The Panther 2020-2021 Issue 3: Faces of Palmetto

A SPECIAL EDITION OF

the

PANTHER JANUARY 2021

FACES OF PALMETTO

THIS IS US In Loving Memory of: sophia sophia lambert lambert Welcome to the fourth annual issue of our special edition of The Panther, Faces of Palmetto. This issue aims to show the Palmetto community the unique and special people who walk our halls: from the students currently enrolled in Palmetto to the faculty who dedicate their time teaching us and the alumni who spread Palmetto’s positive influence wherever they go. The Panther staff chose 15 people they feel embody the spirit of Palmetto through their stories and impact.

The Panther also hopes to broaden perspectives on the people in Palmetto, as the 15 featured in this issue have stories not widely known to the Palmetto community. The Panther recognizes their importance and their humanity. Inspired by Brandon Stanton’s “Humans of New York,” The Panther looks forward to continuing this incredible tradition of highlighting the remarkable people walking among us on campus far into the future.

The Panther would like to dedicate this issue to a member of the Class of 2020, Sophia Lambert, who passed away on Jan. 16, 2021. Sophia was an enormous presence in Palmetto and in every community she touched, and she will be greatly missed. To read her story, visit page 4, “Remembering Sophia Lambert.”

For more stories written by The Panther staff, visit www.thepalmettopanther.com

All photos in this issue are courtesy of our Faces of Palmetto. Due to COVID-19, we elected not to take in person photos.

THIS IS palmetto. these are our stories.

TABLE OF CONTENTS Sophia Lambert.......................................................04 06.....................................................Linda Robertson Abdul Rafaay Khan...............................................08 09.................................ALEXA FEIN & ISABEl DURAN Aryana Motlagh......................................................10 12...................................................................Devica Shah Ana Luisa Frable........................................................14 16...................................................Daniela Hernandez Dillon Metoyer...........................................................17 18.......................................................Will Ander Jules Ella March...................................................................20 22.............................................................Sara Edelman Pam Schlactman......................................................24 26..............................................LIla de puch Marsee

remembering sophia lambeRt Miami Palmetto Senior High School graduate and University of Florida freshman Sophia Lambert was known for her beautiful smile, loving spirit and hardworking attitude. Most of all, Sophia made it a point to make memories with the people around her.

“She was always super outgoing, and she would always live in the moment; if anyone ever asked her to hang out and do anything, she was always down to do it,” Palmetto alumni Maddie Abella said. “It could be going out to eat, or driving around and singing to people, she always just wanted to be with her friends and her family… and everyone that she loved.”

On Jan. 16, Sophia passed away after she and four of her friends were hit by a car while standing on the sidewalk on University Avenue in Gainesville. This tragedy is not the first; in December, a car struck and killed UF student Maggie Paxton in the same area.

In light of these events, several petitions have circled calling for greater traffic safety at UF, specifically at University Avenue where the accidents occurred.

Only 18 years old at the time of her passing, Sophia made a difference in all of the many lives she touched.

Sophia was famous for her hugs and affectionate attitude, something those who came across her testify to constantly.

“The biggest thing she taught me was just to love, because I personally am not a very touchy person, but Sophia was,” Palmetto sophomore and Sophia’s sister Abbie Lambert said.

“She just taught me to always give more hugs, and I think that was a really big thing for her.”

Palmetto senior Seth Kessler continued: “When Sophia found out I got into my dream school, she literally ran up to me and gave me the best hug I’ve ever gotten, because she was so happy for me. That’s a testament to her great character and a moment I’ll definitely never forget.”

Sydney Lambert, Sophia’s other sister, agrees.

“It was really important to her that everyone knew how much she actually loved them. She took it very seriously that she told people that she loved them every single day, multiple times a day, even if it was just a random ‘I love you so much’ text,” Sydney said.

At Palmetto, she involved herself across the board, spreading her positivity and light throughout the Miami community.

As a member of Palmetto’s Student Council, she served as a Special Events Chair, the Senator job tasked with planning events such as homecoming and prom for the entire school. Sophia joined The Palm Echo yearbook her senior year as an academics editor.

In Palmetto’s drama department, she participated in musicals such as “Merrily We Roll Along” and “The Drowsy Chaperone.” Fellow thespians described her as the “first to volunteer for anything” in their Instagram statement.

Sophia was also Temple Judea’s JTY President. She took pride in her Jewish heritage, and volunteered as a camp counselor for Camp Jenny.

Dedicating her days to spreading positivity to underprivileged children, Sophia made a difference at Camp Jenny not because she had to, but because she wanted to. Sophia’s friends and family have organized a donation drive to Camp Jenny in Sophia’s honor, which has already raised over $15,000 in the first few days since its creation.

To donate, click here.

“Sophia was this bright light that never stopped shining,” Palmetto alumni and UF freshman Mackenzie Farkas said. “She had a gift with children and she was just drawn to them.”

As Sophia made the move to UF, she took her interests and applied them.

Sophia majored in theater, a passion she fostered in her high school years.

After only a semester, Sophia had already gotten actively involved in her

sorority, Delta Phi Epsilon. She also advocated the importance of voting at UF during the 2020 election, as issues in the world were very important to her.

“She was always very outspoken about what she believed, whether it was politically or socially, with her friends or with her family, and she didn’t silence herself, even if it was easier to stay quiet in situations,” Palmetto alumni Gwyneth Williams said.

“She learned over time how important her voice was.”

Sophia participated in Dance Marathon, an organization that helps raise money to fight pediatric illness and injury. She also joined Hillel and Chabad, two Jewish organizations on campus.

“Her saying ‘do good’ is true, because that’s how she lived her life, and she taught me to do good,” Farkas said. “She helped bring me into Judaism at UF and we helped each other get out there and get involved as much as we could.”

Friends and family have come together to honor Sophia’s memory.

“She was completely oblivious to how many people loved her, and how deeply she was loved, because she didn’t realize how much of an impact she made on everyone,” Abbie said. “She was probably the best person I knew.”

Several of Sophia’s friends remember her ability to pick up on their emotions and attempt to help them as best she could.

“At sleepaway camp the summer going into tenth grade, she saw how my mental health had declined without me having to tell her. She pulled me aside and told me some things I needed to hear, and because of her I started to see a therapist again and get the help I needed,” Palmetto alumni Olivia Solomon said. “It is because of her that I am in the place I am right now.”

“I think the biggest thing that Sophia taught me was to talk to my friends more, or my family about what’s actually going on in my life,” Palmetto alumni Emily Veguilla said. “She was a huge advocate of just talking to people and being there for people.”

Palmetto alumni Camila Guerrero continued: “Sophia was the one person that I could truly open myself up to 100%, and she just taught me how to really be in touch with my emotions and be vulnerable with myself and my friends and close family.”

Describing her as an incredible friend, a loving sister and a dedicated member of her many different communities, those who knew Sophia have no shortage of amazing things to say about her and the impact she made on their lives.

“A lesson that Sophia taught me was that even though some people don’t deserve the kindness, you always have to kill people with kindness,” Palmetto alumni Mariano Gama said.

“Sophia was genuinely the most caring and thoughtful person ever.

She was always looking out for me like I was one of her little sisters, and she was just the best, like really, really the best,” Palmetto sophomore Ali Shapiro said.

“Sophia is and always will be the most happy, special, loving girl that I have ever met on this planet. She never ever let any judgements or any negativity or any sadness stop her from living her life and meeting people who would make a difference in her life,” Palmetto alumni and UF freshman Joanna Salvat said. “Everyone she encountered and everyone she ever hugged, spoke to, smiled at or looked at was impacted in the most positive way possible. I would never trade any encounter, experience, conversation, hug or anything with her for the world.”

Nicole Markus

Editor in Chief

n.markus.thepanther@gmail.com

DESIGN

BY SYDNEY CAMPBELL

PHOTOS COURTESY OF GWYNETH WILLIAMS, KATE MORRISON AND SYDNEY LAMBERT

a bright light to all

06| ALUMNI

LINDA ROBERTSon nothing but the truth Reality can feel like a double-edged sword. Miami Herald staff writer and Miami Palmetto Senior High alumna Linda Robertson has a knack for capturing both the good and the bad in everything she writes. Her path to exposing reality began during her years at Miami Palmetto Senior High School, when she joined the school newspaper, The Panther.

Robertson loves writing, and Palmetto’s English program intensified her affinity for the craft with its captivating courses and educated teachers.

Robertson used what she learned in class to write articles for The Panther; however, she applied her skills to more than just that.

