Wellington Health

New Radiance Cosmetic Center Helps Clients ‘Turn Back Time’

New Radiance Cosmetic Center Helps Clients ‘Turn Back Time’

New Radiance Cosmetic Center opened its new Wellington facility in March, and it has already surpassed the expectations of owner James Dorsey, as well as those of clients seeking to “turn back time.”

“New Radiance Cosmetic Centers have years of experience assisting clients in accentuating their inner beauty by providing procedures that let clients see themselves younger,” Dorsey said.

The Wellington location is New Radiance’s latest office serving Palm Beach County and beyond.

“We have beautiful, state-of-the-art locations in Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Port St. Lucie and now Wellington,” said Dorsey, who has been involved in the cosmetic industry for the last 12 years. “We are opening a 10,000-square-foot facility in Palm Beach Gardens, a new facility in Fort Lauderdale in the fall and another in Miami Beach the beginning of next year, so we are growing rapidly.”

The center is a full-service cosmetic facility dedicated to bringing the most complete and advanced selection of cosmetic and aesthetic procedures to Palm Beach County.

Wellington is a perfect opportunity for expansion, Dorsey explained. “It’s a great community, and there was not a cosmetic center in Wellington offering the range of services that we offer,” he said. “It has been well received and outperformed our projections.”

Dorsey added that the practice is unique. “We are the only cosmetic center in Palm Beach and Broward counties that has ever earned the CoolSculpting Diamond Level Practice Award, the highest achievement level. It is awarded to only a few practices,” he said. “The top two procedures in the United States are CoolSculpting and SculpSure, and we have both of them at our facilities.”

The medical director of New Radiance Cosmetic Center in Wellington is Dr. Andrew Rosenthal, who is a board-certified plastic surgeon. “He is one of the foremost plastic surgeons in the area, a highly experienced and accredited expert,” Dorsey said.

New Radiance’s talented and experienced staff includes top cosmetic physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, estheticians and more.

“We boast the most advanced technology in the skin rejuvenation and non-invasive body contouring industry,” Dorsey said. “We also sell health and beauty products, from skin care to energy boosters and weight management products that complement our quality cosmetic services.”

All of the staff members are also highly trained in New Radiance procedures. “We have expert injectors for Botox and Dysport, also called dermal or facial fillers with brand names including Juvederm, Restylane, Radiesse, Sculptra and others,” Dorsey explained. “We also perform laser procedures such as fractional laser skin resurfacing and laser hair removal, as well as laser skin tightening.”

New Radiance is also known for its liposuction procedures. “We do more minimally invasive ‘walk-in and walk-out’ Smart Liposuction than anybody else in South Florida, with nationally renowned Dr. Neil C. Goodman performing 50 liposuctions per month, more than 5,500 so far in his career. “He is arguably the top liposuction expert in the nation,” Dorsey said.

Dorsey, who has more than a dozen patents in designing and developing surgical instrumentation, has always worked in the medical field. “I worked for United States Surgical Corporation and started a company called American Hydro-Surgical and grew it to just under 200 employees in 10 years,” he said.

Then, in 2005, he developed the first New Radiance Cosmetic Center. Today, the facility is the top provider of Ultherapy non-surgical facelifts in Palm Beach County. “It is perfect for those who are reluctant to undergo a surgical procedure to get a facelift,” Dorsey said.

Ultherapy is currently being offered at the promotional rate of 40 percent off, and right now the center is running a 25 percent off CoolSculpting promotion at the new location.

“CoolSculpting lets you ’freeze your fat.’ It’s non-surgical; you walk in and you walk out,” Dorsey explained. “Basically, you have a machine hooked up to you, so you can get ‘skinny without surgery.’ Today’s technology allows liposuction-like results without any surgery or downtime.”

With a vision to be the area’s premier facility offering state-of-the-art surgical and non-surgical treatments at reasonable costs, in a comfortable spa atmosphere, New Radiance provides free consultations to interested clients. “During a one-on-one session with a specialist, you will learn about the options that are right for you,” Dorsey said.

New Radiance Cosmetic Center’s new Wellington facility is located at 2655 S. State Road 7, Suite 830. For more information, visit www.radianceofpalmbeach.com or call (561) 323-4267.

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Attorney Bill Maguire Focuses On Wealth Management And Commercial Law

Attorney Bill Maguire Focuses On Wealth Management And Commercial Law

Bill Maguire, a 25-year Wellington resident, has worked as a wealth-planning civil law attorney serving the Palm Beaches for the past eight years. Maguire has wanted to help people and families manage their wealth and assets since the beginning of his law education and career.

“I always wanted to be an attorney, and throughout my undergraduate years and throughout law school, I became more tax and business oriented,” Maguire explained. “I became more [interested] in topics that are prevalent in South Florida, such as small business owners and professionals who need not just business advice, but also wealth and tax advice.”

After attending Florida Atlantic University for his bachelor’s degree, Maguire earned his law degree from the Florida Coastal School of Law in Jacksonville. He then attended the University of Florida and received a master’s degree in taxation, fully combining his passion for law and wealth management.

Since receiving his degrees and being sworn into the Florida Bar, Maguire returned to Wellington — his home since 1993 — and eventually opened his own law firm, Maguire Law Chartered, three years ago.

“I attended Wellington Elementary School, Wellington Landings Middle School and Wellington High School and now serve people from [the western communities] and all over South Florida,” Maguire said. “It has always been a dream to get to practice law on my own, though leaving a bigger firm is always like leaving your safety blanket.”

Prior to opening his own firm, Maguire practiced at two of Florida’s largest law firms: Gunster, Yoakley & Stewart and Broad & Cassel.

On a daily basis, Maguire litigates on behalf of his clients’ best interests, or works with his clients to come up with the most suitable wealth plans for all of their individual circumstances.

