Florida
Records 31 through 45 out of 70

	Year: 2003 Ronald Hsu Palm Bay, FL, West Shore Junior-Senior High School College Plans: Harvard College   I was legally certified into existence in Buffalo, New York on July 28, 1985, the year of the Ox and the month of Leo. I live in sunny central FL now, near Kennedy Space Center and the beaches. I’m also a junky for computer science, biology, and history. I’ve written Java code for my computer science research at the MIT Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, witnessed government in action from the floor of the Florida House of Representatives, and worked on the writing staff of the Florida Today newspaper. My information retrieval research has been published and presented at academic computer science conferences. As high school student government president, I connected student government members with students in five nearby elementary schools to tutor and mentor, while also securing community funding to buy children’s books for this program. I love reading, learning, thinking, being myself, and anything else, bar the mundane!
	Year: 2003 Betsy R. Scherzer Tampa, FL, H.B. Plant High School College Plans: Yale University   I’ll never be able to check off a simple box on any application form. Not unless the box includes artist, jock, nerd, comedian, traveler, thespian, reader, writer, entrepreneur, environmentalist, scientist and Superwoman. I am proud of the many roles I play, as well as my achievements during four years of high school. Teachers elected me to the school’s Hall of Fame based on academics, attitude and overall achievement. I led the largest club, SADD, for two years, founded and presided over the New Business Leaders in the Making club for two years and served as the vice-president of National Art Honor Society. I am a member of nine honor societies, a four-year varsity tennis player, actor and techie. My next role: environmental engineering major. Inspired by Captain Planet, among others, I plan to apply my scientific mind to take “pollution down to zero.” Then, I’ll be a true superhero.
	Year: 2003 Austin M. Soto Miami, FL, Ransom Everglades School College Plans: Harvard College   The second of four brothers, Mac lives by a simple rule: do the most you can do, to the best of your ability. This is evident from his numerous activities, which, in addition to his academics, include student government, sports, drama, music, community service and his religious faith. Mac has served as student body president, captain of the wrestling team, president of his school’s Fellowship of Christian Athletes club, and had lead roles in school musical and dramatic productions. On Saturday mornings, he is involved in a local tutoring program for elementary school students. In addition to leading singing at church, Mac leads a young men’s Bible study he organized for his church’s youth group. He loves to play the piano, sing and write music and is currently creating a comic book with original drawings. Mac is also the current Governor of Florida Boys State. Most importantly, he is devoted to and has a meaningful role in the lives of his three brothers.
	Year: 2003 Chat Travieso Miami, FL, New World School of the Arts College Plans: Maryland Institute College of Art   With the radio at full volume, I am painting for the third consecutive day; nevertheless, this is understandable when one comes from a household where inspiration is abundant. My parents have always acted as great encouragers for anything I proposed to follow. Both my father and my mother were amazing influences and catalysts in the early development of my artistic talent and interest. From the first time I had to pick up a pencil and draw to articulate my thoughts, I have been steadfast in my pursuing of a visual arts career. Fortunately, I have been able to attend art magnet programs since sixth grade that have helped me follow this goal. I am looking forward to continuing my studies in the arts, as well as a range of academic fields and, through this strong education, growing as an artist and individual.
	Year: 2004 Ronald K. Anguas Cooper City, FL, Dade Christian School College Plans: Harvard College   Ronald is a young man who is always seeking out new and challenging experiences. While maintaining academic excellence, he manages to stay involved in music, school clubs, and service organizations within his community. As a fifth-year percussion ensemble member, Ronald has won state-level awards on classical percussion instruments and been named to the Southern Florida Regional Honor Band three years in a row. He has also excelled in the nationally recognized Future Business Leaders of America organization. As District Vice President, Ronald successfully organized activities for over 1,000 members in South Florida while at the same time managing to place 2nd in the state in the club’s Emerging Business Issues competition. Over the last two summers, he has participated in internship programs with U.S. Senator Bill Nelson and U.S. Congressman Peter Deutsch. After completing his undergraduate education, Ronald plans to earn both law and business degrees.
