Hialeah Gardens Senior High School bids farewell to its graduating class of 2017 but celebrates the accomplishments of its seniors, including the quality of post-secondary education some will receive at Ivy League universities.
Patricia Fuentes graduated in the top one percent of her senior class with a 5.4 weighted GPA. She will be attending Harvard University in the fall. She was admitted to various other schools but dreamed she would go to Harvard. She is the first HGHS graduate to attend this prestigious university.
"When I was six years old, my mom and I were fortunate to escape Cuba and seek a future in the United States,” said Fuentes. “Even at such a young age I always had the goal to become a thriving professional in this land of freedom. Growing up, my family and I faced many financial obstacles but I knew the best way to help my family was to study and succeed in school. I have always utilized and maximized the opportunities that my community has offered me and I am blessed to be able to represent my family and Hispanic community at Harvard University. "
Elizabeth Leon graduated with a 5.4 GPA and will be attending Brown University this fall. After visiting several other schools, she felt that Brown was a great fit for her, personally and academically.
“Throughout my time in high school, I had five things that always kept me moving: Key Club, track, friends, family, and my own self-motivation. As two-term Key Club president, I learned and taught what it means to be a leader inspiring me to continue a lifetime of service as I move on to college,” said Leon. “Despite any obstacles that hindered me, I aimed to rise past the adversity and fulfill my hidden potential somewhere never seen before. Hialeah Gardens High School became that place for me, the place in which I took advantage of every opportunity that came my way. For me, school is more than just a place to receive an education, it is the place where I found myself and it has lead me to choose Brown University.”
Another member of the Gladiator family from the class of 2017, Reynaldo Blandon-Alvarez, will be attending Brown University with a 5.5 weighted GPA as a top one percent graduate.
“HGHS pushed me to be a well-rounded student capable of being self-sufficient, innovative, and ultimately creative. Part of me thinks Brown and Dartmouth saw that within my application. I owe a lot to the Gardens and, as a result, I hope to bring the Gladiator spirit with me to the Ivy League, showing everyone what it really means to be a fighter."
Another outstanding student, Juan Cortes graduated with a 4.8 weighted GPA and was admitted to Cornell University. He chose Carnegie Mellon University based on the strength of the biomedical engineering program.
“I applied to a broad range of colleges and was accepted into top engineering schools such as Cornell University, Carnegie Mellon University, and the University of Florida. I ended up choosing Carnegie Mellon due to feeling that I could grow more as a student and as a person there. I want to study biomedical engineering in order to be able to innovate and further develop technological aids for people with mental and physical disabilities so that their lives can be as normal as possible.”
Hialeah Gardens High School salutes the students for their hard work, endless community service and leadership to their school community.