Congratulations to our students as they move to their next chapter!
Harvard Westlake grad finds fulfillment in helping other teens
By Suzan Filipek
Cole Firschein will leave her home on Wilton Drive in August for Oberlin College in Ohio, where she plans to major in English or psychology, or both, and minor in music.
Cole Firschein
The Harvard-Westlake senior has considered a career as a clinical therapist or social worker since experiencing the effects of mental health on teens firsthand during the COVID-19 years. She was in middle school when the pandemic hit and had just switched from Larchmont Charter School to HW making Zoom classes and social distancing even more isolating.
The college preparatory campus proved a good fit for the busy teen.
“I really like it,” she said of her years at HW. “It has a reputation for being very intense and stressful, but the teachers are great, and it’s amazing.”
She and her mom visited about 10 schools back East and a few in California before Firschein settled on Oberlin, a smaller school with a music conservatory and a solid educational program. “The vibe was great,” said Firschein.
A singer and songwriter, she also plays guitar and piano. She likes folk music and Indian music, all styles, really. “And I love 90s rock,” she added.
Firschein also volunteers at Teen Line, a nationwide teen help hotline operated by Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services. She attended a three-month intensive training program to prepare for teens reaching out about depression, child abuse, or even—suicide. But the most topics Firschein and her colleagues receive are stress and relationships.
“It’s really amazing that I have the opportunity to help people, even if it’s only for 20 minutes. I’m glad I’m able to do it,” she said of the calls and texts she receives.
She’s considering a double major to nurture her love of reading and writing and would consider becoming a teacher. “Having a good teacher makes a lot of difference,” she said.
She plans to work as an usher at the Hollywood Bowl, which she did last summer—and hear some great concerts—before she leaves for Oberlin.
“I’ve gotten really good at time management,” she said of balancing her very full plate.
Dreams of playing D1 lacrosse come true for this senior
By Nona Sue Friedman
Finn Hazelton
Lacrosse runs thick through Finn Hazelton’s blood—his mom played in high school and his dad in college. Hazelton will be following in his father’s footsteps. He was recruited to play Division 1 at the University of Pennsylvania this fall. “It was my dream to play D1 lacrosse,” he said.
Hazelton has been playing the fast-paced game since he was in second or third grade and continued onto Loyola High School’s team, which was ranked in the top 20 nationwide this past season.
To be recruited, players spend the summer prior to their junior year going to East Coast showcases and tournaments hoping to catch the eye of a coach. However, the Larchmont Village resident had wrist surgery from a lacrosse injury that prevented him from playing last summer through to November. So he really had to hustle.
“I love my Loyola coach,” said Hazelton. His coach, Jimmy Borell, “He’s a very hard, tough coach on the field but super supportive off the field.” Borell used his connections to get Hazelton an invitation from the lacrosse coach at University Pennsylvania in February of his junior year. A few days after Hazelton’s visit and try-out at Penn, the Penn coach reached out with a guaranteed spot on the team and entrance to the school. Hazelton was officially accepted this past December after filling out an application. He felt incredibly lucky to have a place waiting for him as he watched many of his friends stress about the entire college acceptance process.
According to Hazelton, his all-boys high school was instrumental in shaping him into the person he is today. Hazelton commented, “The school built so much structure in my life. It’s super strict, but I’m so thankful for Loyola.”
RISD’s summer program sealed the deal for this senior
By Nona Sue Friedman
Emmett Hurtado-Sher
Emmett Hurtado-Sher spent five weeks at the pre-college program at the Rhode Island School of Design in Providence last summer. “It gave me a real feel for the culture and the place,” said the Buckley school senior and Wilton Drive resident. During his time there, he lived in the dorms, spent seven hours a day in class, and talked to resident students about their experience at RISD. That was all the research Hurtado-Sher needed to figure out this was the place he wanted to go for college. Luckily, RISD felt the same way.
A few of his friends from the summer program will join him in the fall, which he said is a great feeling. He was drawn to the art school because the first-year students get to experiment with all different mediums. He thinks illustration will eventually be his major, because “animation and cartoons are near and dear to my heart.”
Hurtado-Sher has been saving money so he can take a 10-day trip with friends to Amsterdam after graduation. After that he’ll work at Marlborough School’s summer camp for the third time.
“I’ve made great friends and had great teachers, but I’m ready for the next step,” he said. “I’m looking forward to getting as much out of this as possible. I know that L.A. isn’t the whole world, and I don’t want to be scared of different perspectives. I won’t be coming in with my dukes up. We can only build a better world by trying to see eye to eye.”
