PANTHER
the
V 63|N5
Miami Palmetto Senior High School
7431 SW 120th Street, Miami, FL 33156
Friday 19 March 2021
panther farewell
a message to our retirees Miami Palmetto Senior High is a community of people that includes students, parents and faculty members all working together to help each other learn and grow. Above all else, the faculty members of Palmetto work extremely hard to create an environment where Palmetto’s students can thrive, not only academically, but in life, too. This year, five of the faculty members that have walked Palmetto’s halls for significant portions of each of their lives will move onto their next chapter — retirement. They each have dedicated so much time and effort to nurturing the incredible students Palmetto has from the time they walked in the door as scared freshmen to the day they walked across the graduation stage as confident seniors. So, to Lynn Evans, Cheryl Ruffin, Peggy Falagan, Harry Nerenberg and Ileana Vila, thank you. You each brought something so unique and special to Palmetto while truly embodying Panther spirit. Without you, the Palmetto experience would have been so different for each of the upwards of 2,000 students that attend this school every year. Palmetto will not be the same without you, and yet we know that the legacy you left continues on in every student you taught, counseled and nurtured. Thousands of us will never forget what you have done to help us grow and mature into people that want to and will make a difference in the world. Whenever we do or achieve something, we will remember you, the people who gave us the confidence and tools to make it happen. We hope you enjoy this next phase of your life, one that hopefully instills some relaxation and peace after the past year of chaos. Just as you have supported us, your Palmetto family continues to support you.Once again, thank you. We would not have become the people we are today with you.
with love,
THE PANTHER
VIS PER SCIENTIAM forever
TABLE OF CONTENTS LYNN EVANS...........4 5.......CHERYL RUFFIN PEGGY FALAGAN.....6 7.HARRY NERENBERG ILEANA VILA............8
04| EVANS
LYNN EVANS anatomy teacher Bringing light and positivity to each and every day, Anatomy and Physiology teacher Lynn Evans spent her 35-year career at Miami Palmetto Senior High School empowering students to work towards their goals and remember that no dream is ever too big to accomplish. Through educating students about their minds and bodies, Evans equipped them with the necessary knowledge to keep themselves healthy and happy, a priceless gift that many of her students will cherish forever. Starting in 1985, Evans came to Palmetto as an athletic trainer, later transitioning to the role of Anatomy and Physiology teacher. At Palmetto, Evans not only forged relationships with her students, but also met lifelong friends and the love of her life. “We both started working here in 1985… I used to hang out in the science department, and she, of course, was in the science department,” Palmetto AP Probability & Statistics teacher Peter Migli said. “We started to date in 1991, and we got married in 1992.” As Migli and Evans worked in separate departments, the two did not begin to continuously spend time with one another until a few years into their careers. Their upcoming anniversary marks 29 years of marriage for the two, who have learned so much from one another. “She was very hands on and engaging. If we were in a room full of people, she would know most of the people before we left,” Migli said. “I, on the other hand, would sit quietly in the corner if given the choice. One of the things I have learned from her is to be more outgoing.”
Evans’s work as an Anatomy and Physiology teacher mattered greatly to her, as she saw the long-term importance of her job as an educator of the human body. She sought to create a curriculum that provided students with the tools to take as best care of themselves as possible. “She showed [her students] how [what] they were learning applied to real life. Even if she did not feel good, she came in and did her job be-
cause she cared about her students,” Palmetto AP Environmental Science and Solar Science teacher Pamela Shlactman said. During her time as a teacher, Evans battled breast cancer and severe stomach issues, which caused her tremendous pain. Despite this, she focused on being there for each of her students, as well as her colleagues. “She has always been supportive and a really good friend, and someone you could always talk to. She always believed
that you needed to be kind to other people, and it was such a nice quality about her,” Shlactman said. Evans has long been known for her dynamic teaching approach and emphasis on a classroom culture that catered to every kind of learner. Students know her as the teacher who made learning a fun and rewarding experience, but she herself was easy to talk to and made the Anatomy and Physiology classroom feel like a safe haven. “She was just such a positive force and friendly face, and everyone loved her,” former Palmetto student and AP Biology and Forensic teacher Dr. Sara Edelman said. “She was able to use her classroom as an escape and put the outside world outside… I have tried to replicate that and just be grateful to be able to do what I love.” Since her departure from the school, many administrators, faculty members and students have noticed her absence. Evans’s kindness, overflowing love for all and willingness to create a home away from home within her classes will forever be remembered as an integral part of Palmetto. “People are constantly stopping me in the hallway to ask me how she is doing… She really breathed life into the Palmetto body,” Migli said.
