Portfolio - Experiences

Extra-Curricular Activities

Forming part of my school community meant joining clubs and sports that I was passionate about which gave me the opportunity to partake in academic and social activities. Most of these activities were after school, as I was expected to attend meetings, participate in events, and take part in practice. I enjoyed the time where I was able to help other families through the SALTT Club and NHS Food Drive, as well as lead my team as JV Soccer captain and Varsity player. Overall, these experiences were highly enriching as they allowed me to help make positive impact on my community.

Since forming part of the soccer team, I have stepped out of my comfort zone due to the wide variety of age groups that make up the team. While feeling intimidated by others on the field at times, I have realized that those moments are where most of my growth is rooted. I have applied this mindset in my business courses as I have had to present to large audiences, participate in team projects, and act as a host for presentations done by speakers.

Varsity Soccer Player

Since my freshman year at Immaculata-La Salle, I have been part of the Girl's Soccer Team. I have been on both JV and Varsity teams, and captain of the JV team. From my time on the soccer team, I have learned important skills in leadership, team-work, and initiative which have helped develop my business mindset. From organizing team meetings to attending 4 weekly practices, forming part of the team has taught me self-discipline and how to manage discomfort. From a business perspective, it is important to maintain time-management and organizational skills in order to run a successful business. It is also important to develop good leadership qualities in order to people to feel inspired and get to work.

SALTT Club Member

My experience in SALTT Club has been mainly focused on lending a helping hand migrant children who live in extreme poverty, but only an hour and a half away from Miami. I have related to these kids on a certain level, as we both left our home countries and families behind in hopes of having more opportunities in the US. From "Back 2 School" trips to "Angel Tree" gifts to "Valentine's Day Candy Trip", my participation and engagement in the club and with the children has transformed the way I see things. This experience has allowed me to open my eyes and see the harsh reality which some people endure, making me appreciate the small things I take for granted. When thinking of my future career as a businesswoman, I am committed to prioritizing giving a part of the profits to charitable organizations which help the less fortunate to aid with funding and resources. I believe this will not only help them, but enable employees I work with and other members of the business community to take initiative in these important causes.

Service Learning

Hermanos de la Calle

My experience with the Hermanos de la Calle Foundation began when I was in 7th grade. My parish, St. Agnes Academy was dedicated to helping the less fortunate and homeless of Miami by preparing hygiene packages, packed meals, and donated clothes. However, it wasn't until I was in 7th grade that I was truly able to live the experience of going out to the Downtown area of Miami and delivering these goods to the homeless there. I have continued to show my dedication and commitment to the cause all throughout high school by going out at least once a month to meet, listen to, and help those who needed it the most. The weeks I did not go deliver the goods I prepared bagged meals with my mother and cleaned out my closet in order to offer anything I could. I have received over 150 service hours by the foundation for my collaboration and effort.

Mu-Alpha-Theta Tutoring

Being part of the Math Honor Society at La Salle, we are encouraged to help our community by providing tutoring services for students. This experience has allowed me to reach step out of my comfort zone, lend a helping hand, and inspire other students to enjoy and understand math topics. I have not only learned more about math myself, which I have been able to apply to my Accounting and Finance courses in the STEAM program, but I have enjoyed the hours spent after school engaging in my community.

Fill-a-Bag Clean Up

An important issue many corporations have looked over for some time is the environment. In the entrepreneurship course the program offers, we looked at business that prioritized environmental care and sustainability. When I saw the opportunity to participate in a clean-up at my school, I thought it would be the perfect opportunity for a cross-curricular learning experience as I was studying sustainability in both my entrepreneurship and AP Environmental classes. I spent an hour cleaning up garbage and waste that had washed up into the bay area and filled up 4 buckets. Participating in this enriching experience allowed me to see the reality of how important a well-maintained environment is regarding business ethics and our duty as stewards of the Earth.

Enrichment Experiences

STEAM Business Leadership Guest Speaker

I am lucky enough to have had the opportunity to listen to and participate in panels with successful business people based Miami due to the STEAM program. Sadly, due to COVID these meetings were all virtual, but I have been able to gain knowledge from experts who shared their journey with my class. The 2020 Business Leadership Panel was composed of entrepreneurs such as Elias Sayegh and Jorge Partidas (pictured above). Their stories inspired me to pursue international business as they endured many hardships and setbacks in life, but persevered. From this experience, I was able to gain perspective on how new technology has created a strong demand for those working in the international realm, which is my goal. I was also impacted by the knowledge they had gained from travelling abroad, which has inspired me to do the same in my future college career.

