Top of their class
The 2015 valedictorians and salutatorians in Miami-Dade County aren’t typical teenagers.
For Nina Rodriguez, 18, co-salutatorian at Gulliver Preparatory Academy, getting her GPA to an impressive 5.7 didn’t come without challenges.
Her most difficult class was AP Biology junior year. “It was really challenging, and we had to write lots of lab reports and I remember staying up until about 3 a.m. typing them up,” Rodriguez said.
On top of losing sleep, Rodriguez sacrificed many nights out to study for her rigorous classes.
“Instead of going out with my friends some Saturdays, I’d have to stay in and study, mostly my junior year. But it was worth the sacrifices,” she said.
Rodriguez will attend Princeton University in the fall. But before she becomes a Tiger, she will celebrate her graduation this summer by going to Europe with friends.
For Victor Machado, 18, of Mater Academy, taking an online class and giving up extracurricular activities were just a few challenges he’d faced on his journey to valedictorian.
“I had to give up football. ... It was taking up a lot of time,” he said.
Machado dedicated time to study for his regular academic classes, as well as an online class paired with a government-based course. Although, he preferred the traditional classroom setting to interact with his peers, the online class gave him resources that he probably wouldn’t have been exposed to if not for the virtual classroom.
“Online classes give [you] a lot of resources, and whoever actually uses them will be as prepared, or even more prepared, than a regular student,” Machado said.
Machado earned a 7.20 GPA, and an associate in arts degree from Miami Dade College after completing dual enrollment courses, and is headed to Pomona College with a full scholarship to study math and computer science in the fall.
Both Rodriguez and Machado are examples of how hard work, dedication and sacrifices at early stages, such as high school, can pay off in the end.
For future and current high school students, completing assignments on time and dedicated studying can help a student achieve the title of valedictorian, salutatorian or summa cum laude.
“By senior year, there is nothing new to catch a student off guard,” Machado said. “It’s all about staying consistent.”
ALLISON ACADEMY
Valedictorian: Lawrence Gonzalez
GPA: N/A
College: New College of Florida
ARCHBISHOP COLEMAN CARROLL HIGH SCHOOL
Valedictorian: Sabrina Gato
GPA: 5.67
College: Florida International University
Salutatorian: Amanda Estevez
GPA: 5.43
College: Florida International University
ARCHBISHOP CURLEY NOTRE DAME 6 TO 12 PREPARATORY
Valedictorian: Daniel Briz
GPA: 5.13
College: University of Florida
Salutatorian: Ivan Brenes
GPA: 4.88
College: Florida International University
Salutatorian: Keyanna Francois
GPA: 4.81
College: Florida State University
BELEN JESUIT PREPARATORY SCHOOL
Valedictorian: Alexander Vidal
GPA: 5.44
College: Yale University
Salutatorian: Jose Chan
GPA: 5.41
College: Georgia Institute of Technology
BRITO MIAMI
Valedictorian: Aramis Hidalgo
GPA: 4.32
College: Florida International University
Salutatorian: Liztiffany Couceiro
GPA: 4.12
College: University of Miami
CALUSA PREPARATORY
Valedictorian: Fabian Peña
GPA: 3.82
College: Eastern University
Salutatorian: Efrain Colon
GPA: 3.98
College: Manhattan College
CARROLLTON SCHOOL OF THE SACRED HEART
Valedictorian: Nicola Haubold
GPA: N/A
College: Yale University
Salutatorian: Sofia Carratala
GPA: N/A
College: Georgetown University
CHAMPAGNAT CATHOLIC SCHOOL
Valedictorian: Craig Contreras
GPA: 4.3
College: University of Miami
