Meet our newsroom staff

Cynthia Torres has a crazy ambition: to eat a big jar of Nutella ­– the hazelnut sandwich spread. But that’s not all she eats. Cynthia’s also keen on crab legs, while seafood 

Torres: Loves animals and crazy food

in general is one of her favorite foods. Cynthia is 15 years old, and her dream is to save animals that are in danger. “Animals are cute,” she says, “but it’s tragic that some are abused.” Cynthia describes herself as a “wonderful student.” She was born in the Bronx and has 10 siblings.

Owusu: Soccer ambitions

Emmanuel Owusu is originally from Ghana and was sad when coming back to the United States because he had to say goodbye to his friends. But he likes living in the U.S because there is a lot of fun stuff here. His dream job is to have a big business. In the near future, he wants to land a desk job as an accountant, and a job playing in front of thousands of fans as a soccer player. His favorite soccer team is Manchester United because they are the best. His dream place in the world to visit is England because they have the best soccer league in the world. The music he likes is hip-hop because it makes him dance every time. Emmanuel’s main interest in school is Math, and when the school day is over he plays sports. Emmanuel has one brother and two sisters.

Arias: Wants to travel

Maria Arias dreams of becoming a detective. But for now, her main interest is to pass all her classes with good grades so she can have all her credits. She likes English Language Arts and Algebra because of the way the teachers teach her. She applies all her skills to learning in those classes and, to learn even more, she works with others. Maria likes gym because it is five days a week and involves getting sweaty. For sports, Maria likes to play volleyball and basketball. Maria’s main interests out of school are to work and take rumba classes. Indeed, she likes to dance a lot, and listen to bachata, salsa, and reggae music. Maria is most proud of her family, friends and her grades in school to achieve her goal of going to college. Arriving from Dominican Republic in July 2012, Maria still wants to travel – and her goal after becoming a professional is to visit countries like Australia, Egypt and Italy. There, she’ll learn about those countries’ traditions, their cultures, their museums and whatever else they do. She’s especially looking forward to tasting food in the countries she’ll visit.

Antonio Espinal plans to serve his adopted country as 

Espinal: USA full of opportunity

a U.S. Marine – then make a lot of money as an entrepreneur in architecture. He was born in Dominican Republic and arrived in the United States in 2003. He believes that there are a lot of opportunities in this country. Antonio is mostly proud of being athletic; he enjoys playing sports in and out of school. One of his favorite is wrestling because it taught him how to be a team leader – and a leader for himself.


Johanny “Joe-Joe” Colon says she can sing, dance and act, but she’s looking to become an international accountant. She wants a “math” job despite her professed talents and musical tastes in pop-hop and soul. She grew up in the South Bronx, and today lives in a busy house with her

Colon: Wants to get out of the state

mother, stepdad, sister, three dogs, two turtles, two fish – and her Uncle Joe. She says she loves going to school and getting her education – but dreams of visiting Paris, Italy, London, Dubai and (back in the USA) Texas. In school, she’s interested in Math and Cheerleading, and is in both a cheerleading and a softball club. Outside the classroom, she’s focused on work – with an ambition to “get out of the state.” Joe-Joe has three sisters in all - and a heritage that hails through her Mom and Dad from Dominican Republic and Italy.

Darlington: Many favorites

Stephen Darlington is 14 years of age – and in the future, he would like to become a doctor. Stephen is big on “favorites” lists. His favorite hobbies are swimming and football. He says the best artists are Gage, Masika Kalysha, Alkaline, Popcaan, Verson, Aidonia, and Tommy Lee (because they are nice to listen to). His favorite football sides are Argentina, Brazil, England, Spain and France, and his favorite players are Messi, Neymar, Özil, Ronaldo, and van Persie. His favorite day in the year is his birthday, and his favorite subject is mathematics. For the record, Stephen’s worst subject is English. These are the things he does in his life.

Brendaly Beato is from the Dominican Republic’s third largest city, La Vega, and has been in New York for 18 months. She’s proud of her family and friends, but she thinks the United States is too crowded. She says the weather, people and food are different too. At school, she likes Algebra class because the teacher is funny. She also likes volleyball, but doesn’t like gym because 
she has to participate every day of the

Beato: US too crowd

week – and sweat. School is good because she learns to be better every day through the new skills and strategies she develops. Her main interests are to graduate from high school and to attend make-up class – because she wants to be a cosmetologist. Indeed, Brendaly and would like to visit Paris and the rest of France to check out the different types of food and learn from the different cultures and religions found there. Brendaly would also like to study medicine, and aims eventually to be forensic scientist or surgeon.

