Ketler Macome '20 serenades FIU while recording a music video. Photo by Doug Garland.

December 2020 in photos: Toy donations, a serenade and hard-earned degrees

December 22, 2020 at 10:00am

During the last month of 2020, the university came together to collect toys for children in need this holiday season. FIU also awarded degrees to about 6,200 Panthers who worked their tails off during the pandemic. Here are some of our favorite moments from December, as captured by FIU photographers Margi Rentis '17, Doug Garland '10, Carl-Frederick Francois '16 MS '17 and Vince Rives '17.

On Dec. 4, members of the university community were invited to campus to donate toys, collect holiday goodies and enjoy a spirited drive through campus. Photo by Vince Rives.

Check out the full story about the first-ever President's Holiday Toy Drive-Thru here.

On Dec. 17, FIU delivered laptops, bikes and toys to Miami-Dade elementary school students. Photo by Carl-Frederick Francois.

This is the 29th year that FIU has given students at low-income schools surprises for the holidays while celebrating their academic achievements. Check out our full story.

Maci Kean '20 has a real success story. At age five, she lost 75 percent of her hearing because because her biological parents didn’t seek treatment for her ear infections. By the time she was 11, she was an orphan - both parents died because of drug abuse. Kean battled the odds and graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. Photo by Margi Rentis.

Our full story about this year's graduates highlights more incredible Panther achievements.