Angelina Astic Copy Editor
a.astic.thepanther@gmail.com
Julia Strasius
Design/News Editor
j.strasius.thepanther@gmail.com
DESIGN BY GIANNA HUTTON
Loving35MEntor STRONG CARING years at palmetto hardworking COMMUNITY member
RUFFIN |05
Cheryl Ruffin After decades in the classroom and thousands of lives impacted, Miami Palmetto Senior High math teacher and icon Cheryl Ruffin is retiring. Ruffin, who is originally from North Carolina, has not always been a teacher, but she has always had a passion for math. After attending the University of North Carolina, where she majored in pure math, she joined the U.S. Air Force, then went on to attend Texas A&M University for graduate school. When she moved to Miami, she joined the Palmetto math department, where she teaches pre-calculus and statistics. “You just know she’s knowledgeable in her subject. You know that she’s had thousands of students before you, so she knows how to teach a subject that might be difficult for others,” Palmetto junior and former student Josephine Blohm said. “And then if you can’t figure it out, she tries different ways to help you.” Math can be a tricky subject to teach, though, as it easily loses students’ interest. Ruffin has that taken care of too, with multiple ways of keeping kids entertained and engaged. “Every class would always be kind of a surprise. You don’t know what she would do; she could bust out these funny dances or tell us a story,” Palmetto junior and former student Lucia Huang said. “It’s hard to get the full experience if you’re not there — that feeling of crying from laughing and actually enjoying something you don’t like because... normally, I’d be quite miserable, but with her, I had a good time.” “I hate math class every single year, and I never hated math with her,” Pal-
math teacher
metto senior and former student Alexis Graesser said. “She’s hilarious, and she’s very social; it wasn’t like she was sitting behind the desk the whole time… She would move around the classroom.” Ruffin had inside jokes and special relationships with different periods, helping bring the whole class into the action. “Before winter break, she would do this thing called the 12 Days Before Break. Everyday, we
would get to add on and we would sing it together, and it was a big, inside joke that we could all laugh over,” Huang said. In Blohm’s period, Ruffin made collecting money for United Way a fun competition, encouraging students to collectively donate more than any other class. “Ruffin told us, ‘Last year, I lost to Ms. Collasso’s class. This year, I need to win again.’ So we made it our mission. We were always asking [Collasso’s students], ‘Hey, what number are you at? What number did you guys get yesterday?’” Blohm
said. “We would make it a big deal, and we won. Then [our class] had the whole breakfast and everything, and it was just very, very fun.” It is clear Ruffin cares about her students both in the classroom and as people, making them feel loved and supported. “If you show even a little bit of effort, she will be so sweet. She’s very caring; I remember on my birthday, she sent me a message on Edmodo because we had gone online… Last year, I ended every day with Ruffin, and she made my year,” Graesser said. While Ruffin teaches her students the inverse tangent of pi and how to find standard deviation, she also gives them so much more. She teaches them lessons that will serve them well throughout their lives, keeping it light-hearted and fun along the way. “She taught us responsibility and she taught us accountability,” Blohm said. “She made sure that we were responsible for our actions. Thank you, [Ms. Ruffin], for the amazing times we’ve had in class and for all the memories. I’ve learned so much from you.”
Katriona Page
Contents/Copy Editor
k.page.thepanther@gmail.com
DESIGN BY GIANNA HUTTON
RESILIENT MEMORABLE PASSIONATE decades at palmetto hardworking CARING TEACHER
06| FALAGAN
PEGGY FALAGAN ap art history teacher At Miami Palmetto Senior High School, a select few elective classes exist that virtually every student puts down on their subject selection sheets. In recent years, Advanced Placement Art History has been one of those courses, and that can be attributed to a teacher named Peggy Falagan. After 28 years of teaching, Falagan can now officially begin preparing for her retirement, but her impact, both inside and outside of the classroom, will live on long after her final class session. It has not been an easy road for Falagan. Born in Cuba in 1954, she fled the country in 1961 after Fidel Castro took over its government. Throughout her life, she has faced discrimination on several fronts, including as early as her elementary school years. Upon arriving in the United States, Falagan moved to Westchester, Florida and attended Everglades Elementary. However, she soon realized that people saw her as different from the other children, who she was not allowed to eat with due to her status as an immigrant. Soon after, she switched over to Seminole Elementary, where she received better treatment. Despite this, Falagan experienced difficulty in her early childhood from the shift in lifestyles from living in Cuba and living in South Florida. Falagan overcame the adversities she faced, however, and found her passions in both teaching and art. She worked as a ceramics teacher at the Jewish Community Center in South Florida before eventually joining the public education force. After that, she started as the Art History teacher at Miami Coral Park Senior High School in 1993 before finally coming over to Palmetto in 2003.