“My work ranges from preparing wills and trusts, managing estates and establishing guardianship. I also, in addition to wealth planning, practice commercial law and bankruptcy litigation,” Maguire explained.

One of Maguire’s main responsibilities is foreseeing possible problems within family estates and trusts, in order to clarify and honor all of his client’s true financial wishes. This responsibility, he explained, is the most fulfilling part of his career.

“This job, for me, is filled with very rewarding work, it is, of course, a stressful job, so it’s nice that it can be rewarding,” Maguire said. “I think the most fulfilling part of my job is getting to a client’s ultimate desired result, whether that is winning at court or fulfilling one’s final wishes. But, even more than that, I think it is also about being an unattached and [unbiased] voice of reason.”

Often clients have their own view about how things should be done, which is not always in their best interest, he said.

“I’m able to know how the court system works and what will actually happen in a court setting,” Maguire said. “Everybody wants and feels like they’re going to win, and that is not the nature of our system.”

In regard to wealth planning, Maguire prioritizes honoring the final wishes of his clients while also being a trustworthy and reliable source for the families of his clients.

“At the end of the day, I am always dealing with people’s livelihood and final wishes, but I’m also always having to think about what families think their loved ones’ final wishes were,” Maguire said.

Because of the sensitive matter of wealth — and, specifically, family wealth — planning, Maguire has developed into an attorney who not only wants to help his clients, but also protect them in the process.

“It’s is more than just wealth planning or being a source for information about one’s wealth, estates, taxes or businesses, it’s also about being responsible for financially protecting people — my clients — which has really always been my goal,” he said. “I’ve always wanted to become a protective contact for them.”

Maguire’s devoted work ethic and commitment have resulted in a high rate of client referrals and retention for his small law firm.

“I have built my practice based on the referrals of other clients and other attorneys,” he said. “I have served about 150 clients in the past three years, with just the help of one paralegal. It is a lot of work, but I would much rather stay small and produce good quality work, than grow into a huge firm that is unable to know all of its clients individually.”

Attorney Bill Maguire’s office is located at 400 Columbia Drive, Suite 100, in West Palm Beach. For more information, call (561) 687-8100 or visit www.maguire-law.com.

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Dr. Veronica McCue Putting Her Talents To Good Use Helping Wellington Seniors

Dr. Veronica McCue Putting Her Talents To Good Use Helping Wellington Seniors

Retired educator Dr. Veronica McCue has been a champion for children and students all of her life. Now, this Wellington hometown hero is putting her talents toward helping her fellow senior citizens in the community as the new chair of Wellington’s Senior Advisory Committee.

McCue, whose doctorate is in educational leadership, found her calling in special education, a profession that she found to be very rewarding.  Looking back on her educational career, McCue has a hard time pinpointing why she chose this route, but recalled that it was important to her as a young person. As a high school student, she worked as a volunteer to assist other students who were having trouble in school.

“I come from a small Irish Catholic family in Queens, so you know, five children. We were raised to look to do good,” she said. “The legacy was, as my father used to say, ‘As you leave this earth, have people remember what things you left behind — not what you take with you.’ Because you can’t take it with you.”

McCue views special education differently than many people.

“All education is good,” she said. “It’s OK to learn differently, and that should be the motto for all education. When I say ‘special education,’ I mean both sides of the coin: students who struggle in school and students who excel in school. There’s nothing wrong with learning differently.”

There have been many changes since McCue first started out as a special education teacher.  The one thing that she believes has primarily stayed the same are the kids, but they are dealing with many added worries due to the alarming information that remains available to them.

“When I was growing up, it was a need-to-know basis and, basically, kids just didn’t need to know. Today, that’s not really an option,” McCue said.

She went on to describe a conversation with her granddaughter, in which the young girl was talking about drills practiced at school, explaining to her grandmother that a “red alert” meant someone was coming to kill the students.

McCue was left with tears in her eyes. “For a kindergarten student to have to say that? I think that kids today have many more worries, and I sympathize with parents, because there’s so much information out there, and they have to do a great balancing act at keeping their children safe, but also keeping their children exposed, learning and engaged,” she said. “It is a wearisome burden for parents to have to take all this negative information and still try and make their children feel safe.”

Today, McCue is as dedicated to her current position as the new chair of Wellington’s Senior Advisory Committee as she was to special education. Her advice to seniors is to do what they can to make their lives meaningful and to, in the words of poet Dylan Thomas, “do not go gentle into that good night.” She lives her life by the same sage advice, refusing to define herself by age.

“We are not a byproduct of how long we’ve lived on this earth,” McCue said. “Everyone should have the opportunity to reach their potential. Today and forever, people sell themselves short. Senior citizens sell themselves short. They allow themselves to become invisible as members of their community.”

Wellington seniors aren’t invisible to the Senior Advisory Committee. It works diligently to ensure that senior issues and concerns are addressed. The board presents those concerns to Wellington officials and works with other organizations that can help.

Under McCue’s leadership, the board is spearheading special opportunities that will benefit seniors.  For instance, in September the board will honor “home grown heroes:” seniors who’ve watched Wellington grow from strawberry fields to what it is today.

McCue is especially proud of the board’s partnership with Wellington’s Education Committee that introduces senior volunteers to students in local schools. “There was a group of seniors interested in doing volunteer work, and the schools were interested in having volunteers,” McCue said. “Wellington Elementary School, for example, took many of our volunteers to work in the library. It keeps the community cohesive. You don’t become invisible if you don’t want to.”

McCue’s love for the Village of Wellington is evident in the way that she speaks of her adopted hometown. “I think that Wellington encapsulates everything that should come to mind when we think of where we live,” she said. “The council actually listens and hears you and is open to suggestions.  They embrace all people, from the youngest to the oldest. They really go the extra mile to see that it’s a town that’s good for everyone.”