Over the course of her high school career, Robertson acquired extensive experience in sports, as she belonged to the track team at Palmetto and enjoyed playing other sports, as well.

This gave Robertson a special advantage and provided her with the ability to write articles on the sports activities at Palmetto with a unique perspective.

“The whole collaborative aspect of working on the newspaper with my peers, pushing and encouraging each other, made it clear that this was something that I could excel at,” Robertson said.

Robertson’s sports writing continued well into college, as it remained a large passion of hers. She attended University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and joined the school newspaper, The Daily Tarheel. At the time, UNC had a popular men’s sports program because the men’s basketball team starred Michael Jordan. The women’s leagues, on the other hand, received much less attention. None

of the journalists on the paper vied to write about the women’s teams the way they did the men’s. This gave Robertson the perfect opportunity to take over that section.

Following her time at UNC, Robertson immediately received a job offer from the Miami Herald — an amazing opportunity for a recent journalism graduate — and has since remained a loyal staff writer for the publication.

When Robertson began her career over 30 years ago, men dominated the sports writing field. This caused the few female sportswriters to establish a connection with one another.

Robertson formed an early friendship with Michelle Kaufman, a current Miami Herald American sportswriter, although the two worked for different publications at the time. Since then, they have grown close because of both work-related events and personal experiences, and Kaufman has truly gained an understanding of Robertson inside and out.

“Nobody works harder on a story than Linda,” Kaufman said. “She always takes the side of the individual, and I think that’s what she is: a voice.

She’s kind of always been a voice for little people… for people who maybe don’t have a way for their story to be told, and she likes to tell it.”

For over 30 years, Robertson has covered stories on a local to global scale with the Herald. They range from profiles on the Williams sisters, to 13 consecutive Olympic games, to the Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan debacle. Each of her stories provide a novel perspective on countless topics and people.

“I do not want to do glamour shots, nor do I want to tear people down. I want to have all of us able to relate to each other and our flaws. This sparked my love for writing profiles and human interest stories and trying to figure out what makes people tick,” Robertson said.

Early in her career, Robertson took on a pitch regarding pro-footballer Ted Hendricks’s induction into the Hall of Fame. Rather than taking the traditional route and discussing the high points of his football years, she wanted to get an honest view into Hendricks’s life — the whole devastating portrait.

Hendricks’s career had been placed on a pedestal, so it came as a surprise to readers when Robertson wrote about the athlete’s personal adversities rather than his accomplishments. People only knew the player for how he appeared on the field, but only Robertson attempted to see the real Ted Hendricks, the one who struggled with alcoholism and a loss of control.

“The story sort of became the classic portrayal of a retired athlete who is adrift,” Robertson said. “Who doesn’t know what to do with themselves after the cheering stops.”

After publishing the raw fragments of his life, Robertson received reactions from both sides of the spectrum, which slightly impacted her mindset as a young journalist. Ultimately, she cared about the authenticity of the work, and not the backlash it received.

Many of Robertson’s stories align with this type of exposé: digging deep into one’s life to find the story behind the story. One of her article’s looks at gentrification in Miami, in which Robertson interviews a family who refused to give up their home to a corporation conducting construction on all of the land surrounding their property. Another story told of the life of a fellow Palmetto alumnus, Bobby Lester, who went from starring on the high school basketball team with a promising future to a convict famously known as the Biting Bandit.

Devoted to covering reality, Robertson makes sure her work encompasses everything she stands for as a journalist: finding the good and bad, the flawed and heroic, the shade of gray between the black and white of a person.

Allison Gould Life Editor

a.gould.thepanther@gmail.com

Cristele Moztarzadeh Copy Editor DESIGN BY SYDNEY CAMPBELL PHOTO COURTESY OF LINDA ROBERTSON

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08| SOPHMORES

abdul rafaay khan

beyond the diagnosis

By the age of three, Miami Palmetto Senior High School sophomore Abdul Rafaay Khan had faced more adversity than most. Officially diagnosed with Leukemia in 2008, Khan juggled the struggle of receiving chemotherapy and moving between two countries, Pakistan and the United States. This experience pushed him to develop a strong, resilient mentality.

“I think that those types of experiences force you to grow up a lot faster than you really should,” Khan said.

Originally misdiagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis, Khan’s health continued to drastically decline while receiving treatment in Pakistan. His parents grew increasingly worried as his condition worsened, despite having received a range of different medications and treatments.

“My parents realized something was wrong right away. The doctors... couldn’t diagnose it at first because it is hard to diagnose cancers; that’s just how it is,” Khan said.

After six long months of unsuccessful treatment, Khan’s

parents made the tough decision to divide their time living in Pakistan and the U.S. Traveling to the U.S. to receive medical care when necessary, Khan and his mother developed a close bond.

“My mom was the only one that was there. She did every single travel with me,” Khan said. “She’s the one who actually made my dad make the decision to come to America… they would have put me on steroids, which would have killed me. So, she was the main reason I survived, quite literally.”

Aside from Khan’s relationship with his mother, he also has several fond memories with other family members as well — specifically in Pakistan.

“I remember we would drive down Malir Cantonment, and we would get food.

And we would sit outside; we would just eat under the stars. In Pakistan, those are very close family bonding moments,” Khan said.

Officially moving to Miami in the fifth grade, Khan faced difficulties adjusting to life in the United States. Aside from his lingering health concerns, Khan battled judgement and taunting from peers.

“When some of the kids heard the word cancer, they said, ‘Oh, don’t come near us,’ because they thought cancer was contagious,” Khan said.

He faced further harrassment, not only due to his battle with leukemia, but also from his classmates’ misconceptions regarding his Muslim ethnicity.

“My sixth grade year by far was the worst year of my school life. I didn’t know anyone at all and, because I was Muslim, I was taunted a lot by people saying, ‘When are you going to blow up the school?’” Khan said. “Even as a joke, it isn’t funny because at one point when I was in school in Pakistan, it was attacked by the Taliban, killing a teacher and her 8-year-old daughter.

The shockwave from the explosion was so bad that all the glass windows of our school were

shattered.”

Other than the social differences, Miami’s physical appearance significantly contrasted with the atmosphere in Karachi, Pakistan — Khan’s hometown.

“If you go to Karachi, it’s a desert. You see gray skies because pollution and dust [is] everywhere. There’s rarely green; even our green isn’t as green as I saw in Florida.

That was surprising; it was like neon green to me,” Khan said.

When receiving treatment in Pakistan, his doctor, Richard Drachtman, particularly stood out to Khan. Drachman continually provided Khan with the hope and positivity needed to keep pushing through his health issues.

“Dr. Drachtman was extremely nice and very skilled at what he did. He would give me toys, and just that little incentive tells [his patients], ‘You’re still wanted’,” Khan said.

His extensive experiences with health professionals like Dr. Drachtman ignited Khan’s passion for medicine, which he hopes to pursue in the future.

“I want to become a neurosurgeon, or I might become a pediatric oncologist, because I have a history with cancer and I know what patients might feel so I can help them in some aspect,” Khan said.

Regardless of the specific medical field he decides to study, Khan remains certain that his empathy and history will guide him throughout his future.

“Everyone has a different background, but I can understand where they’re coming from. And my goal is just to try to not make them as sad about it as possible,” Khan said.

Gianna Hutton Design Editor

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Kate markus Copy Editor

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DESIGN BY ELLA PEDROSO PHOTO COURTESY OF ABDUL RAFAAY KHAN

alexa fein & best friends in S T EM Best friends since fourth grade science class, Miami Palmetto Senior High freshmen Alexa Fein and Isabel Duran now jump the ranks of the podium in the STEM industry.

With such a strong passion for the field, the freshmen commit most of their limited after-school hours to practicing for the various STEM competitions they participate in. For the past four years, the duo has experienced nearly every aspect STEM has to offer. The freshmen recall it beginning with their first math competition in 2017.

“It all started in fifth grade when our math teacher took us to the Miami-Dade County Math Bowl. That was the first time we were exposed to the type of math tested at competitions, which is really more about problem solving and logical thinking than math at all,” Fein said. “We surprised ourselves by placing third, and we knew that was just the beginning of our experience with competitions.”

However, this marked only the beginning of the girls’ success in arithmetic. After three years of practicing for math competitions in middle school with help from their math coach and Palmetto alumni Vincent Li, the freshmen finally achieved the notable rank of first place at the MathCounts competition in 2019.

“Both of them worked hard on getting better. There aren’t many students who have the mathematical maturity or talent to really keep up, and the fact that they kept up [and] they were able to understand the problem sets and actually do more problems on assessments... speaks for itself,” Li said.

