It's All About the Students:
Don't Want to Be First Shot Interest Club at iPrep Academy
By Alex Rabaron, a Sophomore at iPrep Academy, with assistance from Ms. Keller, Sponsor and Teacher at iPrep Academy
Don't Want to Be First Shot Interest Club at iPrep Academy
By Alex Rabaron, a Sophomore at iPrep Academy, with assistance from Ms. Keller, Sponsor and Teacher at iPrep Academy
Don’t Want To Be First Shot (DWTBFS) is an iPrep club for middle and high school students that is dedicated to honoring victims of school shootings/ gun violence and increasing awareness of gun violence and gun control. The club focuses on victims and makes an aim to memorialize them. The club's mission is to enforce stronger gun laws in order to make schools safer. Each year, the club chooses to focus on specific gun violence victims, while having a main goal to present their work in a major project.
Group picture after Pulse Panel Discussion of First Shot board members, panel speakers, Mr. Major, and Assistant Principal Ms. Gonzales
DWTBFS Academic Year 2021 - 2022:
Last school year, the club memorialized the Orlando Pulse Nightclub tragedy, which culminated in a full day showcase.
The event began in the iCafé where three invited guests shared their experiences with gun violence. Amanda Grau was the first speaker who verbalized her tragic experience at Pulse nightclub. The next speaker, Isabella Ensign, a college student from FSU, explained her involvement with the student organization called Students Demand Action. And, the third speaker, Audrey Onyeike, is a program director of the Education Fund. Afterwards, the panel took questions from our students.
Last school year, the club memorialized the Orlando Pulse Nightclub tragedy, which culminated in a full day showcase.
The event began in the iCafé where three invited guests shared their experiences with gun violence. Amanda Grau was the first speaker who verbalized her tragic experience at Pulse nightclub. The next speaker, Isabella Ensign, a college student from FSU, explained her involvement with the student organization called Students Demand Action. And, the third speaker, Audrey Onyeike, is a program director of the Education Fund. Afterwards, the panel took questions from our students.
iPrep students discussing Pulse victim portraits in the event showroom
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After hearing Grau’s story about her experience surviving the Pulse massacre, the panel discussion included Grau; Isabella Ensign, a student at FSU pursuing a BA in Editing, Writing, and media; and Audrey Onyeike, who helps fund projects and social projects such as Outright Action International, an LGBTQ human rights non-govermental organization. The panel was a forum on gun violence, discussions about holding legislative bodies accountable, and information about restricting guns from people who are not fit to carry a firearm. It is important to note that this club is not anti-gun, and instead, their focus is to bring awareness to gun-control, like including background checks to those who are unfit to carry a firearm.
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After the panel discussion, students and adults were able to spend time viewing and interacting in classrooms. In Mr. Major’s classroom, the club showcased children that were killed in summer 2021 while also providing an interactive website on the Promethean Board created by Maximo Martin and Bruno Gaston. Also, in Ms. Hankollari’s room there were displays of hand drawn portraits by club members (primarily Sofia Maya) memorializing the victims of the Pulse shooting. In both Breakout Rooms there were podcasts featuring the DWBFS students explaining their work, documenting what they did throughout the year
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However, the work does not stop in the school building. Mr. Major makes it his mission to extend the students’ work wherever he sees the opportunity. In early 2022 there were many rallies and coordinated marches around the country to push Congressional legislators to act on gun legislation. In fact, Mr. Major attended the City of Parkland's March for Our Lives event June 11, 2022 where he brought and displayed the DWBFS students’ work, the portraits of victims (our history teacher, Ms. Gelber, attended as well and held portraits with Mr. Major). And, this past summer, Mr. Major was also able to go to Washington D.C to present the students' work at the Capital. Even when Mr. Major had a connecting flight in Orlando, he visited the Pulse Memorial to present the portraits and take pictures. |
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Mr. Major credits the activism to recent legislation passed by Congress,The Safer Communities Act June 25, 2022, which was signed into law by President Joe Biden. Mr. Major confirms that “The provisions of The Act was a huge move in the right direction, but there is so much more that can be done. The students, our students, The First Shot students were a part of the push that made this act possible.”
