
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Table of Contents

Cover Page ……………………………………………………………………… 1

Table of Contents …………………………………………………….…………. 2

Cover Letter ……………………………………………………………………...3

Résumé …………………………………………………….………………..…...4

College and Career Readiness Essay ……………………….……………………5

Artifacts and Rationales ………………………………………….……………....7

Academic Readiness ………………….……….……………………........7

Career Readiness.………………………..….……………….…................8

Personal Responsibility …...……………….………….….……................9

Letters of Support ……………………………………………………....…...….…10

(First) …………………………………………………....…………............10

(Second) ………………………………………………….....……….…......11-12

(Third) …………………………………………….…….......……...…...….13
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Jaylah Cheeves
j.darylcheeves55@gmail.com
202-384-6740

October 21, 2021

To whom it may Concern,  

My high school experience has taught me so much, maybe more than most that I will be able to apply to

the real world. I am ecstatic to work towards my future and prepare to enter the next phase of my

life, where I will study Secondary education and Child development.  

I plan to attend Bowie State University and Major in Child and Adolescent Studies to Pursue a

Career in Education. During high school, I entered the Teaching Academy of Maryland. intend to

graduate from high school with student teaching hours, I also took mostly honors and AP courses since

my freshman year. To further prepare for my next phase of studying I am currently taking two dual

enrollment courses. I joined extracurricular activities starting in the ninth grade. I played on the junior

varsity volleyball squad for two years and Varsity for the twelfth grade, The dance team, the Class of

2022, the Recording Secretary, and the President of The Student Government Association. I have faced a

lot of adversity that lead to mental health concerns, a few behavioral concerns as well as a few

academic concerns. These have lead me to take pride in the fact that I was able to tread the waters and

keep going, I taught myself how much I can really do and how much I am able to do on my own.  

I am very proud of my progress throughout high school. I hope that my portfolio conveys my

progress and how my adversity shaped and taught me; I also hope that this portfolio will push me into

the future. Thank You! 

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Respectfully, 

Jaylah DM Cheeves 

 
 

Ruby Zheng
901 Copley Ave– Waldorf, 20602 – (202) 384-6740 – j.darylcheeves55@gmail.com
Objective:
To attend a 4-year college, majoring in Education with a minor in political science.
Education
Thomas Stone High School Sep. 2018- May 2022
3785 Leonardtown Road
Waldorf, MD 20601
GPA: 3.5
Relevant Coursework
 AP US History
 AP World History
 Pre- Calculus
 Composition and Rhetoric
Awards/ Accomplishments
· High Honors 3.5-3.999 (2020 -2021)
· Certificate of Merit
· 1st place Xclusive Models Talent show (2018)
· 2nd place, Charles county got talent (2019)
· Teaching Academy of Maryland induction (2019)

Activities
 Thomas Stone Dance Company
 Thomas Stone Volleyball Program (JV and Varsity)
 Student Government Association General Assembly
 Student Government Association Executive Office
 Charles Counts Association of Student Counsels General Assembly
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References 
Maurice A Banks
Youth Pastor at Mt. Ennon Baptist Church
Phone: (240) 216-887
College and Career Readiness Essay

Write about the time you questioned an idea or belief.

If you were to ask 9 year-old me if I  liked girls I probably would have said yes, if you