	Year: 2004 Vera L. Arias Miami, FL, New World School of the Arts College Plans: The School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston   Vera is a very talented artist, academically gifted, and an accomplished musician. She is a sensitive, compassionate,and considerate young woman. Her record of community service includes day care, cancer walks, AIDS walks, beach clean-ups, and many mural projects throughout Miami-Dade County. She is Historian of the National Spanish Honor Society and embraces her Hispanic culture by donating goods to needy countries. She is extremely self-disciplined and works hard to understand criticism. Her creativity and dedication are outstanding. Her sketchbooks reflect this personal vision and are some of her finest examples of artistic exploration.
	Year: 2004 Katherine E. Booth Lake Mary, FL, Lake Mary High School College Plans: Yale University   I am a 4'11" polar explorer. I spent five days in a tent on the North Pole eating nothing but Ramen noodles and Oreos. Adventure of any sort calls to me; during the 100th Anniversary of the Wright Brothers' flight, I made the first tandem skydive into the Kitty Hawk Memorial. High school, however, is the greatest adventure of all. Despite the length of my stride, I am Captain of the Varsity Cross Country and Track Teams. Contributing to the school literary magazine, I write satirical plays about gender stereotypes. As Vice President of the Astronomy Club, I came up with this year's slogan: "Lake Mary Astronomy… Because you won't find intelligent life on earth." Although this philosophy would suggest a career as a leggy fashion model, I instead plan to study bioengineering at Yale.
	Year: 2004 Felipe Chor Miami, FL, Coral Reef Senior High School College Plans: University of Chicago   I wonder if any college offers courses in autobiography. I could use one-- college applications might be finished but someday I will need to write résumés. Now would “An Introduction to Autobiography” be under the English Department or something like History or Psychology? There might be “Autobiography, Alternative Styles of” as an elective in a Creative Writing program, or “Autobiography, Society’s Need and the Subconscious Dread of” in a semester of Psychology… Felipe thoroughly detests writing about himself. He would rather go off on as many tangents as possible than write the simplest of autobiographies. When not tangenting, Felipe does many things he does not particularly enjoy (wake up to go to school, go to school…) and a few things he does enjoy (learn independently outside of school; play saxophone, clarinet, and tennis; make up new words…). In college he plans to study physics and possibly creative writing.
	Year: 2004 Hayley Jade. Fink St. Petersburg, FL, St. Petersburg High School Int’l Baccalaureate Program College Plans: Princeton University   My goal is to one day become a United States Senator. I was bitten by the political bug several years ago when I was appointed to our Board of County Commissioners’ Youth Advisory Committee. My peers on this committee elected me to serve as their representative to the county Park Board, where I vote on issues that directly affect our park system. I have also traveled to Tallahassee several times with the Youth Advisory Committee to lobby for a bill we authored that mandates voter education in schools in an attempt to fight youth political apathy. Recently I founded a political club at my school to further youth interest in the political process. It is imperative for my generation to take an active role in our democracy and future.
	Year: 2004 Kimberly Nhu-Mai. Hoang Palm Bay, FL, Palm Bay High School College Plans: University of Miami Honors Program in Medicine   If the Energizer Bunny and James Bond were to selectively breed, I would be their progeny. I delight in a highpaced life, freeing my schedule only to manage one breath of success between being a scholar, tennis athlete, and violin player. I am no stranger to the needy or to the intellectually disadvantaged. I inspire others in the midst of canned food drives, park clean-ups, and election campaigns. Before school I mentor third graders in reading. After school I wait tables to save for college expenses. Volunteering at the hospital furnishes my desire to pursue a career in medicine. Yet, my numerous leadership positions and national chemistry awards do not deter me from my two passions: scrapbooking and spending time with family.