As for the “S” in STEM, the freshmen meet every Friday after school in chemistry teacher Dr. Yuria Sharp’s class to practice for the Science Bowl. Despite being the youngest on a team full of experienced high schoolers, Fein and Duran’s age never poses an issue.

“Obviously, it is intimidating to be on a team with kids who have already taken many of the AP science classes and they are more knowledgeable... so that part is challenging, but they are doing great in my opinion,” Sharp said.

Palmetto takes four teams to the Science Bowl competition.

Typically, younger students like freshmen and sophomores find themselves considered last for selection. However, Sharp viewed Fein and Duran more than capable to participate in competitions.

“I expect for the younger ones to not do so well because they still need to take more classes, but the purpose of it is to gain experience. So it can be intimidating, but they are doing great. I think they are doing phenomenally,” Dr. Sharp said.

Although these competitions remain strenuous, the freshmen view it as an opportunity to gain more knowledge — specifically, information that their normal classes would not expose them to.

“All those connections that you start making between things you see in science, math competitions, competitions in general and you notice an event that happens and it’s like, ‘Oh! I’ve never noticed that.

I think it’s kinda cool,’” Duran said.

Outside of school, they partake in a problem solving competition called “Odyssey of the Mind” where they must complete an engineering

DESIGN BY MICHAEL ANGEE PHOTO COURTESY OF ALEXA FEIN AND ISABEL DURAN

FRESHMAN |09

isabel duran task that requires critical thinking skills. For this year’s prompt, they built a car powered solely by energy created by a spring.

“This year, our challenge is we have to build a ride-on vehicle that someone must ride on and go around saying lines. It’s basically an eight minute skit, and in the skit someone is going to ride on the vehicle that we built in search of ‘humor,’” Fein said.

Although Fein and Duran share an affinity for STEM, they differ from each other when it comes to additional interests and hobbies. Fein enjoys astronomy and space news, while Duran has a deep love for baking and photography. However, on Wednesday evenings, they meet again for dance rehearsal.

With many options to choose from for future careers, both freshmen remain unsure of which turn to take. However, STEM holds a special place in their hearts.

“I don’t know what exactly I want to do for a career, but all I know is I want to be in STEM, in science, or math, or technology or even engineering. I think these competitions will definitely help me in college and then beyond. Really, all I know about what I want to do with my life is that it has to be in STEM because that’s what I love,” Fein said.

Though competitions teach them about academics, their on-going friendship teaches them about real life.

“It’s nice to have her by my side, encouraging me. She reminds me that the sky’s the limit until you start to limit yourself, so you can decide where you want to go and how high you want to go,” Duran said.

Camilla Bondy

Amy Grace Shapiro

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a.shapiro. thepanther@gmail.com

Multimedia Editor

Multimedia Editor

10| FRESHMAN

aryana motlagh stepping up the world of S T EM

Despite potentially inheriting a genetic kidney disease, Miami Palmetto Senior High freshman Aryana Motlagh uses the genes she was born with to teach others the importance of science, technology, engineering and math through her involvement in numerous organizations.

While Aryana currently lives in the United States, she has moved back and forth between the U.S. and her original home in Iran. She first relocated to the U.S. at age four, moving back to Iran in the first grade and eventually returning to the U.S. in the fifth grade. “[Moving] has affected me positively and negatively. Being able

to live in two very different countries with different cultures has expanded my view of the world and made me more open minded to different cultures,” Aryana said. “At the same time, moving from one place to another from around the world has limited my relationships. I have lost the connection with my friends in Iran and haven’t been able to form [more] in the U.S.” In Iran, Aryana first became interested in the world of STEM from her aunt, a doctor. “[My interest in STEM started when I was] growing up,” Aryana said. “I lived close to my aunt, who was a pharmacist, and I would go to her office, which is what made me fall in love with the science field and medicine.”

While her aunt first sparked her interest, Aryana became increasingly aware of the importance of STEM with her family’s genetic inheritance of Polycystic Kidney Disease, a disorder in which cysts develop across the kidneys, eventually causing the organs to fail. Both Aryana’s uncle and grandfather passed away prematurely from it, and doctors diagnosed her father with it as well.

“Less than 20% of my dad’s kidneys work, and he’s on the national list for a kidney donation. There is a 50/50 chance I’ll have it by the age of 35, and there’s no cure for it,” Aryana said. “So, that’s really what got me passionate about it, because I saw him every day going to doctors.”

Diagnosed with PKD over 20 years ago, her father, Alireza Motlagh, currently battles with stage four of the five stages of the disorder, making him legally disabled.

“It is affecting [me] because you do not know what is ahead of you, which is not good news,” Alireza said. “Mentally it is affecting you, physically it is affecting you, and... stage four means you are using [up] your energy, so you always feel tired; I cannot do physical work any longer.”

Despite Aryana’s family condition that has affected many people in her life, she has used it to spread awareness about organ donations to others in her community. Aryana’s family has inspired her passion in the STEM field, where she has joined numerous clubs and organizations to continue learning about the various fields the subject offers. Aryana recently became involved with the Life Alliance Organ Recovery Agency, a nonprofit organization part

FRESHMAN|11 of the University of Miami Surgical Department aimed at saving lives through advocating for organ donations. Through Life Alliance, Aryana helps coordinate presentations at schools.

“She has so much self-motivation to actually continue for a higher education and to be successful in math, science and art,” Alireza said. “She always liked to challenge science and challenge math; she challenged adventure.”

Aryana participates in other clubs, including Interns4Good, a variety of school clubs and the Youth Advisory Council. The organization Interns4Good gives underprivileged kids access to internships and free tutoring, and recently, Aryana applied to tutor through the program.

In addition, she participates in different STEM-related clubs at Palmetto: Science National Honor Society, Women in Technology and Mu Alpha Theta, where she met Palmetto sophomore Luke Yang, who has participated in all of these organizations alongside her.

“I would say work ethic is definitely a huge strength of hers; she does so much and she’s only a freshman,” Yang said. “She is a part of so many organizations [and] she’s founding an organ donation student run chapter here at our school... It’s crazy how much she does.”

Aryana participates in the Youth Advisory Council, a student-run organization that works with the mayor to help young adults become more involved in the community. On YAC, Aryana works as the multimedia manager, where she helps gather pictures for the verified Instagram page (@pinecrestyac).

Aryana also runs a blog through Instagram called “STEM Weekly” (@stem.weekly), where she posts weekly updates on Instagram about important STEM-related issues. The Instagram, created in Nov. 2020, features many brightly colored designs to grab her audience’s attention, and has accumulated a following of over 200 individuals. Aryana has expanded her audience to an international level, with writers from California to Texas to Saudi Arabia working for her.

“The purpose of STEM Weekly is to spread knowledge about everything related to STEM, every aspect of it,” Aryana said. “We spread awareness about a variety of issues; for example, we post mental health tips [and] we do fun facts.”

This year, Aryana received the approval of a new club at Miami Palmetto Senior High called Students for Organ Donation Advocacy.

She is still in the process of recruiting members, but she understands the importance of advocacy on subjects like these to make students around her more aware of the difficulty of finding organ donors.

“My favorite part [of these organizations] would just be expanding my knowledge,” Aryana said. “There’s so many things in the world happening that we as youth don’t know about and just expanding our knowledge about different issues like organ donation.”

Her whole life, Aryana has fought for her voice to be heard on important science-related issues. Whether working through existing clubs, one she created or through her blog, she remains determined to get the word out.

“Being an introvert and different from other people my age doesn’t help,” Aryana said. “But I would never want to take back most of [my] experiences, as they are now a part of who I am, and I love that.”

Ana Martinez Design Editor

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Business Manager

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DESIGN BY MICHAEL ANGEE PHOTOS COURTESY OF ARYANA MOTLAGH

12| SOPHMORES

DEVICA SHAH

painting with a purpose Painting since the age of three, Miami Palmetto Senior High School sophomore Devica Shah has transitioned her hobby into a business that has earned over $400 to fund the construction of water wheels in a remote Indian village.

The project hits especially close to home for Devica, as it connects her to her cultural roots and family back in India.

“When I saw her paint for the first time, I realized that she had a lot of potential. She started out with coloring books and moved on to more symmetrical designs,” Devica’s grandma Dhanalxmi Shah said. “Being a college-educated painter, I have a very good eye for an artist, and I knew Devica had what it takes.”

Dhanalxmi served as Devica’s first painting instructor and biggest artistic inspiration. She earned her bachelor’s and master’s degree in painting at Bombay University, one of the most prestigious art schools in India with only a handful of female graduates at the time.