Thagenarine Kowar is from Guyana. People who
knew him in his homeland called him Buddy or Kowar. Arriving in the United States in May 2015 with his sister, he likes to be called Kowar here too. Kowar loves fishing,

Kowar: Cricket player

hunting, dancing, cooking and cricket. He had a cricket team called TTT, and he himself once batted a record 77 runs off 32 balls. He is a devout Hindu, and believes in helping the poor. He also likes to get things done fast and right. His dream is to go London and the rest of England, and also Canada. For now, he aims to pass all his classes, enter the navy, and make his parents proud.

Chalay Greene has a secret for getting the “bad things” off her mind when she’s frustrated: she does hair. Chalay really enjoys doing hair, especially when it comes to braiding. She is best at doing cornrows – her favorite type of braids. Because of her skills with hair, all her friends ask her to braid their hair. When she’s older, she’ll continue doing hair – as a cosmetologist. At that time, she'll do all the things a cosmetologist does: hair, makeup, nails, threading and waxing. Already, Chalay's favorite class is “Build” because it prepares students for whatever businesses they come into contact with. Chalay's least favorite class is Journalism (but she’s writing for the Blog anyway). Her favorite music is hip-hop. Chalay wants to travel just like her mom, who “explores new places all the time.” Chalay would like to visit Aruba, Jamaica, Barbados, and parts of Belize. In short, Chalay’s dream is to finish high school and get her diploma, go to college and get a degree, become a cosmetologist – and make her family proud. She wants eventually to be able to say she “achieved something really great in life” – that she “accomplished something.” So far, Chalay is most proud of graduating from middle school, where she played many sports, including her favorite, soccer. Chalay lives with her mother and eight-year-old brother.

Casper Mercado doesn't follow any particular football team, but he loves to play football with friends at the park. 

Mercado watches Japanese animation

He also likes to watch Anime — the Japanese hand-drawn or computer animation stories. Casper is a Freshman at Bronx High School of Business. He is from the United States and is proud of his family. In school, Casper’s favorite class is gym. Outside of school, Casper enjoys playing video games, reading books or going to the park.

Shade' Heard named for singer

Shade Heard was named after the singer Sade, though Shade clearly spells her name differently. Shade’ says she listens to Sade’s music like Dancehall or hip hop. Shade is turning 16 in two months. She’s ambitious and 
keeps changing her mind about what she wants to be. Shade’ wanted to be a cosmetologist, then a pediatrician. She’s is still thinking of being a pediatrician because she takes care of kids and babysits, and she loves working with little ones.

Emmanuel Mendez says he has a nine-pound dog that is either a pit bull or a husky – it’s apparently not clear yet. It won't matter which it turns out to be because Emmanuel says he loves all dogs – and cats as well. Emmanuel hopes to visit England to see people he’s met on YouTube, and Paris for the great food. So far, he’s been to Dominican Republic, birthplace of his father. He’d also like to go to Puerto Rico, birthplace of his mother. Although he’s currently aged just 14, he dreams of being drafted to the Dallas Cowboys. But he also has his eye on both the National Guard and the US Navy. In the Navy, he'd like to serve as a mechanic.

Esmeralda: Plans to bring sense
of style to scientific world 

Esmeralda Freeman would like to be a scientist. But she also loves the way she dresses, so the white lab coats and rubber gloves scientists wear won't be enough for her sense of style. Esmeralda would like to learn about what her aunt, a nurse, does in the hospital. Esmeralda’s main interests in school are Earth Sciences and gym, while she dislikes algebra and ELA. Outside school, Esmeralda spends time outside playing basketball. Indeed, her ambition in addition to being a scientist is to play for the National Basketball Association (NBA). Arriving in the United States from Jamaica when she was very young, Esmeralda still remembers coming to this country on a plane. When she first arrived in the United States, she noticed that the streets were different from those in her hometown. She thought that other things about living in the United States were different too.