Salutatorian: Manuel de la Fuente
GPA: 4.3
College: Miami Dade College
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS HIGH SCHOOL
Valedictorian: Jackson Martinez
GPA: 5.36
College: University of Miami
Valedictorian: Andrew de la Osa
GPA: 5.36
College: University of Florida
Salutatorian: Anthony Rios
GPA: 5.29
College: Vanderbilt University
DADE CHRISTIAN SCHOOL
Valedictorian: Sophia Galvez
GPA: 4.36
College: University of Florida
Salutatorian: James Wong
GPA: 4.28
College: University of Central Florida
DIVINE SAVIOR ACADEMY
Valedictorian: Christian Rodriguez
GPA: 4.19
College: Cornell University
Salutatorian: Santiago Munoz
GPA: 4.13
College: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
FLORIDA CHRISTIAN SCHOOL
Valedictorian: Vanessa Marquez
GPA: 4.65
College: Florida State University
Salutatorian: Rafael Paz
GPA: 4.61
College: University of Miami
GULLIVER PREPARATORY SCHOOL
Valedictorian: Demi Zhu
GPA: 5.9
College: Duke University
Salutatorian: Nina Rodriguez
GPA: 5.7
College: Princeton University
Salutatorian: Franco Zacharzewski
GPA: 5.7
College: Rhode Island School of Design
HEBREW ACADEMY (RASG)
Valedictorian: Ariela Stein
GPA: N/A
College: University of Pennsylvania
Salutatorian: Chad Masin
GPA: N/A
College: Emory University
IMMACULATA-LA SALLE HIGH SCHOOL
Valedictorian: Daniel Verdear
GPA: 5.33
College: University of Miami
Salutatorian: Mariana Troia
GPA: 5.30
College: Yale University
MATER ACADEMY
Valedictorian: Victor Machado
GPA: 7.20
College: Pomona College
Salutatorian: Carlos Eguiluz Rosas
GPA: 7.19
College: Wesleyan University
MIAMI COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL
Valedictorian: David Gonzalez
GPA: 4.97
College: Stanford University
Salutatorian: Shalini Chandar
GPA: 4.94
College: University of Chicago
MONSIGNOR EDWARD PACE HIGH
Summa Cum Laude:
Daniel Gonzalez
GPA: 5.49
College: Florida International University
Steven Yildirim
GPA: 5.46
College: University of Florida
Juana Diaz
GPA: 5.45
College: University of Florida
OUR LADY OF LOURDES ACADEMY
Valedictorian: Andrea Jimenez
GPA: 5.18
College: University of Miami
Salutatorian: Elizabeth Lleonart
GPA: 5.13
College: University of Miami
PALMER TRINITY SCHOOL
Valedictorian: Allegra Hill
GPA: N/A
College: Bowdoin College
Salutatorian: Liang Wang
GPA: N/A
College: Johns Hopkins University
RANSOM EVERGLADES
Valedictorian: Julia Keyes
GPA: 11.67 (on a scale of 12.0)
College: University of Pennsylvania
Co-Salutatorian: Spencer Hamersmith
GPA: 11.5 (on a scale of 12.0)
College: Pomona College
Co-Salutatorian: Gabrielle Leon-Hampel
GPA: 11.5 (on a scale of 12.0)
College: University of Pennsylvania
SAINT BRENDAN HIGH SCHOOL
Valedictorian: Sabrina Smith
GPA: 5.22
College: University of Florida
Salutatorian: Katherine De Arazoza
GPA: 5.12
College: University of Florida
SCHECK HILLEL COMMUNITY SCHOOL
Valedictorian: Nicole Scheck
GPA: 5.17
College: Columbia University
Salutatorian: Salomon Serfati
GPA: 4.91
College: University of Pennsylvania
SOMERSET ACADEMY CHARTER HIGH SCHOOL
Valedictorian: Samantha Fuentes
GPA: 6.25
College: University of Florida
Salutatorian: Amy Neira
GPA: 6.12
College: Florida International University
WESTMINSTER CHRISTIAN SCHOOL
Valedictorian: Isabella Pestana
GPA: 5.27
College: California Institute of Technology
Salutatorian: Allison de Moya
GPA: 5.14
College: Davidson College
WESTWOOD CHRISTIAN SCHOOL
Valedictorian: Emma Thomson
GPA: 4.36
College: Bob Jones University
Salutatorian: Camila Vizcarrondo
GPA: 4.31
College: University of Miami
This story was originally published June 4, 2015 at 5:46 PM with the headline "Top of their class."