“When I was very young, I always colored the entire page, but she corrected me and told me to keep a little bit of white to help balance the colors,” Devica said.

“I have kept this tradition in my art to this day, whether it be in the smallest moon in the sky or a speckle of snow.”

As Dhanalxmi got older, it became difficult for her to travel to the U.S. and continue to teach Devica. This, combined with an increased course load from school, caused Devica to put a pause on her painting hobby for approximately four years.

“Quarantine was probably one of the biggest reasons why I could begin painting again, since I had so much extra time on my

hands,” Devica said. “One day I was scrolling on Pinterest and came across a painting I liked, so I decided to paint it for my room.

I hated how it turned out, but my mom suggested I sell it on eBay. That’s when the idea hit me: I wanted my art to make a difference in the world, and I began creating my project.”

Devica set up an at-home studio and her painting journey began. She decided to paint what provided her with the most comfort and familiarity: dancers. Her first major sale occurred at her former dance studio, Jill Mallory School of Dance, in the summer of 2020.

“The studio helped me set up a table next to some of the food stations,” Devica said. “I had three finished paintings on display, and I sold around 20 customizable pieces, which are my favorite because I get to learn everything about my subject and make them 100% unique.”

Devica’s love for dance began when she and her sister, Monica Shah, enrolled in Indian classical dance classes together. At first, Devica did not enjoy the classes, but Monica pushed her to not give up and continue trying for the sake of their family and heritage.

“She was only six in the beginning, and when she would goof around, the teacher would get mad at her. After class, I would sometimes have to talk to her and be like, ‘Look, this is important to our parents, and trust me, you’re going to like it too one day,’” Monica said. “As we have both matured, I see dance as a great way for us to express our emotions.”

Now, the roles have reversed, and Devica’s dedication to her project has inspired Monica.

SOPHMORES |13

“I’m definitely so impressed because I never did anything like this in high school. She’s put in so much effort [and] been up so many nights during the summer when she would do all the painting,” Monica said.

After her first in-person art sale, Devica expanded her business to Instagram. Her account (@devicasdancers) allows for smooth communication through direct messages or emails with customers.

She paints her clients’ silhouette on six-by-eight canvas tiles using acrylic paint. Each piece sells for $10 each, and people can purchase frames for an additional $5. “[Painting] is a very time-consuming process. It takes me around three hours to make each painting,” Devica said. “I have to write each person’s name in pencil, then go over it in sharpie lightly, erase the pencil, wait for it to dry, write it in a nice ink pen and wait for it to dry again.”

In total, Devica has dedicated 93 hours to her painting business.

While a good portion of that time went towards physically creating the paintings, Devica also spent countless hours finding a place to donate her earnings, too. She decided to connect to her Indian roots and work with the Spandan Foundation — a non-profit organization based in Mumbai, India that facilitates thousands of projects to create better living conditions for Indian villages.

“I use WhatsApp to communicate with my family in India, and one time when I was texting them, an advertisement came up for

the Spandan Foundation. I researched their many projects, and fell in love with their project that raises money for waterwheels,” Devica said. “People in the village used to have to travel many miles to a river, carrying four-pound barrels on their head, but the waterwheel system will allow them to bring water up with ease.”

The wheels cost $15 U.S. dollars each, meaning that Devica has raised enough money to fund the construction of 26 water wheels. To avoid excessive taxes and postage fees, Devica must wait until she has sold enough paintings for the donation to qualify as a charitable transaction.

“I’ve never seen the village in person, but once it is safe to travel again, I will be visiting India, and I am very excited to see the impact the water wheels have made on the village there,” Devica said.

Devica has followed in her grandmother’s footsteps, as they both made a point to create art that benefits charitable causes.

The similarity between Devica and her grandmother has a special meaning; they both care for others and give back to those in need.

“What Devica is doing is absolutely phenomenal... It reminds me of when I was young [and] I would do a lot of paintings for local charities,” Dhanalxmi said. “She is aware India is still a poor country, and what she’s doing is going to make a significant difference in the lives of the poor natives here.”

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14| JUNIORS

aNA LUISA FRABLE

life after sandy hook

Dec. 14, 2012 started as a typical school day in Newtown, Connecticut. At least, Miami Palmetto Senior High School junior, Ana Luisa Frable, remembers it that way.

Born in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Frable moved to the United States in 2010 after her father received a job transfer. She first lived in Illinois before moving to the southwestern part of Connecticut in 2012.

“Newtown is a small town, so everybody knows each other; pretty much everybody is close. Once you were down on the main street, everything was nearby. It was very cute and very quiet to me,” Frable said.

In third grade, Frable’s small town became the center of gun violence that targeted students and teachers at Sandy Hook Elementary School. On Dec. 14, 2012, gunman Adam Lanza shot and killed 26 people, including 20 children between the ages of six and seven, as well as six teachers.

The Sandy Hook shooting became known as one of the deadliest school shootings in U.S. history. As Frable attended O’Head Meadow Elementary, a school extremely close to Sandy Hook, she experienced the lockdowns and surrounding events from that day firsthand.

“It just felt like a normal third grade day. I just remember hearing them saying over the loudspeaker, ‘Oh you’re going into lockdown’ [ a n d ] thinking

that it was a drill, but it wasn’t,” Frable said. “We were in lockdown for a couple hours in the dark, not knowing what was happening.”

In the aftermath of the shooting, Frable learned that a friend from her swimming team, Daniel Barden, tragically died at the hands of gun violence. In an effort to get away from the chaos in Newtown, Frable and her family left town and spent the weekend in New York City. However, the massacre did not leave Frable untouched.

“I couldn’t sleep alone for a couple of nights, for a couple of months actually. I went to a psychiatrist to help me get over it, but it took me a while to finally be able to sleep alone. I either cried all night, or I had to sleep with my brother or parents,” Frable said. “Even today, almost every single lockdown, even if it’s a drill, my heart beats really fast... All that, just the memories come flooding back, and I always have to keep that in mind, like, ‘Hey, you’re...safe, but just keep an eye out.’”

Almost immediately after the Sandy Hook shooting claimed the lives of so many, parents of the children killed on Dec. 14 created a nonprofit organization, known as the Sandy Hook Promise, to address gun violence in schools. As a strong supporter of gun control and in memory of the innocent lives lost, Frable signed up for the organization and donates on a regular basis to continue her advocacy for gun control. Moreover, she has spoken at several Sandy Hook memorials recalling her experiences from that day, and she often speaks to friends and family advocating for change. For Frable, answers to her healing emerged in the form of advocacy, gun safety and community building. “[Ana Luisa] has a strong passion and drive for

PHOTO COURTESY OF ANA LUISA FRABLE

JUNIORS |15

gun control. I know that in the future, she might want to do something to help people who have gone through something [like Sandy Hook],” Frable’s close friend and Palmetto junior Olivia Ware said. “If someone speaks negatively about guns or gun violence, she will speak up.”

Every year, on the anniversary of Sandy Hook, Frable wears a green ribbon and posts on social media to remember the lives lost and remind people of the dangers that guns can pose to society.

Frable stayed in Connecticut for four more years before moving to Wisconsin in 2016. Then, a year and a half later, she moved to Miami. Not long after her move, on Feb. 14, 2018, gunman

Nikolas Cruz killed 17 people and injured 17 more at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.

With yet another deadly school shooting so close to home, the trauma from Sandy Hook came rushing back to Frable almost immediately, but this time in a different way.

“In eighth grade, when the Stoneman Douglas shooting happened, [my advocacy for gun control] really sparked. When you’re little, you don’t really pay attention. But, I just remember it hitting me and saying, ‘How did this happen again? There has to be some sort of change because I don’t want anyone else to experience this.’”

In the future, Frable hopes to attend more rallies that promote gun control and plans to start an organization in college that would focus on gun control laws and gun safety for schools.

“I would love to advocate for safer schools, and I hope we can get stricter laws when it comes to guns in this country,” Frable said.

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16| JUNIORS

daniela hernandez

from the stage to the screen

Daniela Hernandez involves herself with the arts inside and outside of school. From a young age, Hernandez has loved singing, dancing and acting and cannot imagine her life without it. As the years have passed, she has become an extraordinary triple threat who shows others that anything can happen if you work hard and step out of your comfort zone.

“I can’t tell you where I’ll end up, but I know it will be somewhere in the field...I cannot see myself doing anything else and being happy,” Hernandez said.

