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Honors shared with seniors and alumnus Rudy Prio Touzet '76 at Senior Awards Ceremony

Rudy Prio Touzet '76 elicited laughs when he told students in the Lewis Family Auditorium that he was never among the star students summoned to the stage for major awards during his school days at Ransom Everglades. And yet at the 2024 Senior Awards Ceremony on April 30, Prio Touzet was the guest of honor, the recipient of the 2024 Head of School's Award for Distinguished Service to the School. The recognition of the longtime board member, former board chair and parent, alumnus and philanthropist headlined the afternoon’s program, which honored dozens of seniors and revealed this year’s valedictorian and salutatorian. Photo Gallery
"Through his various roles on the board, Rudy has taken RE into the future while helping to preserve our rich history," Head of School Rachel Rodriguez said. "With a generous spirit and a true devotion to Ransom Everglades, Rudy has joyfully given his time, treasure, and talent to our school."

Prio Touzet spoke briefly after accepting the award.

“The friendships and relationships and knowledge that you gain from each other – it’s probably what I take away the most,” he told students. “It’s been an honor to be here, it’s been an honor to serve. I recognize all of you and ask all of you to give back to the community and the school. It’s really made a difference in my life and I’m sure it will in yours.”

Besides honoring Prio Touzet, who will step off the board this summer after 15 years, RE recognized more than four dozen seniors. At the end of the event, Rodriguez pointedly expressed her gratitude to the entire Class of 2024 for their invaluable contributions to the school community during their years at RE.

"Thank you for inspiring the sophomores, juniors and freshmen," she said. "You have been an outstanding class, and for that we are grateful. Your achievements today serve as a testament to your unwavering commitment to our core values."

Chief Operating Officer and Interim Head of the Upper School David Clark ’86 announced that Chloe Alfonso ’24 would be the valedictorian and Elliot Gross ’24, the salutatorian. Though RE does not rank its students, the two students who finish with the highest grade-point averages after seven semesters earn those honors. The event provided the opportunity for a farewell address from Student Government Association President James Brown Urmeneta ’24, who received a standing ovation and presented the annual SGA Faculty Award to Adriana Sanchez, the Assistant Head of the Upper School.

A host of major awards were announced during emotional presentations: Bill Bermont ’93 presented the Ronnie Weksler Bermont Service Award to Diana Gonzalez ’24; Ashleigh Moses Lindenauer ’94 presented the Arthur Moses Student Award to Christine Keedy Brown ’24; Pam Kayton Posner ’92 awarded the Elliot Kayton ’96 Award to Sofia Rua ’24; and Howard Srebnick ’82 presented the Robert Segall ’82 Leadership Award to Scarlett Sable ’24. All relayed the moving stories behind their particular awards, and Posner and Srebnick summed up the emotion at the event:

"This school is a family affair with so many wonderful memories," Posner said.

Added Srebnick: "This is the legacy that Ransom Everglades builds: Relationships that will last a lifetime."

Ransom Everglades also introduced its inaugural core value awards, which recognize students who have made the RE community better through their notable commitment to The RE Way. Siona Dua ’24 received the Support & Community award, Tyira Jackson ’24 received the Diversity & Inclusion award, Daniel Figueroa ’24 earned the Honor & Excellence award, Jamora Arroyo-Jefferson ’24 received the Joy & Wellbeing award, and Kaitlyn Gonzalez ’24 received the Service & Outreach award. Dean of the 12th Grade Roger Caron presented those awards.

Department leaders Shawn Costantino, Director of the Arts; Jen Nero, Chair of the Humanities Department; James Monk, Chair of the World Languages Department; Mandira Bose-Nyberg, Mathematics and Computer Science Coordinator; Jay Salon, Science Department Coordinator; Laura Miller, Dean of Student Activities; John King, Associate Head of School; and Scott Berman, Director of Upper School Athletics served as presenters.