	Year: 2004 Ryan E. Truchelut Casselberry, FL, Trinity Preparatory School College Plans: Princeton University   When I was very young, my parents would drive me through neighborhoods near my home and I would look down the side streets, wondering what was unseen around the corners. The point of this anecdote is that I have always felt— and been driven by— an innate compulsion to explore. This desire has taken the form of various interests over the years, in manifestations ranging from scientific fields (weather, physics) to my considerable flair for the bizarre (scouring garage sales, taking pictures of highway signs). My lifelong involvement with tropical meteorology, spurred by a brush with Hurricane Andrew, has both given me a chance to present an original research paper concerning cyclones to a panel of NASA experts and earned me the title of Chief Meteorologist among my classmates. I also enjoy testing my limits athletically; for two consecutive years, I have anchored my school’s state championship 4x800 meter relay.
	Year: 2005 Anne T. Blazejack Miami, FL, New World School of the Arts College Plans: Undecided   Anne’s childhood brimmed with half-built paper-mache monsters, burned ladyfingers and unfinished upside-down cakes. At Southwood Middle School, an arts magnet program, she grudgingly learned to follow through on her creative beginnings. Her polished and painfully complete middle school portfolio earned her a spot at New World, where she learned that every part of the production of a piece could be done with energy. She now enjoys the creating process as much as the initial blaze of conceiving ideas. She painted in Aix-en-Provence, France, through a summer course offered by the Maryland Institute College of Art, and participated in the Marie Walsh Sharpe Foundation’s summer seminar. Her work was displayed in the Art Basel exhibition in the New World School of the Arts gallery. She also received a scholarship from the 2005 First Lady's Arts Recognition Program.
	Year: 2005 Kyle Mahowald Fort Lauderdale, FL, Pine Crest School College Plans: Harvard College   My general philosophy is to work hard at whatever activity or passion I choose to pursue. As co-editor of the school newspaper, I take great pleasure in English classes, although I also often enjoy work in math and the sciences. Perhaps because of my love for words and English, I have a passion for solving and creating puzzles of all types, particularly crosswords. My crossword puzzles have appeared in the Tribune Media Service, Universal Press Syndicate, Los Angeles Times, Wall Street Journal, and New York Times. Another great passion of mine is tennis, which I have enjoyed playing for almost my entire life, and at the varsity level for six years in high school. I also love many other sports and can often be found playing games of pickup football, hockey, and basketball, or cheering on my beloved Dolphins and Marlins at the stadium.
	Year: 2005 Andrew L. Malcolm Fort Lauderdale, FL, Pine Crest School College Plans: Princeton University   As a rare “native son” of South Florida, Andrew has strived to soak up the experiences and diversity of his unique community. From a very young age, public service has been his passion, leading him to serve in numerous leadership roles in political campaigns on the national, state, and local levels. He has sought to expand his campaign experiences into other areas, serving on the student council, editing the school newspaper, and working in the U.S. House of Representatives as both a page and an intern for Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen. Andrew has strived to serve others and discover his heritage by collecting and distributing books to independent libraries in Cuba through the organization he founded, Libros Para La Libertad.
	Year: 2005 Caitlin L. McAuliffe North Miami Beach, FL, Pine Crest School College Plans: Yale University   At the age of three, Caitlin announced that she would never go to school and never take music lessons. Her early pronouncement was eventually forgotten as Caitlin eagerly engaged each new subject in school, completing her third grade year ready for Algebra I. In the years since, Caitlin has excelled in math and science competitions, held positions of leadership in her community and school, been a hospital operating room volunteer, and engaged in summer study in genetics and molecular biology. Her interest in science is equaled by her passion for music. From her first public performance at the age of four, Caitlin has won violin competitions, sat as concert mistress in orchestras, founded the Helios Quartet, and performed to live and television audiences throughout South Florida. Most recently she was featured in the Fort Lauderdale Sun Sentinel prior to her performance of the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto with the Ars Flores Symphony Orchestra.

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