Freshman dazzle: artistry, STEM and entrepreneurship

The Class of 2028 is hitting it out of the park. Many of our newest Panthers have been harnessing the power of technology to share their stories and have embraced an entrepreneurial spirit, starting businesses or enriching their academic lives through creative outlets.

Who says a math major can’t love the arts? Who says a future engineer doesn’t enjoy writing blogs? And who says an artist or singer can’t also enjoy a good business class?

Freshmen are showing the world that they can be multifaceted individuals, shining in a variety of areas. They’re also proving that Panthers are brilliant at whatever they do.

As we prepare for the fall semester, we feature three freshmen who run the gamut from accomplished musical theater performer to baker-mathematician and lover of STEM – and explore how they are ready to use their talents to make the world a better place.

Angelina Ballantyne

Angelina Ballantyne launched her baking business when she was 17 years old. What started as a way to unleash her creativity and bake for fun blossomed into a bigger adventure as friends and family began tasting – and ordering -- the sweet treats she was baking. Through her business, Skater’s Dozen, she makes cakes, cupcakes, macarons and more. She says putting a smile on people’s faces when they see the treats is the best part of it all.

Ballantyne starts at FIU this fall as a math education major. She graduated with her AA from the School for Advanced Studies, earning a 4.9 GPA for high school classes and a perfect 4.0 unweighted GPA for her college coursework. Her favorite class was AP Calculus (she got a five on the test, by the way). She’s tutored children since her freshman year, eventually tutoring up to seven students a year, mostly in pre-algebra and algebra.

Inspired by her own teachers, she’s interested in pursuing a career as a teacher. “I couldn’t be more grateful for all of my teachers at SAS. I feel like I did a 180 and became a different person thanks to them. I was very shy, and my teachers gave me the resources to join new clubs and activities. They just helped me develop and gain confidence in who I am. If I could be that person for someone, that would be rewarding.”

Ballantyne loves roller skating (her business name is an ode to this hobby) and music. She sang in choir club and for years, attended school at a vocal magnet program at Miami Arts Studio at Zelda Glazer.

As she begins at FIU, she says she’s most looking forward to joining the Panther community and “building relationships, just getting out there and socializing and networking.”

Fun fact: the macarons pictured above are FIU-inspired (check out the blue swirls and the gold shimmer!)

David Llamazares

All the world is a stage. At least, it is for David Llamazares.

The freshman starts at FIU with an outstanding list of achievements in the field he is passionate about: musical theater. Llamazares graduated from the Miami Arts Studio at Zelda Glazer with a 4.4 GPA and a collection of Honor Rolls.

He has been a lead character on various productions and has appeared in many more inside and outside of school. He’s also received numerous awards from Florida’s region of the International Thespian Society, an honor society for theater students. He’s earned the highest accolade, “Top Honors,” six times and 10 superior competition scores.

His senior year, he directed, musically taught, choreographed and performed in a large group musical for the regional Thespian competition. The group received Top Honors – the highest score in the room – and was selected to represent the entire district at the state level, where they performed in front of 3,000+ people.

Llamazares can sing, dance and build sets. He’s been involved with the Roxy Theater since he was in elementary and was also involved in the Miami Children Theater. He was accepted into universities ranging from Emerson College to University of Central Florida, but he chose FIU. He’s part of a Panther family after all – his mom works at the FIU Police Department.

Llamazare’s motivation to succeed goes back to his toddler years.

“I had cancer when I was about five years old,” he says. “It stopped me from doing so many things. Once there is a task in front of me now, I want to challenge myself, I want to overcome. I always push myself. I love everything about theater. Theater is not a physical game, it’s a mental game. Once you tell yourself you can do something, even if it takes time, you’ll get there. Hard work and dedication really pays off.”  

La’Tavaia Rickerson

La’Tavaia Rickerson received full-time job offers even before beginning FIU.

This is thanks to her impressive performance in various summer internships she completed at the Jacksonville Transportation Authority (JTA). She interned in JTA’s human resources department twice and later worked with data analytics and website management at its ethics and compliance department.

She excelled in her internships. Employees took notice. She got job offers. And while she turned down the jobs in favor of pursuing her education, she says the internships provided valuable professional experiences. “I’m really proud of these internships,” she says.

Rickerson graduated from Paxon School of Advanced Studies, an IB high school in Jacksonville, Fl. She worked hard on her academics and in her community. She tutored children in reading as part of a Read USA – Mayor’s Youth at Work partnership. She’s been a cheerleader since she was five years old, eventually cheering on her school’s varsity team. She was selected as one of only 25 recipients of the Coke Florida Scholarship, which is run by Coca-Cola Beverages Florida, LLC. 

Rickerson is majoring in biology and plans to pursue medicine. “I really want to make a difference in the world. I want to be a surgeon.”

She also has an artistic side. One of Rickerson’s hidden talents lies in digital video recording and editing, for which she is Adobe Premier Pro-certified. She took a class that had students recording music videos and news shows, interviewing teachers and seniors and compiling sports highlights, among other projects. In tenth grade, Rickerson also began her own small business as a nail artist after taking a nail class with a stylist.

She began at FIU this summer and started strong. She already earned her first two As at the university.

This story is part of a series celebrating incoming freshmen in the Class of 2028. Check out the full series.