Daniela has loved watching musicals and shows since she can remember and, because of this, would dance and sing around her house. At the age of six, her parents enrolled her in dancing classes after seeing how much she loved it.

“It did not take long for her to fall in love with dance. As time passed, we realized she was actually very good at it,” Daniela’s mother, Sandy Hernandez, said.

Daniela, a junior at Miami Palmetto Senior High School, has become extremely involved in Palmetto’s most advanced drama class.

“Performing together for the first time is something I [will never] forget, because it was the first lesson Dani taught me out of many: never be scared to be funny and yourself, even when others [may] find it odd,” Daniela’s friend, Caroline Wilburn, said.

Daniela uses acting as a way to express

PHOTO COURTESY OF DANIELA HERNANDEZ

herself without limits. She adores acting because it allows her to take a character in any direction and make it her own.

“Once I realized how in depth you can go with the internal part of it, and how you become someone else, that is when I was like: this is really cool. There is something special about getting to be someone else with no consequences,” Daniela said.

During the summer of 2020, Hernandez auditioned for a short film called “Buzzkill.”

The film focuses on a group of teens in South Florida and the story of two younger girls attempting to join their clique but getting taken down a destructive path.

She sent in her audition and did not really check up on it, since she was busy with school. When she checked her email one day, she realized that the producer had emailed her to go to an in-person audition a week prior. She emailed the producer back and luckily got to audition for the film.

Since this was her first-ever audition, she felt nervous. However, she did not want fear or nerves to prevent her from going, so she stepped out of her comfort zone and went to the audition.

“Being scared should never be the reason you don’t do something,” Daniela said.

Heading to the audition, she prepared herself by listening to 90s music, which she believed her character would listen to.

When the audition ended, the producer looked pleased. This made Hernandez feel relieved.

“I waited a few days and got an email saying they loved my audition and wanted to offer me the role, and it changed my life,” Daniela said.

The film went on to get shown in the Chicago International Film Festival, which meant it was added to a specific category filled with films made by people across the globe, ranging from France, Iran, Saudi Arabia and more. The fact that so many different people from different places saw the film excited Hernandez.

“It was so cool that all these cultures watched our film,” Daniela said.

Participating in the short film gave Daniela a sense of newfound knowledge.

She learned to leap out of her shell, love herself, and never let nerves control her intentions.

Her parents have continuously supported her performing arts endeavors and are excited to see what her future may hold.

“Dani makes it so easy for me to support her love of performance. Whether on a dance floor or in front of a camera, she exudes confidence and passion each and every time,” Daniela’s dad, Jose Hernandez, said.

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DILLON METOYER At the age of four years old, Dillon Metoyer’s mother asked him to look into her eyes and tell her what he saw. He responded by saying, “I see stars,” and when asked why, he would say, “Because I’m going to be one.”

Since then, the Miami Palmetto Senior High School senior has spent his time working extremely hard toward accomplishing this goal and has taken every opportunity to do so. Whether it be through following his passion playing soccer, producing his own music or modeling for the Miami Heat, Dillon knows he can reach stardom.

Metoyer’s love for entertaining and the euphoria that he experiences from it motivates him in every project that he sets his mind to.

“When you create or do something you’re passionate about and people enjoy it and applaud you for it, it’s a great feeling,” Metoyer said. “That feeling is what makes me want to do it more.”

The intense rush he feels from entertaining b e c a m e prominent at Palmetto during M r.

Panther, an annual event put on by the school.

“Mr. Panther w a s really

SENIORS |17

a star in the making

memorable for me. I touched the stage and then started rapping and the energy and everything was just so amazing,” Metoyer said.

Further reminiscing on his Mr. Panther performance, Metoyer explained that the crowd’s energy and reactions given by the crowd made it one of the best nights of his life.

“As the performance went on and everyone was cheering and screaming my name, my performance got better.

The energy from the crowd fueled me and ultimately gave my performance life,” Metoyer said. “After I got off stage, I told myself that was one of the best performances of my life because of the love and admiration I received from everyone for doing something I’m so passionate about.”

Ever since Metoyer was little, he has written songs and raps, but he finally began taking his music seriously during his freshman year of high school. Drawing inspiration from artists such as Drake and Lil Baby, Metoyer started to create his own music from home.

“Most of my songs are freestyle and some of them are written. I’ll be listening to different beats and will create a melody in my head and depending on how it makes me feel, I’ll either freestyle or write something to it. Once I have the chorus down, I’ll move on to the voices.

I’ll mix it and the ad libs and stuff like that,” Metoyer said.

Dillon’s mother, Sally Mott, is the reason Metoyer found a passion for modeling. A former model herself, Mott launched her son’s modeling career at the age of four. Since then, she has supported all of his talents and performances.

“It’s amazing what he can do. He doesn’t need a producer; he has all his own equipment. I went out with friends the other night and by the time I had gotten home he had written and recorded this whole song and was like ‘Mom listen to this,’ and the talent and energy he puts into his music... it’s just a great feeling,” Mott said.

After signing with Green Agency in 2010, Metoyer has had the opportunity to model for Payless and the Miami Heat Vice Versa Collection. Metoyer remembers the crew as extremely friendly and maintains a fond memory of the overall experience.

“I just ended up loving it and always having fun. I’m so passionate about it.

Whenever I come back [from a shoot], I’m always like ‘Mom, I had such an amazing time,’ I owe her that,” Metoyer said.

His father, Fred Metoyer, believes that Dillon’s talents come from his upbringing and the notion that he could succeed in anything he works towards.

“As a parent, trust me, we want to describe our children as the best in everything. I would really have to find a word to show that everything he’s exposed to and genuinely interested in he excels at,” Fred said.

Apart from modeling and creating music, Dillon also plays the position of right wing on the Palmetto varsity soccer team. His mother remembers every hot, long day spent outside watching Dillon play.

“I remember going to the soccer fields and seeing what he played and burning under the umbrella and all that,” Mott said.

“I’m extra proud because when I used to change his diapers I would kick his feet and say, ‘Run, Dillon, run,’ and now he’s an amazing soccer player and one of the fastest runners on the team.”

With his skills in modeling, rapping and soccer, Dillon can become a star, just as he told his mom he would at the age of four years old.

“He is a diamond in the rough that no one has discovered yet, but once they do it’ll be amazing,” Mott said.

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18| SENIORS

WILL-ANDER JULES driven, with a dream

Above all else, Miami Palmetto Senior High senior Will-Ander Jules is a genuinely good person; ask anyone who knows him, and they will attest to that. It is one of the main reasons he is so beloved by students and faculty alike, and why “kind” is the word that most often comes to people’s minds when asked to describe him.

Jules was born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti in 2003. Growing up, he spoke two languages, Haitian-Creole and French, and joined the Boys and Girls Brigade (similar to the Police Explorers Program) at his church — an interest that would continue to play an important role throughout his life. He was surrounded by a large extended family, with grandparents, uncles, aunts and cousins providing a strong support system.

“I lived with my parents, but some of my other family members lived very close by, within walking distance,” Jules said. “We were all very close.”

When Jules was 11 years old, his parents, Wilnick and Andremenne, made the decision to move the family to the U.S. in search of more opportunities for Jules and his yet-to-be born little brother. When Jules heard the news, he felt very excited.

“When I found out I was moving to the U.S., I was very happy because my mom moved here first, and I missed her [and] I was able to meet my little brother for the first time,” Jules said. “I also had other family members here that I was excited to see that I had never seen before.”

On July 15, 2015, Jules arrived in Miami. He immediately noticed a difference between Haiti and his new home.

“When I was able to drive around the city, I couldn’t believe everything I saw, especially all of the lights. In Haiti, the lights are not always on; the electricity is not on 24/7,” Jules said. “And in Haiti, you have to pay for your education from kindergarten to twelfth grade. Here in the

United States, public education is free.

The money [my parents] would have used to pay for my education can now be used for other things that are also important.”

Later that summer, Jules entered Richmond Heights Middle School as a seventh grader. Despite a language barrier and the adjustment to living in an entirely new country, Jules immediately got involved at the school, joining 5000 Role Models, Robotics Club and Read 2 Succeed, an afterschool enrichment program where he met his mentor, reading coach Danielle Ellis.

Ellis started off helping him with homework and getting him acclimated to the country and school, but the relationship carried on through graduation, and Jules turns to Ellis for assistance to this day.

“I try to help him as much as possible to navigate everything, especially with the language sometimes being an issue. If he’s working on something and has a question and needs me to read or edit, I’ll help with that,” Ellis said.

The two mostly text or call, but they Zoom if Jules needs to screen share, or if he needs to work on an application.