Getting to know what one likes: Graduate heading to Bard
By Barbara Sueko McGuire
While graduating from high school is inarguably a life-changing experience, according to Marlborough School senior Jenny Williams, so is eating at Max & Helen’s. It’s all about perspective, and Williams has plenty of it, thanks in part to the challenging but well-rounded education she received from the 137-year-old institution.
Jenny Williams
But back to breakfast foods, which are the 17-year-old’s absolute favorite. While her first meal at the newest diner in Larchmont Village was epic—she had breakfast for dinner—she said she can most often be found at Le Pain Quotidien, where she studies and takes breaks from the academic grind.
“The Larchmont community is both really big and also super small,” she says of growing up in the neighborhood. “Once you know everyone, then those people are all you will see—anywhere in L.A., you will always run into someone you know. It has brought me a lot of social skills because of how often you see others and get to know them.”
Williams comes from a long line of Marlborough alumnae—her mom, aunt, and sister all attended the school—but was drawn to its progressive vibes and abundance of opportunity. From chamber choir and instrumental ensemble, to robotics, soccer, and volleyball, she said she did her best to take advantage of everything the college preparatory day school had to offer.
Performing at Carnegie Hall in New York with the chamber choir during her junior year was just one of many highlights. A class trip to tour East Coast colleges was also memorable and helped narrow down her options for the future. Ultimately, Williams chose Bard College after falling in love with the campus and community. She earned a Distinguished Scientist Scholars award from the school, which includes a $50,000 scholarship.
“I want to work with animals, and by going to college and studying biology, I will get to go into wildlife biology,” she said. “I can’t wait to research and study the natural world and try to help our planet one step at a time.”
While the first half of her senior year was intense—navigating which schools were the best fit and then meeting application deadlines—she was able to step back second semester and enjoy her final days as a high schooler. Some of her biggest takeaways from Marlborough were learning to slow down, savor each moment, and not take things too seriously.
If she could tell incoming freshmen anything, it would be to take chances and try something new. “Either you enjoy it and gain a skill, or you find out you don’t like it, which can open the door to something else,” she said. For Williams, what’s most important isn’t the grades or accolades you leave high school with, but the friends and memories you make.
“Honestly, bringing positivity and light where I go would be what I most want to be remembered for,” she said. “No matter the day or the weather, I try to put my best foot forward and brighten other people’s days. I do simple things like hugging my friends every morning and asking how people’s days or weekends were—I’m just trying to encourage others to be their best selves.”
Graduate strives for global health equity at Harvard
By Solveig Lopez
Sofia Gerstein
In the fall, Harvard University will welcome Sofia Gerstein from the Girls Academic Leadership Academy (GALA) into the class of 2030. She is the first student from LAUSD’s only all-girls institution to be accepted into the oldest Ivy League.
At Harvard, she will take part in the university’s neuroscience program, nationally ranked No. 1 by U.S. News & World Report. Her commitment came after long deliberation between acceptances from other schools such as Yale, Brown and Duke.
She plans to utilize the neuroscience degree to step into neurosurgery and minimize the gap between under-resourced populations and healthcare access.
“I see myself doing work in South America, specifically Colombia to give back to my community,” said Gerstein, of Colombian descent. “I’d really love to serve in the Peace Corps or Doctors Without Borders.”
The GALA graduate was initially inspired after a volunteer shift at Cedars Sinai Medical Center during her freshman year. At 15, she witnessed a Latina mother in distress while unable to understand English explan-ations after her son was stabbed and suffering from a spinal cord injury. Gerstein was grateful she was present since she’s a native Spanish speaker.
“[The language barrier] just really upset me, so I stepped in as a translator…and seeing that there was a need for someone to advocate on behalf of Latino visitors and patients inspired me to take that into my future projects.” She further embraced this passion as an intern for the Harris Neuroscience Program at Standford—triumphing over their 2% acceptance rate—conducting neuroscience research that spoke to the Latino healthcare experience.
Although focused on science technology engineering and math, the Hollywood-native also creates neurographic art, which she defines as, “a showcase of the brain’s experiences through oil painting.” She also enjoys catching waves down in Manhattan Beach or sipping a matcha at Rok in Koreatown in her additional free time.
Today, Gerstein is edging 200 volunteer hours at Cedars, where origins of her humble service will soon cultivate beyond the United States.
“That’s the goal: to promote global health equity,” she said.
Category: People