See the full list of award winners below:

Service Awards
Ronni Weksler Bermont Service Award
Diana Gonzalez ’24
Arthur Moses Student Award
Christine Keedy Brown '24
Elliot Kayton '96 Service Award
Sofia Rua  ’24
Robert Segall '82 Leadership Award
Scarlett Sable '24

Core Values
Support & Community
Siona Dua '24
Diversity & Inclusion
Tyira Jackson ’24
Honor & Excellence
Daniel Figueroa '24
Joy & Wellbeing
Jamora Arroyo Jefferson ’24
Service & Outreach
Kaitlyn Gonzalez '24
 
English
Eleanor Crawford Backman English Award
Eve Zhou ’24
Creative Writing Award
Chloe Alfonso ’24
Sheila Natasha Friedman Award
Sophia Romanov-Imber ’24

History and Social Sciences
Excellence in History
Skye McPhillips ’24
Excellence in Social Sciences
Ian Fox ’24
Mike Stokes Award for Excellence in Pursuit of Social Justice
Lauren Page ’24
Excellence in Speech and Debate
Thomas Crowley ’24

Mathematics & Computer Science
MIT Excellence in Math
Victoria Paraoulaki de Miranda ’24

Science
Beverly B Jones Science Award
Nicolas Poliak ’24
Excellence in Physics
Maggie Seabrook ’24
Excellence in Engineering/Technology
Alex David Jones ’24

Arts
Louis Armstrong Jazz
Miguel Arango ’24
John Phillip Sousa Band
Santiago Sauceda ’24
Best Thespian
Emma Holtzman ’24
Excellence Studio Art
Tea Vallone ’24
Excellence in Ceramics
Zoe Katsoufis ’24
Excellence in Architectural Design
Lucia Soto ’24

World Languages
AATF Outstanding Senior Award
Carlota Escudero ’24
Youming Che Outstanding Senior in Chinese 
Elliot Gross ’24
Outstanding Senior in Spanish
Skye McPhillips ’24
Outstanding Senior in Portuguese
Ella Lombardo ’24
Outstanding Achievement in World Languages
Francesca Lopez ’24
 
Platinum Seal of Biliteracy
William Charouhis ’24
Daniel Figueroa ’24
Francisco Gomez Rivas-Vazquez ’24
Elliot Gross ’24
Francesca Lopez ’24
Sindhu Talluri ’25
 
Athletic Awards
Penny Matthews Award 
Kennedy Hagen ’24
 
Mike Stokes Award
Takeo Owen ’24
 
Comeback Player of the Year
Casey Manno ’25
 
Sportsmanship Award 
Collin Goff ’24
 
Sportsmanship Award 
Juliana (Juju) Perez Rivera ’24
 
Team of the Year Award
Girls’ Soccer
 
Scholar Athlete Award
Stephanie Wallen ’24
 
Athletic Performance Award (Female)
Kiera Rampersad ’25
 
Athletic Performance Award (Male)
David (Chuli) Serra ’24
 
Overall Outstanding Athlete (Female)
Sofia Rua ’24
 
Overall Outstanding Athlete (Male)
Ryan Bienstock ’24
 
 
Cum Laude
Fall 2023 
Chloe Alfonso ’24
Mackenzie Buckner ’24
William Charouhis ’24
Siona Dua ’24
Ian Fox ’24
Elliot Gross ’24
Erick Gross ’24
Nathan Kaplan ’24
Derrick Ma ’24
Skye McPhillips ’24
Victoria Paraoulaki de Miranda ’24
Nicolas Poliak ’24
Lauren Scott ’24
Maya Shaked ’24
Alexander Tong ’24
Nolan Wu ’24
 
Cum Laude
Spring 2024 
Ari Bennett ’24
Sophia Bonafonte ’24
Francisco Gomez Rivas-Vazquez ’24
Valentina Herrera Ponce de Leon ’24
Maya Karai ’24
Christine Keedy Brown ’24
Francesca  Lopez ’24
Alan Motoki ’24
Jack Pollock ’24
Scarlett Sable ’24
Elisa Sotero ’24
Esmeralda Swietelsky ’24
Stephanie Wallen ’24
Annabel Zhou ’24
Mike Zoi ’24

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Founded in 1903, Ransom Everglades School is a coeducational, college preparatory day school for grades 6 - 12 located on two campuses in Coconut Grove, Florida. Ransom Everglades School produces graduates who "believe that they are in the world not so much for what they can get out of it as for what they can put into it." The school provides rigorous college preparation that promotes the student's sense of identity, community, personal integrity and values for a productive and satisfying life, and prepares the student to lead and to contribute to society.