Ultimately, Ellis’s goal is to help Jules achieve his dream of becoming a Federal Bureau of Investigation agent, which is where the Police Explorers Program comes back into the picture. Jules knew he wanted to continue participating in the U.S., so he researched similar programs. Unfortunately, the one he found was in South Miami, which meant he would have to take a bus. Ellis helped him find the closer Miami-Dade Police Explorers Program, which he joined in Dec. 2017.

“I was looking for this program a long time ago because I was a member of it when I was in Haiti… When I was doing some research and found it online, I was so happy because my dream had come true,” Jules said.

SENIORS |19 The Police Explorers Program is designed to give adolescents the opportunity to learn about law enforcement through experiencing life as a junior police officer and contributing to the community. Miami-Dade County has identified this program as being vital to community outreach.

“We are very involved in community events, like food donations, parades, volunteering and controlling traffic at major events,” Jules said.

In his role as lieutenant, Jules guides the sergeants and helps them with anything they may need, which exemplifies his faith-based and service-oriented personality.

“I believe in serving others the way Jesus [Christ] serves us. He gives me the wisdom to participate and serve others,” Jules said.

After graduating from Richmond Heights, Jules came to Palmetto, where he characteristically devoted himself to school and extracurriculars and joined 5000 Role Models, Spanish National Honor Society and student council.

At Palmetto, Jules found another mentor in Maria Sanin, the English as a Second Language teacher.

“He’s now my right hand man. If I’m stumped or the kids are asking me a question and I’ve already presented a lesson, he’s the first one to say, ‘Mrs. Sanin, can I get a minute? You said this date and this time — can I share the message with them?,’” Sanin said.

Jules’s beliefs and inherent goodness are not only evident: they have a noticeable effect on those who know him, too.

“Every other kid might be in their world, but when I look at him, he centers my inner feelings. There’s this spirituality about him that he’s able to transmit without even saying a word. His inner peace transcends him; he brings that goodness,” Sanin said.

No one doubts Jules will go on to do great things.

“He has the compassion, the drive, the family support, an incredible work ethic, a passion for school, a passion for education and to do better,” Ellis said. “He’s so young, but so dedicated. I know he’s going to make it in this world.”

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20| SENIORS

ELLA MARCH from the sketchbook to the runway

From running around Bloomingdale’s on Michigan Avenue with her grandparents as a child to interning at the Institute of Fashion as a member of the Couture Team, Miami Palmetto Senior High senior Ella March has always had a love for all things fashion and design.

As a little girl growing up in Chicago, Illinois, March spent many summer days with her sister and grandmother shopping on the popular tourist street Michigan Avenue. Michigan Avenue, also known as Magnificent Mile, is a street home to many of the most well-known clothing stores and restaurants. One of her preferred stores was Bloomingdale’s, one she remembers getting lost in as she perused the rows upon rows of clothing. “[It] quickly became my favorite place.

I felt so at home in the building with all the clothing around me,” March said.

When March moved to Miami the summer before eighth grade, her parents decided that she and her sister should participate in a summer camp while they worked during the day. Aware of their daughter’s love for clothing and fashion, her parents sent her to a summer camp at the Institute of Fashion in Coral Gables, a place where she has spent much of her time refining her craft.

During her very first summer at the Institute of Fashion, she learned the ins and outs of creating clothing, from learning how to design to the proper techniques of cutting and sewing fabric.

After the summer camp, March began taking year-round classes at The Institute of Fashion, working towards a runway show that occurs twice a year during the winter and summer.

Through these themed runway shows, students model and showcase their pieces. For her first show, the theme was “London,” so she decided to create a look inspired by the Disney film, “Mary Poppins.”

While taking classes at the Institute of Fashion, March received an invitation at the beginning of her freshman year to join the Couture Team. Her work with the Couture Team added on to what she learned in her classes, teaching her store management skills, how to work with clientele, how to design and create

couture pieces like ball gowns.

“I learned more about how to manage a store,” March said. “I’ll be in fittings for brides and standing there holding pins or fabric for them to hold… I’ll see more of the behind the scenes for an actual business.”

In addition to her time at the Institute of Fashion, March also spent a summer in Wynwood interning for Danny Santiago, the costume designer famous for his work styling the “Sex and the City” movie series and the shows “Burn Notice,” “Graceland” and “Ballers.”

“I spent eight hours a day for my whole summer sitting in that warehouse, just basically curating every single item of clothing in there,” March said. “He had a bunch of old Givenchy dresses and stuff like that, and it was just super cool to see everything.”

When not at the sewing machine or putting together a mood board, you can find her participating in a multitude of on-campus activities and clubs. March previously participated in Palmetto’s History Bowl team and served as a board member of her temple’s youth program. She also dove for the University of Miami’s club diving team and last year for Palmetto’s varsity diving team. Currently, she sits on her senior class cabinet and also serves as the secretary of the Health Information Project (HIP). This year, however, March decided to bring her love of fashion to school.

For her senior year, March decided to take stagecraft with Palmetto’s drama instructor Robin Barson. She originally placed in the top-level stagecraft class and expected to make costumes for the theatre shows this year. However, due to COVID-19, all levels of stagecraft became part of a combined class and the students have had to find new ways to work both creatively and collaboratively.

“It’s a class that has four grades in it… so there’s a lot of mentorship,” Barson said. “The new students are generally being mentored by the older students so in their first year in stagecraft they learn a little bit of all the different areas. They do a project in costume design, a project in publicity and a project in set design. Then they start to find their area and gravitate towards that area and get mentored in that area.”

After a discussion in class, Barson persuaded March to enter the costume construction category of the District 8 Thespians Festival. She dove deep into the world of musical theatre and chose the play “Crybaby” to base her costume on. Creating the costume became quite a difficult task, as she received her fabric days before the deadline, but miraculously turned the dress in on time for scoring.

“I had to make the dress in five days and it was so stressful… Ms. Barson was just super supportive, and everybody in that class is so sweet. They all help you with anything you need,” March said. “Then, I submitted my dress and I ended up getting a 25 out of 30 from one judge and a 29 out of 30 from another judge.”

Coming from a primarily couture and runway background, March had to learn how to dress and build a costume for theatre, which she had never had any experience with before.

“Ella was doing more couture designs and she showed me a bunch of those, and I’ve seen how skilled she is. But, to have to pivot from that and figure out how you are going to design a costume is very different,” Barson said. “It is different when designing a costume, making sure that the costume tells a story and that the costume has the right things for the stage and the right colors for the stage and that there are different elements on it that represent things.”

Through the process of designing a costume for theatre, March learned the importance of symbolism in her piece. Drawing from a “gang” that the main character Alison joins to win the heart of the rebel, Crybaby, in the “Crybaby” play, March incorporated elements into her costume which paid homage to those characters. The added detail specifically accentuates the role of the girls of the “gang,” known as “The Teardrops.”

“The girl group is called ‘The Teardrops’ and Ella picked up on that and ordered little burgundy teardrop shaped beads and had those on the bottom of her costume,” Barson said. “That’s something that a fashion designer doesn’t usually do. That’s something that she had to figure out how to do because your costume has to help tell the story. I was so impressed with her ability to tell that story.”

Barson has become one of March’s most inspirational teachers and someone she credits as a main supporter of her designs and garments.

“I think [March] is a really, really gifted young lady that is smart, creative and coupled with her talent, compassion and her drive - that’s something that really stands out to me in students. I love to see a student who is pursuing something that they are really passionate about, that they are open to new ideas and they’re not just set in their ways and appreciate learning new things and having new challenges and rising to that, and I see that with Ella,” Barson said.

As of now, March remains unsure of which school she plans to attend after she graduates, but knows that she wants fashion to play a role in her future.

“It seems like a career path I could potentially go down,” March said. “Some people know they want to be doctors, and I could see myself being a doctor, but I know I wouldn’t have fun being a doctor; I’d have fun working in fashion.”

SENIORS |21

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22| FACULTY

sara edelman turning passion into profession Miami Palmetto Senior High School alumni Dr. Sara Edelman began her personal journey in high school, where she discovered her life-long passion for science. After her AP Environmental Science teacher, Pamela Shlachtman, inspired her in her senior year of high school, she decided to major in environmental science at the University of Florida.

While at UF, Dr. Edelman dedicated much of her time off to figuring out what she wanted her future to look like. At first, her fascination with plants prompted her to intern at the Montgomery Botanical Center.

“I thought, ‘This is phenomenal, I could do this,’” Edelman said. “I could work with plants outside everyday.”

However, everything did not go exactly as planned.

