RE Log - Fall 2023

34 Ransom Everglades LOG FALL 2023 Ransom Everglades students traveled to South Africa and France in the summer of 2023 for trips that combined research, exploration and cultural immersion. For three-and-a-half weeks in June and July, 17 RE upper school students conducted extensive scientific surveys in Somkhanda Game Reserve during an expedition that centered on conservation and climate research. Under the direction of scientists, they carried out mammal distribution surveys, bush vegetation surveys and bird point count surveys while enjoying the opportunity to view lions, giraffes, white rhinos, nyala, impala, warthogs and more. They also went scuba diving in the UNESCO World Heritage site iSimangaliso Wetland Park, Sodwana Bay. Accompanied by STEM teachers Kelly Jackson and Gustavo Palacios, the students took an Indian Ocean reef ecology course and visited the Cape of Good Hope. The students went diving in a kelp forest, swam with several varieties of shark, went whale watching and observed penguins and ostriches. The adventure ended with a visit to Robben Island, Langa Township, and an evening volunteering with a local soup kitchen Ladles of Love where the RE contingent prepared and served more than 300 meals. Summer Explorations RE students travel to South Africa and France Sweet Sixteen Seniors earn National Merit Semifinalist recognition Sixteen Ransom Everglades students were named National Merit Semifinalists, advancing in the 68th annual competition for National Merit Scholarships. Chloe Alfonso ’24, Christine Keedy Brown ’24, Siona Dua ’24, Nicolas Fayad ’24, Ian Fox ’24, Elliot Gross ’24, Erick Gross ’24, Alexander Jones ’24, Derrick Ma ’24, Takeo Owens ’24, Victoria Paralouaki de Miranda ’24, Martin Piedrahita ’24, Lauren Scott ’24, Margaret Seabrook ’24, Nolan Wu ’24 and Eve Zhou ’24 were among some 16,000 students from around the nation invited to contend for $2,500 scholarships. The students earned the semifinalist distinction, announced on Sept. 13, on the basis of their performance on the PSAT, which is administered during the junior year and serves as an initial screen of more than 1.3 million high school students annually. In June, 12 RE students participated in a student exchange with the Lycée Alphonse Daudet, a school in Nîmes, France, residing in French homes and speaking French, learning about French life and experiencing the country’s traditions. During the day, they attended classes at the lycée with their French student hosts, took excursions to historic world heritage monuments and popular sites, and explored the city of Nîmes with its markets, quaint streets and parks. They traveled with world languages teachers Dominique McKenna and Maria Eugenia Abrante. In the fall, the French host students will come to Miami and stay with their Ransom Everglades counterparts as the same exchange process repeats itself. Student News