From the moment she set foot on the Palmetto campus, Falagan has served as a friendly and enjoyable presence for teachers and students alike. The lessons that she teaches her students about both art history and life in general has made her class one of the most entertaining that Palmetto has to offer. Many AP Art History students look forward to her class throughout the school day.
“I actually enjoyed the way she tested us on our knowledge of art history,” Miami Palmetto Senior High senior and former Falagan student Iris van der Veen said. “She is very witty and has a sense of humor, which made the class much more enjoyable… She’s a great teacher and she cares about her students. She wants us to succeed.” Falagan has served as a mentor to not only her students, but to some of her fellow teachers, as well. With her experience in both teaching and in life, Falagan’s in-
sightful and caring personality has helped some Palmetto teachers feel more at home. “The thing that I remember most about [Falagan] is that when I came to this school, she was the first person that took me under their wing,” AP United States History teacher Silvio Vargas said. “She is like an older sister to me... She’s just like a family member; even to this day, it’s the kind of thing where for holidays, she will give gifts to my children… That’s how much she cares about me and that’s how much I care about her.” Falagan has received numerous accolades during her teaching career, including being named Coral Park’s Teacher of the Year in 1999 and receiving Best In Show at an art show for Miami-Dade County art educators two years ago. However, one cannot reflect Falagan’s biggest achievement in a trophy or a certificate; it is the lifelong influence that she has had on her students for all 28 years she has taught — and that will last for generations.
Jack Meyer
Online Editor-in-Chief
j.meyer.thepanther@gmail.com
DESIGN BY GIANNA HUTTON
WITTY LOVING CREATIVE FUNNY 28 years at palmetto INSPIRATIONAL FRIEND FRIENDLY
NERENBERG |07
HARRY NERENBERG cap counsler
At Miami Palmetto Senior High School, everyone knows Harry Nerenberg. As the college counselor, students go to him with questions about standardized testing, admissions and college visits, but they also go to him when they need support or a trusted friend to talk to. Since 2003, Nerenberg has worked as a counselor at Palmetto. Previously living in Philadelphia, he worked as a teacher there until 1979. After a brief hiatus from teaching, he moved to Miami in 1982, where he quickly realized how much he missed the classroom and returned to teaching. Originally teaching history and English as a second language Nerenberg eventually started working as a counselor. Now, Nerenberg works closely with students on their college admissions and educational journey at Palmetto. “Having someone in your corner and knowing they are there for you no matter what problems arise is a special feeling, one of belonging and purpose. Nerenberg exudes this to every person that walks through his door. It does not matter if he has known you since freshman year or if you are meeting for the first time to figure out scholarships as a senior, he is always there when you need help, or just to talk,” Palmetto junior Daniel Solomon said. Palmetto alumni and current Advanced Placement Biology teacher Sara Edelman has experienced Nerenberg’s impact as both a student and coworker. “I met Mr. Nerenberg during my freshman year in 2003. I was with another counselor,and I was put in a class that I didn’t want to be in. I was a fierce and dedicated freshman student. I was in a class that I did not want to be in; my counselor
was not doing anything. Mr. Nerenberg had just switched into the department and he said, ‘I can take you’ although I was not one of his students,” Edelman said. “He was my counselor for the rest of high school and was not just my academic counselor, but my mental health counselor, and has stayed that way.”
As coworkers, Edelman and Nerenberg’s relationship has only strengthened. “He is a parent, but a friend. He gives advice in a way that makes you feel like everything is okay. He has helped me through so many difficult times in my life. He’s just always been there from the time I was a freshman, through now. He is someone that I can trust and that I can lean on,” Edelman said. Similar to Edelman, Palmetto’s College Interventionist Counselor Linda Dwyer has worked alongside Nerenberg
for years. She has established the same bond with him, and looks to him as a mentor and close friend. “He has taught me literally everything I know about college counseling. The generosity with which he has opened his life is overwhelming. It has been a gift to sit at his feet and learn from him,” Dwyer said. “I have learned to value the little things: a ride to the Everglades, cinnamon rolls or a kind note. It’s the little things that can change a gloomy day into a bright one.” As a parent to a Palmetto graduate and current senior, she has also seen how Nerenberg’s help positively affected her children. “He guided my daughter to reach her dreams at a time that she needed someone other than me to guide her. He shows that every student has the potential to reach personal excellence. He has spent his life defending, advocating for and supporting students. The CAP office is a safe space. Sometimes all a student needs is to sit on his couch and cry, or nap, so come in. Be who you are. Everyone has value,” Dwyer said. Students and faculty alike all say with treendous gratitude that Nerenberg has had an impact on their life in several ways, and is leaving behind an enduring legacy.