McCue landed in Wellington almost by accident, having followed her daughter to the area. She intended to be in South Florida for a short time, only to help out with her new grandchild, but like many residents arriving from New York and points north, the weather was a deciding factor.

Living in Wellington took some getting used to for McCue, who describes her transition from the Big Apple to the Village of Wellington as a speed difference, but not in terms of a fast-paced lifestyle versus one that is slower paced. It was a social difference and a change for the retired school principal.

“If you go into any store, any restaurant or anywhere in Wellington, you have to add 10 minutes to your travel time. Someone is going to engage you in pleasantries. It’s a very nice feeling,” she said. “It sort of creeps into your soul. This is the way that people are supposed to treat one another.”

Retirement looks differently to McCue than it does for many seniors. In fact, someone might argue that she doesn’t quite embrace retirement’s truest, if not its most popular, definition. She still works eight hours a day, teaching online classes to Korean business people who wish to improve their English. She usually teaches dozens of students per day, in individual, 20-minute classes. McCue herself has never been to Korea, but she hopes to visit Seoul next year.

McCue has enjoyed a lifetime of professional accomplishments — but she counts her three children and her grandchildren as her greatest. She is very proud of her grandson, Grant, who is 10 and her granddaughter, Quinn, who is 6.

“Every teacher’s goal is that their students are better than they are, and I am blessed to say that my children are all wonderful adults. My daughter may take exception, but I take credit for my grandchildren, too,” McCue said with a chuckle. “They all would be my greatest accomplishment in my personal life.”

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Wellington Real Estate

Realtor Mary Schiltz Enjoys Helping Clients Find Their New Homes

Realtor Mary Schiltz Enjoys Helping Clients Find Their
New Homes

Mary Schiltz of ERA Home Run Real Estate is grateful to have all the current technology that helps to make being a real estate professional easier than ever before. But, by her own admission, she’s proud to be a little “old school” as well.

Schiltz was born and raised in Fort Lauderdale. She met her partner, Dan, in 1980 and bought her first house in 1983 in Boca Raton.

“The home was in West Boca,” she recalled. “At the time, it was on the quiet side, but all the congestion caught up to us within a few years, so we packed up and headed north. We landed in Wellington on five acres. We figured we had some elbow room for at least a little while.”

Schiltz went to school and got her real estate license in 1995. Back then, construction was at a premium. This is where her partner’s profession came in handy.

“Dan was a general contractor, just like my dad, and this was the perfect place to be,” Schiltz said. “A lot of my first business came from Dan. He built about four spec homes a year. Also back then, among the dirt roads with no signs, was a bold new place called Loxahatchee. So, without a cell phone and with only a three-inch book with little tiny pictures from the MLS that were a month old and a makeshift map, I ventured out to sell homes. I really enjoyed it, and it turns out I was halfway decent at it.”

Two of Schiltz’s biggest joys are meeting new people and seeing how happy they are when they close on their new home. She can go all “high tech” if that’s what it takes to get the job done, but she has never lost the fondness for the way business was done when she first started out.

“I would rather print up paperwork and bring it to someone than just e-mail it,” Schiltz said. “I would rather pick up the phone and call to set up an appointment rather than schedule it online. But sometimes, you just have to go with the flow.”

Schiltz is grateful to be a part of the Lead Team at ERA Home Run Real Estate.

“My office is the best,” she said. “I know it’s hard to believe, but everybody pitches in to help everybody else like one well-oiled machine.”

Generally speaking, Schiltz’s area of expertise is residential real estate in and around the Wellington area. But that doesn’t mean that she has fenced herself in.

“I have worked from the Fort Lauderdale area all the way up to Port Saint Lucie, and I am always anxious to go outside my comfort zone to try something new,” she said. “With some of the new programs in the office, I can refer buyers and sellers all over the country. I can hand-pick an agent in any state to help a customer of mine buy or sell with just a phone call.”

Not one given to wild superlatives, her take on the immediate future of the local real estate market is cautious but very optimistic.

“I don’t own a crystal ball, so I hate to predict,” Schiltz said. “I will say that the market is rising at a good rate; good being slow and steady.”

As they say, slow and steady wins the race.

ERA Home Run Real Estate is located at 11973 Southern Blvd. in Royal Palm Beach. To contact Mary Schiltz, call (561) 635-8477.

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Amelia Forem Honored As District’s Beginning Teacher Of The Year

Amelia Forem Honored As District’s Beginning
Teacher Of The Year

Wellington is well-known for its A-rated schools. Because of this, young families seek out the community, and school administrators aim to hire and retain the best educators out there. Among them is Amelia Forem, recently named Beginning Teacher of the Year at the secondary level by the School District of Palm Beach County.

The award is presented annually to outstanding first-year teachers at the elementary and secondary levels, who have been recommended by their principal for demonstrating excellence.

Wellington Landings Middle School was the first school to call Forem in for an interview.

“Ms. [Blake] Bennett, the principal, is amazing, and she offered me a job at the interview,” Forem recalled. “I couldn’t say no to a job at a such a great school.”

A Broward County native, Forem teaches seventh-grade science. “I’ve wanted to be a teacher since I was in second grade, and I’ve always loved science,” she explained.

Forem holds a bachelor’s degree in biology from Florida State University, and a master’s degree from Florida Atlantic University. She has minors in chemistry and psychology and has taken a few physics classes.

“Biology helps me to know the subject content and enables me to answer any of the crazy questions that the students throw at me, like, ‘What do starfish eat?’” she said.

Even though things can be tough for a first-year teacher, Forem rose to the challenge.