Motril Marine

My summers in Spain are spent of the southern coast, Granada, where a family friend owns the marina. I have seen this marina grow into what it is today, one of the largest importing/exporting ports of Spain. Last summer, I wanted to find out more about this business and how it had become so successful over the course of 7 years. The owner gave me a private tour as well as a detailed review of how the business is run. I was taken step-by-step through everything that is done. From filed paperwork, to negotiations with other European countries looking to distribute goods, to how profit was earned. Having the opportunity to learn about business growth and management as well as the sacrifice and risks that are demanded in order to succeed was very enriching. Throughout this experience, I did not hesitate to ask questions that allowed me to improve my understanding of a complex business venture. At first, I wasn't sure about the different departments within the Motril Marina or how it was run. At the end of the visit, I was aware of the requirements and steps needed in order to operate a business like this one.

Summer Immersion + French Program in Switzerland

My time in Brilliantmont School in Laussane, Switzerland has taught me lessons that I will apply to my life forever. I attended their 3 week summer immersion & French language program for 2 years. Here, I met people from different nationalities: Italian, Russian, Portuguese, Japanese, and Spanish. The experience I gained from being away from home for 3 weeks and having to live on my own has taught me to be open-minded, extroverted, understanding, and confident in myself. Today, I would say I am all of these things due to my experience in Laussane. I was able to visit cities like Geneva and Berne, learn about their history, and immerse into the french language. I took 4 hours of French classes everyday. Having lived through this is what inspired me to study international business, as I realized my passion for being diverse communities as well as serving as an intermediator with my English capacities. When taking the international business course, I found myself knowing much more than my peers about foreign affair issues, international case studies, and language barriers. I am confident I will apply the skills learned here into my future career as an international businesswoman.

Projects Throughout the Years

Sayja Powerpoint.pdf

Sayja Marketing Project

For this STEAM Project, my group was assigned the task of creating a product and marketing it through our own business. The product we selected was an animal-shaped ladle which would be useful for cooking, yet aesthetic. Our job was to create a business and marketing plan, and later present it to a group of panelists who would decide on the most creative and well presented product.

My group was chosen as the winner of this marketing competition for our organization, team-work abilities, creativity, and presentation.

This experience allowed me to dive into the reality of creating and owning a successful business. As a freshmen, I was unaware of my capabilities as a spokesperson and businesswoman, yet overcame my fear of public speaking and applied the skills I have developed in the program.

Case Study Visas

International Business Case Study

For the STEAM Project Sophomore year, I was assigned several case studies. When reading over these cases, I analyzed certain issues and violations which impacted businesses in different ways. I was presented with questions in which I had to apply my knowledge of Global Business Management in order to discover the causes and solutions of the problem. To do this, I analyzed and answered these questions in a way that showed my analytical thinking and understanding of the tasks. I was assigned different cases such as : the Catfish Dispute, the Banana Wars, H1-B Visas, and Mattel's Chinese Sourcing Crisis of 2007.

Above is the case study I completed on H1-B Visas. This topic became a grand area of discussion in class, as many of us are immigrants and interested in the topic.

Throughout this project, I was exposed to different scenarios which I had to analyze. This allowed me the ability to not only think outside the box to decipher real-world solutions, but also consider other people's views in order to find the most efficient strategy. The first couple of cases were more difficult , since I had never analyzed real-life examples in such detail. However, the practice experience from these case studies allowed me to become more confident in my knowledge and business decisions while enhancing my understanding of how international business impacts the world.

Finance Project

Managing Short Term Financing

For the STEAM Project Junior year, my partner and I analyzed financial statements for three competing corporations. These corporations were Starbucks, Dunkin' Donuts, and Tim Horton's. We were to complete an oral presentation explaining the Current Assets, Current Liabilities, Net Working Capital, and Current Ratio of each throughout a financial year. Our findings indicated that all corporations had has a negative working capital for that year based on their Consolidated Balance Sheets.

This project was extremely educational and useful for my understanding of the Finance course of the program. Before this, we had discussed balance sheets and analyzed them as a class. However, when having to do the exercise three different times by myself, and produce the results for my class, I felt motivated to want to expand my knowledge of the subject. By the end of the presentations, I felt much more motivated by the knowledge I had gained in the course, and more engaged with the financial side of everyday American businesses that are successful.

sites.google.com/view/sanoywellness/inicio

Sanoy Wellness

For this project, we were told to create a business from scratch. This implied making a business plan, a marketing strategy, and then present the business to the class as if they were "investors".

My group created a wellness company dedicated to transform the lives of women looking to shift their physical and emotional growth through our program. I was in charge of creating the website for the company (attached above).

Once the project was presented, my group was chosen as the one with the highest number of investors due to our hard work, program benefits, presentation, and overall group work.

Creating this company taught me a lot about improvisation. I had never designed a website from scratch, but took the challenge as an opportunity to learn. I also overcame the fear of public speaking and answered any questions the "investors" may have had. After working on this project for over two months, I was very proud of the results.

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