Bella Martin Sports Editor
b.martin.thepanther@gmail.com
DESIGN BY GIANNA HUTTON
FRIEND KINDHEARTED ENGAGING 18 years at palmetto DEDICATED COUNSLER POSITIVE
08| VILA
Ileana vila us history teacher Having taught at Miami Palmetto Senior High School for about 25 years, Honors United States Government teacher Ileana Vila made an impact on students and teachers alike by serving not only as a teacher, but as a mentor and friend. Vila retired from Palmetto in Oct. 2020. Her presence in the history department is missed, especially by her previous co-teacher, Honors Economics teacher Armando Gonzalez. “March of last year was the last time we actually worked together because of the pandemic, so it’s been an interesting transition,” Gonzalez said. “When I have a bad day, she’s the person I’d go to. Not being able to go to my go-to person when I need to is the hardest part.” As a teacher, Vila taught seniors the principles of American government and did so through group work, her main style of teaching. “She created thinking individuals, thinking students. She encouraged her students to think about the topics that she was talking to them about,” U.S. History teacher Sadya S. Sahury-Clasca said. “I think that through her ways, she created a motivated group of students and citizens.” Vila’s sharp intellect allowed her to shape not only her fellow teachers’ and students’ minds but their outlooks on life. “We would have a lot of intellectual conversations. We shared similar ideas in many social and political things, so I miss having those conversations with her,” Clasca said.“She helped her students grow as adults, not just academically. Academics are extremely important, but as a person, because you are growing as a person, I think that is the impact she had.” Outside of the classroom, Vila’s ex-
citing personality had a large impression with both teachers and students alike, making many memories throughout the years. “Her students were seniors, so she always made a big impact at the end-ofyear senior events,” Gonzalez said. “When we went to grad bash together, it was a seamless experience. It’s a 24-hour event, so you really have to trust the person who you’re on that bus
with, and she was that person for me. We’d laugh and have fun.” Her students often looked forward toher fun antics during Senior Takeover — a day in which students replaced the teachers in teaching the class. Last year, Vila chose Palmetto alumnus Justin Rodriguez as her student replacement for the day. “It must’ve been the day I laughed most in her class, and who wouldn’t? She was pretending to be a rebellious teenager: she would pretend to cheat off of other students, ask questions that had obvious
answers and sit in one of the desks — like a real student,” Rodriguez said. “Truly, I had never felt more pampered by the end of the day working beside Mrs. Vila.” Vila’s influence on her students stemmed far beyond her unique character; she also changed the way they perceive the world around them, as well as their understanding of current events. “I’m confident enough to know that she has made me a better person — shifting my moral compass in a positive way. I had come into politics with little interest until I heard her speak passionately on the topic,” Rodriguez said. “She not only inadvertently made me more politically savvy, [but] she also oversaw the creation of references based on her class that still stands to this day.” Throughout her tenure, Vila transformed the Palmetto community and has touched many hearts while creating lasting bonds. “I’m lucky to have been graced by Mrs. Vila’s teaching because I’m confident that I won’t meet another teacher like her,” Rodriguez said. “She was kind, relatable and wise: the perfect ingredients to making the best teachers, and I’m honored to have been taught by her.”
Ana Martinez
Feature/Design Editor
a.martinez.thepanther@gmail.com
Kate Stuzin
Managing Editor
k.stuzin.thepanther@gmail.com
DESIGN BY GIANNA HUTTON
PASSIONATE LOVING INTELLECTUAL 25 years at palmetto INSIGHTFUL INSPIRATIONAL CARING
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 7431 SW 120th 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 Camilla Bondy
Copy Team
Katriona Page Cristele Moztarzadeh Angelina Astic
Design Team Gianna Hutton Ana Martinez Julia Strasius Michael Angee Ella Pedroso
Staff Writers
Luca Rodriguez Tomas Curcio Gabe Salvat
Adviser
Laura Aviles