“I liked really getting into teaching,” she said. “I spent so long learning about it that it was fun to be on the other end and immerse myself in the nitty-gritty details. At Wellington Landings, the students are a different breed of kid. They are so well-behaved, so inquisitive — it makes it nice to be a teacher. It gets monotonous if you’re just up there talking all the time. When they’re asking questions, that’s when you’re able to have a little fun.”

Not that there weren’t challenges.

“What many people don’t understand, and even I didn’t understand from my student teaching, is what it takes to keep up,” Forem said. “There are meetings, parent conferences, grading, training, more meetings and a lot of other stuff. That was the challenging part.”

Testing is a key factor in teaching today, but Forem has been able to go over the required material while also keeping up with everything else in the classroom.

“We do a lot of standardized testing,” she said. “There’s a big push for it these days. County, state and diagnostic — those are the three big tests, and it’s continuous throughout the school year. There are definitely a lot, but the standardized testing does give us a goal to aim for. It tells us that the kids need to know this information. But I didn’t seem to have too much trouble fitting in all the material they needed to know, in between all the testing.”

Forem, 25, said that social media has changed everyone’s game — students and teachers alike.

“The kids are all about social media in a different way than my generation was,” she said. “It seems insane, because I’m only a little over 10 years older than they are.”

Many are into cell phones and video games, and spelling can be an issue, since auto-correct is always there to help. They also use more slang terms and are influenced by many celebrities.

“On one hand, it makes it easier to connect with them,” Forem said. “The game Fortnight is the biggest thing with them now. My boyfriend has been playing it for months, so I was able to connect a lot of the things we were learning to the game. Luckily, Ms. Bennett has a strict ‘no cellphone’ policy, so I don’t have to fight for their attention. At home, it’s hard for them to focus. It’s definitely a different generation. That said, they’re more connected to their parents than even I was when I was a kid.”

Technology, however, is also helping teachers up their game.

“I think the increase in technologically savvy students has helped a lot of the teachers,” Forem said. “We have one teacher on our seventh-grade science team who uses computers for everything. The kids respond very well to it. If they have a question, they can just look up the answer immediately. Computers also give a lot of feedback to the teachers. If Bobby only got 5 of the 10 questions right, you know you need to work with him. If Alice got 10 out of 10 correct, you know she’s got it. You also know not to continue teaching with a method that didn’t work.”

With her award, Forem received a certificate, a Citizen watch and a $350 grant. Aside from her family, she gives a lot of credit for the award to her principal, the administrators and her team.

“I wouldn’t have excelled at any other school with any other principal,” Forem said. “Ms. Bennett is so hands-on. She shows us what to do and how to do it. She also has a great open-door policy that has created an atmosphere at the school that makes it very conducive to teaching.”

Another key to her success was getting her master’s degree at FAU.

“As much as I wanted to, I don’t think I would’ve gotten the same education at Florida State for my master’s,” Forem said. “I just wouldn’t have had the same hands-on learning with Palm Beach County children that I got at FAU. I planned on coming home to teach, so FAU was the perfect choice.”

Forem is already looking forward to next year. “I think next year will be easier,” she said. “I’m hoping to have a little bit better handle on the class and the material. Even with my biology degree and those minors, there were still some things I had to look up. Now I know the material, how to plan and how to organize the class. I’m also moving to a real science classroom next year, which will make it easier to do labs. The teachers on my team were such a big help to me my first year. I do not think I would’ve made it without them.”

The Wellington Landings Middle School seventh-grade science team includes Forem, Meredith Byham, Sean Streed and Eric Patino. As for Forem, she wants only one thing as a teacher: “I’m hoping to keep getting better, and for my students to keep getting better,” she said.

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Student Artists Show How To Make Every Drop Count

Student Artists Show How To Make
Every Drop Count

South Florida is surrounded by water. And with summer, comes the rainy season. But while it’s one of the wettest areas of the country, with more than 50 inches of rainfall a year, there’s always the danger of drought conditions.

Conserving our water supply year-round is key, and elementary and middle school students in Wellington and across the state are being recognized for turning their water conservation ideas into award-winning works of art through the Drop Savers poster contest.

“This is an educational component of our water conservation effort,” Wellington Utilities Director Shannon LaRocque explained.

The Drop Savers poster contest is an effort by the Florida Statewide American Waterworks Association. Students are encouraged to create posters depicting water conservation and awareness.

A panel of judges base the winners on message, creativity and originality. First-place winners move up to the state level of the competition. In all, 195 students from four local schools participated this spring. Eight of the winners were from Panther Run Elementary School and Wellington Landings Middle School. The Wellington Village Council recognized them in March, while the posters helped promote April as Water Conservation Month.

“It’s starting that education at a young age, so it becomes habitual through life,” LaRocque said.

Last year was the first time that Wellington participated in the contest. Then a third-grader, Grace Bostwick from Panther Run won at the state level. Her artwork is now part of a special calendar.

This year, five students from Panther Run took top honors at the local level.

At the elementary level, fourth-grader Gabriella Pedicino took first place in Division 3, which is comprised of fourth-grades and fifth-graders. Paige Albert, a fifth-grader, took second. Returning first-place contest winner Lauren Allen, a fifth-grader, took third this time.

In Division 2, which encompasses students in second and third grades, Maibelin Fernandez, a second-grader at Panther Run, took second place, while Wilmide Derastel, a third-grader, won first place in her division.

“I drew a water drop that’s sad,” Derastel explained. “The letters are dry with no water, like land. I think water makes the world a better place to live in, because we use water for many things. If you waste less water, it’ll make the world a better place.”

That’s a lesson that’s close to the heart of her mother, Fabiola Gene. Gene is from Haiti, where she said clean drinking water is hard to come by.

“You see kids drinking dirty water. It’s sad. I remind my daughter not to waste water,” Gene said.