After graduating from UF, Dr. Edelman began working at Fairchild Tropical Botanical Gardens, where she worked as the palm and cycad manager, as well as a lecturer at volunteer workshops.

Thanks to Fairchild, Edelman received the opportunity to earn her PhD. However, she soon found out that it would be in biology, not ecology, the subject she had wanted to further study.

“When I found out I was getting my PhD in biology, I laughed and I was like, ‘Is this

a joke? I like ecology…’ That aspect with the whole...cell biology and microbiology… I never liked it,” Edelman said.

While studying for her PhD, Dr. Edelman decided to embrace the process of trial and error after her off-putting experience conducting field research at the Belize Botanical Center.

“I remember crying in the warm shower… They took all my clothes and washed them because everything had ticks…” Edelman said. “I was just like, ‘Okay, so this is good, crossing off things I don’t want to do, I do not want to travel the world collecting palms.’”

Edelman received advice regarding her biology degree from Dr. Richard Campbell at Fairchild, who prompted her to earn her Masters, PhD and publish four chapters of papers in just four years. After earning her Phd, Edelman gained the freedom to take her knowledge of biology to the classroom.

In 2017, Shlachtman, who remained in contact with Edelman as she earned her PhD, offered her the AP Biology teaching position at MPSH after the position opened up, knowing the experience Dr. Edelman possessed regarding biology.

During class, many students credit Edelman as a teacher who loves her job and gives her

FACULTY| 23

undivided attention and energy to her students. Edelman encourages her students to take the path in life that they feel works for them, reminding them that at the end of the day they should follow a path that incorporates their passions.

“Study what you love and make decisions based on what you want and what you’re passionate about and you’ll never be disappointed,” Edelman said.

With Edelman’s love for biology and teaching, she finds solace within her second home, Palmetto.

“Loving your job so much that it makes you feel better when things really are bad is really special, and it’s not something that a lot of people get,” Edelman said.

A situation wherein Palmetto acted as that happy place was when her horse, Coco, passed away. Since she began horseback riding at the age of 12, Edelman had dreamed of owning her own horse. After Coco’s unfortunate passing, students came to her aid.

“I remember some of my kids brought me plants, because they knew I liked plants,” Edelman said. “If I’m here, my kids will make me laugh.

They’ll say ridiculous things and I’ll get to talk about biology and pretend that this didn’t happen for seven and a half hours.”

Dr. Edelman has found a balance between her hobbies and work life. She attributes this to having a career she loves, which, by extension, allows her to do many activities, such as yoga and hiking, with a lightened spirit.

“Life is so beautiful and crazy and learning about biology I walk around. Even if I’m just going for a walk with my dog I see things differently,” Edelman said.

Dr. Edelman attributes her confidence and outlook towards life to her late grandmother, Helen, who was a Holocaust survivor.

“No one was ever as proud of me as she was or loved me as much as she did,” Edelman said.

“She went through the most tragic and awful events and came out with so much love to give.”

In spite of the difficult job of teaching, Edelman finds joy within the balance she finds through the profession.

“I always kind of had this theory about life: it’s for the living and for enjoying yourself,” Edelman said.

PHOTO COURTESY OF SARA EDELMAN

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24| FACULTY

pam shlachtman

mother of A P ES

Born and raised in Miami, Pam Shlachtman has been a part of the Panther community throughout her entire life. After graduating a year early from Miami Palmetto Senior High, she attended Miami-Dade College, where she was fast tracked through chemistry classes.

“Truthfully, at that time, I didn’t get a great deal of encouragement from most of the professors for me to go get a Masters in chemistry. They were not particularly encouraging of girls, in all honesty. They were really kind of biased, even with grades and that kind of stuff,” Shlachtman said.

Shlachtman went on to earn her Bachelor’s in Chemistry and a Master’s in Environmental Science, resulting in her immersion into the Cooperative Extension Service, an extension agency within the U.S. Department of Agriculture. She conducted energy audits, participated in research projects and became an adjunct professor at Florida International University. In 1984, she began teaching at South Dade High School.

“Maybe teaching was kind of a natural inclination, and I think what I really do love about it is I think it’s cool when people learn stuff. The more stuff you know,

the more informed decisions you can make, and it just makes you a better person. It’s fun to learn stuff,” Shlachtman said.

After teaching at South Dade High School for 17 years, Shlachtman transferred to Palmetto, where she has become somewhat of a celebrity for her rigorous AP Environmental Science course. She helped develop the class in 1996, and taught APES for the first time in 1997.

“I think I went into APES because it was a way for me to still teach the science, but also show that you could make a difference,” Shlachtman said.

Many of her students have taken her course to heart and have gained more than just APES knowledge through their shared time with her.

“She’s more than a teacher. She’s taught me... the world: what to know, how to prepare. She’s definitely one of my role models. We just have conversations, how to be a better person, how to have tough skin, how to do well in competitions, how to study,” Palmetto senior and former APES student Ella Sleeman said. “ ...I learned how to be independent from that.”

In Mar. 2020, as COVID-19 began to grip the world,

Shlachtman received a breast cancer diagnosis. At the beginning of the 2020-2021 school year, she underwent surgery, and on Oct. 22, 2020, she began chemotherapy.

She has finished her course of chemo, but will continue with immunotherapy for another year.

Realizing she had begun losing her hair, Shlachtman shaved it off, but the famous purple-red hue that she is known for still remains. Her love of teaching has remained unwavering throughout this time, and she scheduled her chemotherapy appointments around her school schedule — a reflection of her dedication to her students.

“I got chemo on Thursday because I figured that if I was to be sick, I would be sick on the weekend...” Shlachtman said. “And usually Sunday was my worst day of the week, and it would lead into Monday a little bit, but I think two things are important.

I think having a positive attitude is important, and I think keeping busy so you don’t think about yourself so much.”

Although chemotherapy usually has negative effects on one’s immune system, Shlachtman has continued teaching in person throughout the pandemic.

She monitors her white blood cell count and remains socially-distant behind her desk at all times so that she can still safely teach in person. Teaching high schoolers throughout a pandemic while undergoing cancer treatment is no easy feat, but Shlachtman prefers in person teaching for the relationships she has developed with her students.

“I like being in the classroom. I don’t like the fact that I can’t move from my desk, it drives me crazy. I used to walk all around the room; it just drives me crazy.

Nobody in my family thought I should actually teach in person,” Schlactman said. “What I really miss about the people in [My School Online] is you don’t really get to know people. You kinda get to know them but you don’t really get to know them… I kinda like to see people, up close and personal.”

Her devoted attitude has not gone unnoticed, and Palmetto’s CAP Interventionist, Linda Dwyer, who has known Shlachtman for years, cites how remarkable her friend truly is.

“I am in awe of Pam’s dedication to her students. She is devoted to education with every cell in her body,” Dwyer said. “Her passion for the environment, our country and the next generation is truly admirable, and I am grateful that she dedicates her talents to our school.

She is a gift to our community, and I wish her a speedy road to health.”

Despite the obstacles that Shlachtman has faced this year, her impact on her students remains immeasurable, both inside and outside of her classroom.

“She’s just a great person... She has the best heart... I have so much respect for her,” Sleeman said.

Jane Heise

Print Editor in Chief

j.heise.thepanther@gmail.com

Samantha Elkins Multimedia Editor

s.elkins.thepanther@gmail.com

DESIGN BY SYDNEY CAMPBELL PHOTOS COURTESY OF PAM SHLACHTMAN

26| FACULTY

lila de puch MARsee the impact of education

Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina to highly educated parents, Miami Palmetto Senior High School Spanish teacher Lila de Puch Marsee grew up destined to love learning. Her father, a scientist and doctor, brought the first mobile X-ray and blood testing unit to South America; meanwhile, her mother held a PhD in 18th century Golden Age Castellan literature. Despite her parents working and studying in completely different fields, the passion they shared for their occupations left a lifelong impact on Marsee and her relationship with education.

Education played a pivotal role in Marsee’s upbringing. As an only child, her parents ensured that she received a worldly, well-rounded and rigorous instruction, and enrolled her in an International Baccalaureate program starting in the first grade.

Marsee describes the school as having a unique and progressive environment — distinctive, considering its Catholic nature.

“These nuns were very, very liberal, very liberal, and they smoked during the break… they played rock music for us after lunch,” Marsee said. “We were there the whole day. We entered at 7:30 [a.m.], we had lunch and then we had study hall; we had tea at 5:00, and they let us go at 5:30.”