Jeffrey Anzures loves learning about the past, so Global History is his favorite subject. Then again, he also likes challenges, so Math is also tops with him. Jeffrey plays soccer, which is his favorite sport. He also likes basketball, but doesn’t play it as much as he plays soccer. He intends to post news about his school because he would like his community to know what’s going on there. He will also post opinions and commentary about what the community or his school are interested in. He may post news about his community events in case people in the community would like to join or enjoy themselves. Lastly, he would also post news about what his community would like to know.

Chamely Gutierrez is a fan of tradition, so that’s why her dream is to visit Greece. For now, she likes living in the United States because she got the opportunity to go to school and be successful. She is Dominican, and came to New York when she was three years old. It was hard for her mother because she was working and raising two girls on her own. Chamely is proud of herself because she is still going to school. Even though she says she makes mistakes, she is confident she is still growing and following her dreams.

Edwin Huerta is already a restaurant worker – which is the right place for him, since his dream job is to become a chef and own his own restaurant. Edwin’s had this dream since his Mom showed him how to cook when he was little. He’s proud he is currently working while also studying at Bronx High School of Business. He likes living in the United States and that this country elected its first African American president. Edwin has an additional interest in forensic science. He says his family “has four brothers, one in heaven, and two sisters.” For leisure, Edwin enjoys fishing and the tag game laser-tag.

Scarleth Perez arrived from the Dominican Republic on August 13. While she likes living in the United States, she noticed the weather, people and school are all very different from those in her homeland. Her ambition is to become a professional, and she dreams of graduating as a plastic surgeon. That’s why her main interest is to pass all her classes with good grades so she’ll have all the requirements for college. She’s still learning English, but she’s already passed her Living Environment Science Regents exam. Scarleth’s favorite sport is volleyball, while her favorite music is bachata (a style of social dance from her Dominican homeland) and reggae. Scarleth has visited the Caribbean island of Saint Martin, but she wants to visit England.

David Dingamadji was born in Lomé, the capital of the West African country of Togo. His background was also connected to Ghana and Chad before he arrived in the United States with his mother. David is most proud of his mother because she came from another country, raised three children practically on her own, and is now starting a business of her own. David’s brother Michael attends Eastern Connecticut State University, but David wants to take after his mother and brother, and partake in the business field. His dream job is to be a CEO who also partakes in stocks. But he says (to some acclaim) that his biggest talent is his “comedic value”. David is a big fan of anime, the Japanese animation videos. He also enjoys watching the news, and is, therefore, interested in the Journalism class. A subject David dislikes is Chemistry because the formulas throw him off. He plays basketball competitively, and is a big-time fan of basketball (favorite team: Minnesota Timberwolves), soccer (favorites: Chelsea and Barcelona) and football (favorite: Patriots). David’s dream place to visit is Aspen, Colorado.

Karina Gonzalez has a lots of great goals – and a totally unrelated (not to mention kooky) skill. Karina intends to follow graduation by creating her own clothing line and business. But she’s additionally so flexible that she can place her head under her legs and bust into a split – as if she had no bones inside of her! But back to becoming an entrepreneur. Karina says she wants to "do it big." She will make sure her store and products go far and world wide. She will then sponsor many actors, celebrities and artists to model and promote her collections. Karina hails from a family where her mother and older brother were the first to make it to college. For her part, Karina intends to walk in her role models’ footsteps and make her parents proud. She says that when she makes it, she’ll take her family out the “hood” and move them all into a big house. Karina describes herself as “really family oriented” – and depends on them for everything. Karina’s family arrived in the United States in 2004 from Dominican Republic. She says that the environment and lifestyle was all new to them, but adds it has been “nothing but the best.”

Darlenys Bautista is a former sophomore at Bronx High School of Business. She has a very high self-esteem; she prides herself on being a very happy person. She is also a very big fan of algebra, however, she is not so keen when it comes to art. Darlenys tries to show the best of herself to her mother, step-father, three brothers and three sisters who share a home with her. Although she was born in the United States, Darlenys was raised in Dominican Republic. She says she loves living in Bronx. Darlenys doesn’t yet know what she wants to major in at college. She also hasn’t decided on her dream job. However, does know she wants to graduate from high school on time.