Panther Run has been recognized as a “Green School of Quality” for two years in a row for its conservation efforts. Principal Edilia De La Vega said that the school puts a big focus on teaching students about conservation and taking care of the environment. It also has Earth Club lead by teacher Tracy LaBrosse, the school’s “green ambassador.”

“One of the things we added this year, because of an abundance of water bottles coming on campus, is refillable water stations into the water fountains,” De La Vega said. “That was a wonderful resource, as well as to teach the kids the importance of refilling their water bottles, and not just using and getting rid of plastic ones.”

The school has two water stations. One in the cafeteria and one outside. “When they go out to PE, they always have their water, so they can refill it right there, and it’s filtered,” she said.

Wellington Landings Middle School is also working hard to teach the importance of conservation with separate recycling bins throughout the campus.

“I think the number-one thing this generation needs to focus on is conservation of water, our environment and making sure that we’re not being wasteful,” Principal Blake Bennett said. “We do a recycling program with bins and community-based instruction for students in our self-contained special education program. Students in the program are in charge of recycling and picking up recycling bins.”

Blake said that she is very proud of her school’s three students who placed in the Drop Savers contest for Division 4, which is comprised of sixth-graders through eighth-graders, including Deseray Johnson, an eighth-grader who placed first. Another eighth-grader, Lilly Paulitz, came in second place, while sixth grader Ciana Han placed third.

“I drew ways to save water inside droplets. Like short showers and planting plants that don’t require a lot of water,” Han said. “I pay more attention now, and I’m more aware of our water and not wasting it.”

All eight local winners attribute their art teachers for inspiring them. Art teacher Lyda Barrera, who just retired from Panther Run, and Ashlan Sheesley from Wellington Landings, both guided the students on their art posters for this contest, where the primary goal was making water conservation a way of life.

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Information Technology Among Choice Programs At Wellington Middle Schools

Information Technology Among Choice Programs At Wellington Middle Schools

The School District of Palm Beach County is an A-rated district committed to providing students a world-class education — and for more than 50,000 students, that means participating in the impressive array of choice and career programs.

Throughout their school careers, students have the opportunity to immerse themselves in relevant career-oriented classes, custom-tailoring their education to their future career paths in the performing and visual arts, STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) and STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and math), the International Baccalaureate program, JROTC, dual language and more.

The school district features a 90 percent graduation rate, and that rate approaches nearly 100 percent for students in choice programs. Students self-select the programs that interest them, with eligibility criteria that may be based on grades and a lottery process. Enrollees in the programs must maintain a minimum grade point average in order to remain with the track.

Several choice academies are located in Wellington’s middle schools. All three — Emerald Cove, Polo Park and Wellington Landings — offer the popular pre-information technology program. Wellington Landings also offers a fine arts choice program, while Polo Park also features pre-engineering.

Students enrolled in the pre-information technology program are exposed to a variety of different IT and computer-science-related concepts in grades six through eight, including: project management and job-readiness skills, computers and logic, web development, design, HTML coding, CSS and JavaScript, cloud computing and social networking.

The pre-information technology programs also allow for middle school students to earn industry certifications. Approximately 90 percent of district middle school students taking one of two exams earn the industry certification.

Students are able to distinguish themselves by successfully obtaining these industry certifications that can be added to their resume for work, college applications and career readiness, explained Dr. Jeraline Johnson, director of choice and career options programs for the school district.

The academies provide a variety of hands-on learning experiences that meet student interests and engage them in preparation for college and career with opportunities for job shadowing, internships, project-based learning and on-the-job training. Students can also participate in various clubs and organizations that provide even more hands-on activities and competition, Johnson added.

Johnson said that the benefits of participation in the program courses include improved academic achievement and increased scholarship opportunities; higher attendance and graduation rates; greater parental and community involvement; specialized teaching staff providing themed-based education; and advanced technical training for career readiness and success.

Sandra Wesson, manager of choice programs for the school district, said that succeeding in a choice program is often a marker for future success.

“Students in Palm Beach County have equitable opportunities to participate in one of more than 300 choice and career programs that meet their interests, best prepare them for making informed decisions leading to future success in both college and career, and encourage them to be contributing members of their communities,” she said.

About 90 students participate in the pre-information technology choice program at Emerald Cove Middle School each semester, Principal Dr. Eugina Smith Feaman said.

“In the program, students matriculate through three pre-IT elective classes,” Feaman said. “This includes Information & Communication Technology Essentials in sixth grade, which introduces students to computer science as a vehicle for problem solving, communication and personal expression. It focuses on the visible aspects of computing and computer science, and encourages students to see where computer science exists around them and how they can engage with it as a tool for exploration and expression.”

In the seventh grade, the students learn the Fundamentals of Web Design and Software, and in eighth grade, they take the Emerging Technologies Course, which prepares them for Computer for College and Careers (CCC) course taught on the high school level, Feaman added.

Students learn digital literacy, which includes proficiency with computers in the exploration and utilization of databases, the internet, spreadsheets, presentations, applications, management of personal information and e-mail, word processing, document manipulation, and the integration of these programs using software that meets industry standards.

At Emerald Cove, completing the program often leads the students to matriculate into Palm Beach Central High School’s Web & Digital Design Academy, Feaman explained.

Craig Corsentino is in charge of the two choice programs at Polo Park Middle School. The pre-information technology and the pre-engineering programs each have about 150 students.

“We chose to do these two programs because we want our students to be prepared for the future. Information technology and engineering careers are currently expanding and are expected to continue to do so in the next 20 years,” Corsentino said. “The pre-information technology program is a computer-based program where students will learn how to code, work with apps and learn about the different careers and technologies that will exist in the future.”

The pre-engineering program, meanwhile, is a hands-on program that allows students to explore several different aspects of engineering, from aerospace to science in technology.