were to ask me at 11 I would have lied and said no. If you asked 12 year old-me I
would probably cry but if you asked me now I wouldn’t even give it a second thought I would
just say yes. Being a Pansexual Christan has been scary. It has also been Chaotic, especially
since I've learned that being gay isn't a sin.  
I had a Classical Christan foundation to all of my education. Yet they never brought
up anything about reproduction, I didn’t even learn about Adam and Eve’s lineage now that I
think about it it is most likely due to abstinence and Incest. I also didn’t dress feminine unless
my mom made me. The first girl that I was self aware about was in fifth grade, my first
“girlfriend”. She was one of my best friends. At the time I didn’t know I “should have been have
been ashamed”, so I was very open about it until middle school.  
Once I hit sixth grade I knew I was different. I got a little “boyfriend” and I learned it
wasn’t “normal” to want to date girls and boys. That’s all I really remember about sixth. When I
was in seventh I went to an all girls catholic school. I was out to most of my classmates. Outside
of school I still didn’t wear very feminine clothes. Even to gym, I didn’t wear the tiny gym
shorts, I wore my basketball jersey to gym. To all of they girls there I was a Stud when I honestly
was/am a Stem (masculine and feminine). Therefor I didn’t really have a problem with it.  
Around this time I also Started hearing the conversations. Ive heard my grandmother and
her friends talk about a family with two mothers and haw it will mess up and confuse the
children. I learned how it was disgusting, sinful and how it “hurt God”. I came out on accident to
my mother in the beginning of eighth grade. I was sobbing because I told her about my
self harm and it came out in the 7/11 parking lot.  I wanted to Die but I was too scared to go to
hell. Then I left that school.  
Everything was “fine” I ignored that part of me. I only dated boys no matter who I
liked. Its was so hard, especially once I hit high school. I had a HUGE crush on a girl and we
talked for a little but she was different. Back to boys I went. I dated so many boys just to cover
that part of my identity, it was the hardest thing I have ever done.  
Summer 2020 my life changed forever. Around this time me and my boyfriend were
together for about nine months. When COVID started I started drifting away from religion. I
would pray at night but I wasn’t really invested anymore but then I learned that the original bible
never said anything about homosexuality. The bible was mistranslated multiple times, on of the
biggest was in 1964. My view on religion started changing. I first learned from A tic tok believe
it or not she made a song about the mistranslation; I started my research soon after that.  
So far I’ve learned in addition to the mistranslation of 1 Corinthians 6: 9-11. King James
rewrote so many verses to fit his agenda. He needed reasons to outlaw things he found
“undesirable”. Historians even believe that there were laws in place that permitted consensual
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homosexual behavior and maybe even gay marriage. The original bible said almost nothing
about homosexuality.  
Once I learned that I was ecstatic. I almost became a different person. There were so
many things that were pushed in the world that are not true. So many things were lifted off of my
shoulders. I started to become more liberal. Things like abortion and even God. God isn’t
even a he. In earthly terms “he” is non-binary, which is awesome.  
Living in a very religious household with a homosexual uncle and grandmother, even my
mom (who was very accepting) denied my sexuality for almost two years saying “I don’t think
you’re gay” is difficult sometimes because I'm not out to my grandmother. I'm pretty sure
my Uncle is convinced that I am “reformed” because I've had a boyfriend for a year. I was also
baptized methodize as a baby and a little over a year ago I was baptized Baptist.  
Since my epiphany I have had to debate that my life matters to way too many people. My
life matters and honestly It’s sad that I have had to prove that to so many people, even myself.
Now that I know that I have been able to be more vocal with this information and educate others.
It has also added to my dream. When I have my school it will be a 99.9% safe space for all of the
children who go there and it will teach LGBTQ+ history and be very inclusive. I am
so grateful that I know these things. 
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Career Readiness Artifact & Rationale

These artifacts reflects my grade throughout the TAM program. During the program, I’ve
done multiple projects from the baby project to writing children’s books and games. I have also
made created a portfolio for this program. I was inducted into the program in 2019. This
demonstrates my commitment towards the education field. My grade in this class shows career
readiness for the career I’m interested in and in college.
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Academic Readiness Artifact & Rationale

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This Transcript represents my academic performance during my high school career. It

shows my growth from 9th to 11th, and I have worked hard in my studies in order to get my GPA
up from a 2.9 to a 3.8. This demonstrates my dedication to my education and towards success.

Personal Responsibility Artifact & Rationale

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This artifact is one of my first paystubs, I’ve learned many important skills that are
essential for my future education and the workforce. One of the most important skills is time
management, which I haven’t always been the best at but having a job helped me learn how I
need to schedule my day so that my grades won’t drop, and I can maintain my high GPA. This
artifact shows that I am responsible for my education and I am self sufficient. I will continue to
use these skills for my future.
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