At this school, Marsee received a highly individualized education where she had the opportunity to study subjects such as philosophy, religious history and geography. Here, only a single class per grade existed, meaning she went to school with the same relatively small group of kids every year.

However, during Marsee’s early high school years, when political unrest came to Argentina, she and her parents left for the US. Upon moving to Miami, Florida, Marsee began studying at Miami Beach Senior High, which contrasted greatly with the school she had attended in Argentina.

“I came to the United States, Miami, and people are running like banshees down the hallways... The first day I arrived, my first day of school, the bell rang, and I saw everybody get up and leave, and… it had not clicked that I had to go to another class, so I stayed in the classroom and nobody said anything to me,” Marsee said. “I didn’t know where to go. I was a lost soul.”

On top of transitioning to a brand new country and academic environment, Marsee had to deal with school administrators doubting the caliber of the schooling she received in Argentina. She went from a college-level IB curriculum to having to take Home Economics when she started high school in Miami.

FACULTY| 27 Marsee’s personal experiences with adjusting to school in America have profoundly impacted how she builds connections with her students, especially those who have recently immigrated.

“But this is why I take under my wing the students that just arrive, and, you know for a fact that I try to help you, I try to give you direction, I try to share with you what I know, I try to give you the strength and the safe place,” Marsee said.

Her understanding of the different types of people who walk into her classroom have influenced the way she teaches. Marsee has dedicated herself to exposing her students to a variety of perspectives, because one never knows when this knowledge may come in handy.

More specifically, because she teaches Spanish, she additionally educates her students about Latin American culture and aids in resolving the misconception that all Latin American countries are the same. She creates an environment that encourages students to adapt to the Spanish language and feel comfortable to confide in her.

“I would say [she is] patient the most because I’m not the best Spanish speaker and she had a lot of patience when teaching me. [She is] good-willed. She always cared for others. [She is] trustworthy. I could trust her with anything,” Marsee’s student and Miami Palmetto High School senior Emily Cohen said.

At Palmetto, her job does not solely consist of teaching different level Spanish classes and AP Spanish Literature; she also serves as the head of the foreign language department, where she supports the rest of the teachers in her field. “[Marsee] is always there for us.

She asks all of us how we are doing, especially during these times…

Sometimes we meet through Zoom to at least see our faces... to know how we were doing… She keeps us together,” Palmetto Spanish teacher

Adalberto Martin said.

Aside from her role as an ally to newly-immigrated students, teacher of Latin American culture and head of her department, Marsee also serves as an example of how life does not always go as expected.

Originally interested in becoming an attorney as a child and then teaching as a means to an end later in life, Marsee realized she found enjoyment creating classes for her students in her Special Education classes and Spanish classes. She would later have a job as the head of the Special Education department, which motivated her to gain more certificates in education. Her experience has led her to become a Spanish teacher at Palmetto.

Marsee’s journey to finding her career path proves how one’s passion may not be an obvious answer.

“I thought at first that I may be an attorney. But then when I came to the United States, I didn’t think my English was at the level that it was required… But then I discovered teaching after all the other things and one thing led to another and here I am… I love it. It is a way in which I use all the things that I have learned and that I continue to learn,” Marsee said.

All in all, Marsee hopes that students who take her class find a way to be proud of their accomplishments in life.

“I want all of you to be very happy and satisfied, fulfilled and accomplished people… It doesn’t matter what you grow up to be, you know, the President of the United States, or you might open up a cleaning company,” Marsee said. “It doesn’t matter, but that you feel good about whatever it is you accomplished, you say… ‘I am the best chicken roaster on this side of the Mississippi.’ Okay, that is what I hope.”

Priscilla Bermudez Senior Copy Editor

p.bermudez.thepanther@gmail.com

Jacob Grindstaff Opinion Editor

j.grindstaff.thepanther@gmail.com

DESIGN BY GIANNA HUTTON PHOTO COURTESY OF LILA DE PUCH MARSEE

A letter from the editors Dear Palmetto,

We hope you love Faces of Palmetto as much as we loved creating it. We recognize how special the Palmetto community is, and our staff has worked diligently over the past couple of months to show that to you.

Palmetto has changed significantly. COVID-19 has swept the nation, leaving us split up between physical and online atmospheres. While our difficult circumstances transform around us by the minute, we are lucky enough to still find ourselves surrounded by the most inspiring people that continue to do amazing things for their community, overcome incredible obstacles and motivate those around them.

To the seniors featured in Faces of Palmetto, thank you for dedicating your time to our school and our community. Your impact is incredible, and though we will miss you next year, we know that you will continue to be a positive influence wherever you go.

Unfortunately, we can only feature a certain number of Faces of Palmetto stories each year, but if we could, we would write a hundred more. Thankfully, we plan to continue the tradition of Faces of Palmetto far into the future.

Thank you all for reading this year’s Faces of Palmetto issue and for learning about the students, alumni and faculty that make Palmetto so extraordinary. We, the editors of The Panther, are incredibly proud to share it with you.

Love,

Nicole Markus, Jane Heise and Jack Meyer

MISSION STATEMENT The Panther staff aims to inform fellow students and parents about school-wide, local, national, and international news. The Panther’s content aims to represent the student body. Editorials feature the opinions of staffers. Features of other students, teachers and clubs further promote the spirit, culture and personality of Miami Palmetto Senior High School.

EDITORIAL POLICY The Panther is a monthly publication of Miami Palmetto Senior High located at 7460 S.W. 118th Street Miami, FL 33156, (305) 235-1360 ext. 2337. The views expressed are solely those of The Panther staff. Students who wish to respond to an article in this publication or discuss another issue may write letters to the editor and submit them to room 980 or e-mail us at n.markus.thepanther@gmail.com. The Panther has professional membership in NSPA and CSPA. The Panther prints 1,400 copies per issue for distribution. The Panther is distributed for free to all students in school.

Please visit our paper online at thepalmettopanther.com.

BYLINE POLICY:

All creative work (such as illustrations, graphics, photos and writing) excluding staff editorials and staff member pictures will include byline credits.

CORRECTION POLICY:

Any errors in print will be acknowledged in the next print issue in a correction box.

Any errors online will be acknowledged immediately. Errors include facts, figures, misquoting and name misspellings.

ADVERTISING POLICY:

Ads will be designed by the advertiser and include all information the advertiser wants included. If the advertiser asks the staff to design the ad, the individual who sold the ad will design the ad or the Ads Manager will. Ads will be approved by EICs, the Advisor and the Ads Manager. If an ad produced is illegible, contains false information, or the advertiser does not like it, they will receive a free ad in the next issue. If you would like to advertise, please contact us.

ANTI-DISCRIMINATION POLICY The School Board shall comply with all Federal Laws and regulations prohibiting discrimination and all requirements and regulations of the U.S. Department of Education.

The Board will enforce its prohibition against discrimination/harassment based on sex, race, color, ethnic, or national origin, religion, marital status, disability, age, political beliefs, sexual orientation, gender, gender identification, social and family background, linguistic preference, pregnancy and any other basis prohibited by law. The Board shall maintain an educational and work environment free from all forms of discrimination/ harassment, which includes Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. Title IX prohibits sexual harassment and other sexual misconduct such as unwelcome touching, graphic verbal comments, sexual jokes, slurs, gestures or pictures. All students, administrators, teachers, staff, and all other school personnel share responsibility for avoiding, discouraging, and reporting any form of prohibited discrimination or harassment against students by employees, other students and their parents or guardians, or third parties. This policy prohibits discrimination and harassment at all School District operations, programs, and activities on school property, or at another location if it occurs during an activity sponsored by the Board.

STAFF Editor-In-Chief Nicole Markus

Print Editor-In-Chief Jane Heise

Online Editor-In-Chief Jack Meyer

Managing Editor Kate Stuzin

Senior Copy Editor Priscilla Bermudez

Senior Design Editor Sydney Campbell

Business Manager Sofia Vinueza

Senior Multimedia Editor Valentina Caceres

Feature Editor Ana Martinez

News Editor Julia Strasius

Life Editor

Allison Gould

Sports Editor Bella Martin

Opinion Editor Jacob Grindstaff

Multimedia Team Isabel Lopez Jacob Grindstaff Samantha Elkins Valentina Arias Amy-Grace Shapiro Isabella Hewitt

Copy Team

Katriona Page Cristele Moztarzadeh Angelina Astic Kate Markus

Design Team Gianna Hutton Ana Martinez Julia Strasius Michael Angee Ella Pedroso

Staff Writers

Luca Rodriguez Tomas Curcio Gabe Salvat

Adviser

Laura Aviles