“Students love both programs and enjoy utilizing the different technologies that Polo Park has to offer, from our 3-D printer to our drones, robots and much more,” Corsentino said. “Many of our students go on to succeed at Palm Beach Central, Wellington, Suncoast and many of the other fantastic high schools that our district has to offer.”

Wellington Landings Middle School Principal Blake Bennett has found that the pre-information technology students are very engaged in the subject matter.

“Students love the classes and are excited to earn industry certifications,” she said. “We also add in pieces like Photoshop, robotics, etc., and the students love learning those tools and applications.”

Bennett is also proud that her school offers more high school credit classes than any other middle school in the county.

“The pre-information technology academy offers an innovative learning environment focused on computers, technology and communications over the course of three years,” Bennett said. “The sixth-grade year is a semester course designed to help students develop speed and accuracy by learning the touch operation of alphanumeric/keyboard characters. Students will also get a basic understanding of word processing using the Microsoft Word software program.”

Bennett continued that the seventh-grade class is a full-year course with an emphasis on web design. Students in this class have the opportunity to earn the CIW Site Design Associate certification. “In the eighth grade, academy students will take a high school credit, year-long course that teaches foundational knowledge of web technology used throughout the business world,” Bennett said.

The majority of graduates have indicated that the school district’s choice programs are positive experiences that prepared them for their future goals, with many indicating that they plan to pursue employment or post-secondary studies directly related to the area of study they were enrolled in.

For additional information about these programs, visit www.palmbeachschools.org/choiceprograms or contact the schools individually.

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Maggie Hill: From Wyoming Cowgirl To Wellington Champion

Maggie Hill: From Wyoming Cowgirl To Wellington Champion

Like many girls, Maggie Hill has been crazy about horses from an early age. But unlike many kids competing on the A-show circuit, the talented 15-year old didn’t come from an equestrian family or start showing in Lead Line or Short Stirrup at the Winter Equestrian Festival.

Hill’s career in the saddle didn’t start in Wellington, where she now lives with her parents and sister Ellie, along with rescue dogs Piper and Riley, and two cats named Hersey and Riley. It started thousands of miles away, in Jackson Hole, Wyo., in a western saddle with a paint Quarter Horse.

Today Hill competes against the best junior riders in the country and has ridden to numerous victories, including the Large Junior Hunters (15 and under) Championship at the prestigious Devon Horse Show.

“I started riding in Wyoming when I was 5 years old at a western barn,” recalled Hill, who attends the Oxbridge Academy of the Palm Beaches.

Jackson Hole might be an outdoorsy person’s paradise, but it is lacking when it comes to show jumping. “When I was old enough, I joined 4-H and competed at the county fair,” Hill said. “I competed in in-hand classes, western pleasure, reining competitions, even barrels and poles. I loved riding and wanted to progress, but my mom made me wear a helmet. Everyone else wore cowboy hats, and it was embarrassing! My mom encouraged me to try English, where everyone has to wear a helmet.”

So, at the age of 8, she changed disciplines, joined the Pony Club, and competed in both eventing and dressage. Her parents, Tom Hill, the founder and CEO of Summit Materials, and her mother Jane, have always been supportive of her equestrian aspirations.

“In Wyoming, the horse world is very different from what you will find here in Wellington and on the circuit,” Hill said. “There is no such thing as ‘full service’ in Wyoming. You did all the work yourself, grooming, caring for the horses, feeding them, and tacking up, which wasn’t easy because a western saddle is really heavy! There was no coddling either. If you fell off, the trainer would check to make sure you weren’t hurt and then tell us to ‘cowgirl up’ and not cry.”

Winters could be brutal, and by November, the farm would be under eight feet of snow. The family decided to board the horses south of Jackson Hole and trailer to a public arena a couple times a week to ride.

“You would have to use a hammer to break ice off of the handles to open the trailer door,” Hill remembered. “We’d share the ring with cowboys and rodeo folks. There were no jumps, but there were team penning cows waiting for the next arena session, and my horse hated them.”

She spent a few years participating in Pony Club activities and learned about being a good horseman. “It was a blast, but it was also hard work. We would go to rallies, and we’d be on our own for the tests. No one was allowed to help us, or even talk to us, over the two days when we were being judged,” Hill said. “It wasn’t just a test of our riding; it was all about horse care and horse management. The Pony Club, of which I am still a member, has a manual which is on my book shelf here in Wellington, and I refer to it whenever I have questions.”

When Hill was in fourth grade, the family purchased Randi, a Shire/Thoroughbred cross mare.

“It took at least six months to really grow into being able to ride her,” she said. “I did a bit of eventing with her, but transitioned to dressage because of her abilities. She had been competing at the Preliminary level and was a powerful and big mare.”

Hill was taking dressage lessons, but missed jumping, so her trainer Margie Boyd recommended her sister-in-law, famed hunter rider Liza Towell Boyd, and father-in-law, award-winning trainer Jack Towell of Finally Farm in South Carolina.

In 2015, Hill leased a horse named Nevada and started riding with Finally Farm. “I had to start all over really, and it was challenging and sometimes frustrating to have to relearn things,” she admitted. “There was so much I didn’t know. But I was really determined to make up for lost time and be competitive in the sport.”

Her first trip to Wellington was an eye-opener. “My grandparents used to live here, and they’d always mentioned going to the horse show, but it never happened. The first time I came to ride at WEF, it was surreal,” she said. “I was showing just in the back ring, and I was in awe of it all!”

The family rented a house at first, and Hill took online classes and worked with private tutors to keep up with her education. “I started in pre-children’s showing at Pony Island, where we were champion four weeks in a row, but I cried every day because I wanted to be doing the bigger classes,” she said.

Hill quickly worked her way up to the Children’s Hunter divisions, once again taking home the championship.

In 2017, Hill made the jump up to the 3’3” division, competing in the Junior Hunters, 15 and under. By the end of the circuit, she had enough points to qualify for the year-end indoor championships, winning top honors at the Pennsylvania National Horse Show and securing the year-end championship in the Southeast WCHR for 3’3” Juniors.

Wellington seemed to offer something for everyone in the family, so they decided to relocate and first purchased at the Equestrian Club Estates, adjacent to the showgrounds.

This past season, Hill moved up to the 3’6” division competing and winning in the Small Junior Hunters (15 and under) aboard O’Ryan and Large Junior Hunters (15 and under) with Cassanto, even qualifying to compete the 12-year-old Warmblood gelding under the lights in the WCHR Peter Wetherill Palm Beach Hunter Spectacular.

Since the family is now in Wellington for the school year, they are moving to Palm Beach Polo, which offers golf and tennis amenities as well. “I don’t like the cold and love the weather here,” Hill said. “Everything is so easy and beautiful — it is horse heaven. Everywhere you go, it’s all about horses, polo, dressage and show jumping. I actually have tried polo, and it’s harder than I thought.”

Her sister, who attends Saint Andrew’s School in Boca Raton, skates at the Skate Zone, while Hill is able to balance her school work while training consistently.

Most riders dream of ending up in the Dixon Oval at the Devon Horse Show, but it usually doesn’t happen the first time they compete. But that’s exactly what Hill did, winning the Large Junior Hunter (15 and under) Championship with Cassanto and earning the prestigious Martin F. Bucko Family Perpetual Trophy.

“As long as I can remember, I wanted to be a professional rider, even back when I was riding western,” Hill said. “Things have changed now, but my goal is the same. There is never a day that I don’t look forward to going to the barn.”

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Travel Basketball Program Builds A Brand Of Winning In Wellington

Travel Basketball Program Builds A Brand Of Winning In Wellington

Since 2002, the Wellington Wolves Travel Basketball Association has been providing a top-quality boys basketball program. Then, five years ago, Javatis Midget’s daughter, Jahnae, got involved and her father began coaching her fifth-grade girls team.

The first couple of years, the Wolves only had that single girls team. However, with Midget’s help, the program began to expand and improve. This year, the fifth-grade girls team are proud U.S. Amateur National Champions.

“I got involved because my daughter was interested in recreational basketball and someone suggested we get into the travel league,” Midget said. “I had about seven years of experience coaching then.”

It was a challenge early on.

“Most of the girls were in the fourth grade, but it’s hard to find competition younger than fifth grade, so they played up,” Midget recalled. “The first few years were very, very rocky, then we got more young ladies involved, and they started playing at a higher level. There was a large commitment from the coaches and the parents and the players.”

Through this hard work, the girls travel basketball program began to grow steadily.

“We started to develop some talent and attract some talent that had been going to towns as far away as Miami and Daytona to play. We started winning a few games,” Midget said.

Most of the current team has been together two years. “The coaches have learned a bit more, and the girls started buying-in,” he said. “That first year, the official record was 22 wins and three losses. We played in three tournaments, and we won one. I said, ‘Hey, we’ve got something here.’”

Midget still coaches the fifth-grade team, and his younger daughter, Jayla, is on it. Jahnae now plays on the ninth-grade team.

“Last year, the older team came in second and the younger team came in third, but there seemed to be improvement in every game,” Midget said. “This year, we had a tryout process and took a couple of new girls, and both my fifth-grade and ninth-grade teams won state, and the fifth-graders went to Tennessee and won the nationals.

The fifth-grade girls team includes: Ja’Niah Suprius, Sophia Vasquez, Alanna Beckman, Jayla Midget, Kiersten Henley, Julia Vasquez, Aubrey Beckham, Karolina Ramirez and Sophia Kateris.

The ninth-grade girls team, which started out as Midget’s first team, includes: Tyler DeBose, Ashley Thornton, Franaja Williams, Aspen Johnson, Ja’Niyah Eggeletion, Jahnae Midget, Lynzie Smikle, Christell Mentor and Kaela Swick.

“For the first couple of years, there was only the one girls team in the entire program,” Midget said. “It was a boys organization, but I kept working, along with a few others, to get more girls playing in it to build the brand for girls teams in Wellington. Our teams have professional uniforms that are second to none. Each player has the same shoes, the same socks, so they look sharp and professional. We win and lose with class.”

Midget complimented all the other coaches. “They are doing a tremendous job in building the brand for girls basketball in Wellington,” he said. “Hopefully, the teams will do well and get some college scholarships to help the parents out.”

Last year, seven players in the league received scholarship offers.

Some 60 girls competed this year, with the ninth-graders competing this summer in Kentucky. The seventh-grade girls also won at state. Next year, the Wolves will field seven grade-level girls teams.

“That’s huge growth,” Midget said. “I’m proud to have had a little bit of something to do with that growth.”

The boys unit, which fields twice as many teams as the girls side, won three state championships this year for the fifth-grade, seventh-grade and ninth-grade boys teams, with the seventh-grade team also winning the U.S. Amateur National Championship.

The certifying entities organize tournaments and live periods to provide prime opportunities to play in front of coaches, evaluators and collegiate scouts under authorized conditions. Players and parents never know just who might be watching.

Some of the organizations distinguish the different team groups based on age, grade level or year of graduation. “The groupings are all interchangeable,” Midget explained.

He believes that everything came together to create a year of championships.

“This year has been a phenomenal year for a lot of reasons, including that Wellington is a great place for kids to play, and the coaches treat them right,” Midget said. “It’s a good program with a really great president.”

That president is Chris Fratalia, who said that the league had 19 teams this year with more than 225 boys and girls participating in the Wellington Wolves program.

“It was established with the help of former Mayor Bob Margolis, who still acts as an advisor today, and it has an interlocal agreement to be the official basketball supplier for the village,” Fratalia said.

It also has the permission of the school district to use the high school and middle school courts, as well as the village’s basketball facilities. “That keeps costs down because we don’t have to pay gym fees,” Fratalia explained.

The athletes are able to learn life lessons through the program.

“There are 37 trained volunteer coaches. Most are current high school or assistant coaches and some college staff, but it’s not just about competing in basketball. We hire Perseverance Training every year. They have professional coaches,” Fratalia said. “We teach the kids, who do all their playing in indoor, air-conditioned gyms, about [everything from] fundamental ball handling, to a strong work ethic to achieve results, all the way to decision-making skills.”

Fratalia said that the association will be adding a “Council of Dads,” inspired by the book of the same name by Bruce Feiler.

“Rolling out in August, the association’s own council of 13 local businessmen have little interest in basketball but are key people who have a very strong interest in helping kids,” Fratalia explained. “The council will advise and mentor players on the SAT and ACT [tests], scholarships, and Sylvan and Huntington for tutoring.”

Participants learn how to be the best basketball player they can be, as well as get some lessons in how to be the best student, best athlete and best person they can be.

Of course, the Wellington Wolves Travel Basketball Association’s comprehensive campaign centers around youth basketball. It opens doors by providing players entrance to top tournaments.

At one annual event, about 1,000 college coaches and scouts watch some 9,000 student-athletes compete. “It doesn’t get much bigger than that,” Midget said.

For more information about the league, visit www.wellingtonwolves.com.

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Young Elvis Tribute Artist Matt Stone Puts Heart And Soul In His Performances

Young Elvis Tribute Artist Matt Stone Puts Heart And Soul In His Performances

Wellington teenager Matt Stone grew up watching the television show “Full House,” featuring John Stamos as the leather-jacket-wearing rock musician Jesse helping his brother-in-law raise three daughters. But never mind the girls — it was the music that captivated him.

Although Stone originally favored the music of Led Zeppelin, legendary rock ’n’ roll pioneer Elvis had always been “a character in my mind,” he explained. As he became more aware of the music and the legend, it became something he wanted to emulate.

When Stone, now 15, found a leather jacket upstairs at home and began singing “Hound Dog,” his career as a youthful Elvis tribute singer began.

He started off slowly, singing in the living room. Then there was that one time he broke into Elvis songs while reading Christmas books to senior citizens. “They loved it,” Stone recalled.

However, it was a fateful family trip to Memphis that included a visit to Elvis’ home Graceland in 2015 that really kicked it into high gear.

“I was out back at the guest house of the Graceland hotel,” Stone said. “My dad threw me in front of everybody, and I did a couple of songs. I made $80 in tips in 10 minutes!”

That’s when father and son knew they were onto something.

Stone started small, getting booked at the Brookdale senior living facility in Lake Worth. Today, he does so many shows for the chain that he can barely remember them all.

“There’s one in Palm Beach Gardens, two in Boynton… I love to see the folks smile,” he said. “Sometimes they don’t get that much out of their day. And it makes me smile, too, because I love to play.”

In late 2016, at Backstreets Neighborhood Bar & Grill’s open mic night, Stone played the rock classic “Stairway to Heaven,” along with some of the other music that had inspired him. They hired him. By April 2017, he was a professional.

“I started going to other places, and started doing Elvis shows,” said Stone, who uses a vintage Shure Super 55 mic, known as “the Elvis mic” for its similarity to the one used by “The King,” together with a portable PA system.

At Backstreets, he uses one of their guitars, but elsewhere, he’ll use one of his own. He has 14, but for Elvis shows, he uses the Epiphone EJ-200SCE. “I don’t recommend it,” Stone said. “It has been in and out of the shop so often that Guitar Center finally gave me a loaner and sent it back to the factory. It seems to have been OK since then, though.”

Stone has 140 backing tracks and more on his phone. An average one-hour show allows him to sing and play through 15 songs. In a classic Elvis move, he hands out leis. “They don’t fall off my neck like scarves, and they’re cheaper, too,” he explained.

His biggest challenge? “Well, it’s not booking the shows. My dad does that,” he said. “It’s that going to school kind of limits my time. School lets out 2:45 p.m., I get picked up at 3 p.m., and I have a gig at 3:30 p.m.”

So, will his parental chauffeur be buying him a car when he turns 16?

“I’ve saved enough money to buy my own car,” Stone said, matter-of-factly.

Money aside, the biggest compliment Stone has received came recently when he was approached after a show by a woman who had known Elvis in the 1950s, before the rock icon went into the U.S. Army.

“She was friends with one of his bodyguards, and she told me that, in different fields, I am better than Elvis,” Stone laughed. “There is nobody who is ever going to be better than Elvis.”

Stone’s favorite song is one Elvis did in the 1960s. “Elvis had declined a movie career, probably a mistake, and in 1968, he comes back dressed in black leather, and he jumps back into touring. Elvis didn’t write his own music, but if he really connected to a single song, really felt it, it was ‘If I Can Dream.’ That was the one, and that is my favorite.”

So, what does the future hold for Wellington’s young “Elvis?”

“My dad wants me, sometime in the future, to use all my inspiration from Elvis and the artists of the time to create my own show and my own sound — to effectively bring back that music,” Stone explained. “Music is going in a downward spiral. Machines are taking over the instruments. The machine doesn’t have a heart, so there’s no heart to the music, no soul. I want to put the heart and soul back into music.”

Although Stone doesn’t feel that recording a music CD would be cost-effective yet, he does have a couple of songs on iTunes and Spotify — or visit “Matt Stone: The Prince of Rock ’n’ Roll” on YouTube if you want to hear some of music’s missing heart and soul.

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