DWTBFS Academic Year 2022 - 2023:
DWBFS’s focus for the 2022-2023 school year is to memorialize students who have died in school shootings since Parkland (March 2018) in the United States. They are also duplicating last year's goal which is to portray victims who have died of gun violence in each state. For a special event this year, DWBFS has planned to go to the city of Parkland and present portraits of all 17 victims. Another goal this year is to petition to the Local Governments of Parkland to encourage them to change the laws. Each victim will be presented on DWBFS’s social media, portraits, and podcasts. This work includes research, writing, podcasting, revising their website, drawing, writing poems and organizing the showcase and community action.
DWBFS’s focus for the 2022-2023 school year is to memorialize students who have died in school shootings since Parkland (March 2018) in the United States. They are also duplicating last year's goal which is to portray victims who have died of gun violence in each state. For a special event this year, DWBFS has planned to go to the city of Parkland and present portraits of all 17 victims. Another goal this year is to petition to the Local Governments of Parkland to encourage them to change the laws. Each victim will be presented on DWBFS’s social media, portraits, and podcasts. This work includes research, writing, podcasting, revising their website, drawing, writing poems and organizing the showcase and community action.
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But the real work “under the iceberg” is fascinating
After interviewing Mr. Major, the club sponsor and other members, it is MOST fascinating to learn about the effort and functions of DWBFS all year long. Mr. Major’s metaphor for the club is most appropriate, as Major explained in an interview: “What you see is like and iceberg, the tip of an iceberg. There is so much happening underneath.” For example, students begin in the summer planning the year ahead. President Estrella Martin and Mr. Major meet to prepare the preliminary research and issue the work in the fall. It is notable that DWBFS is entirely student run. President Estrella Martin, First Vice President Imani Antionitaffe, and Secretary Michelle Chinchilla keep the club running. After Mr. Major modeled the content and structure of their podcasts, Estrella became the director of the podcasts, while she makes sure everyone gets their jobs accomplished. Imani is in charge of fundraising and helping Estrella. Michelle, as Secretary, makes sure everyone is properly doing their job and keeping the members on deadline. |
Portrait of Amanda Grau illustrated by Sofia Maya, Art Director
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There are multiple students in charge of research and writing. Christina Ganem, the Editor In Chief, reviews all of the social media posts, written research (on the website and magazines) to make sure everything is correct. One of iPrep’s middle school students, Mateo Acero, is in charge of researching each victim using the club’s acronym, LATS– Life, Amendment, Tweet, Statistics. Nicholas Saballos, now a student at the School for Advanced Studies, is in charge of government and legal information, updating students DWBFS about legislation on gun violence. In their research, Nicholas along with Shelby Edwards, call government offices where children were killed to report their standing on gun violence (which, they have found, is very little). Finally, in production is a magazine, led by Cecilia Accettura and Gabriella DeSouza, that will portray the victims of gun violence.
First Shot members posing in front of tribute to Marjory Stoneman Douglas Shooting
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Thus, one of the important activities for the students in DWBFS is to portray each victim– to put the face with the name. Sofia Maya, Art Director, has produced many of the portraits, and she created a rubric for student artists to use as they portray victims for the future of DWBFS. This year, adding technology, Nicole Cohen, representing a partnership with CodeArt, is in charge of digitally duplicating the portraits of victims for the website. First Shot also has a podcast, produced by Alex Zheng and Carlos Roig who are in charge of the technical and editing part of the podcast. They interview students in the club to talk about their jobs during the school year. Estrella Martin, President, makes sure the podcast runs smoothly.
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Final Thoughts
DWTB First Shot is a victim focused group mainly run by students. In this club there are a multitude of smaller groups which memorialize victims in a specific way. Students work around the clock, each with different tasks to produce a project at the end of the year. Including portraits of the victims, podcasts talking about each role in the club, dedication from all the students and Mr. Major.
DWTB First Shot is a victim focused group mainly run by students. In this club there are a multitude of smaller groups which memorialize victims in a specific way. Students work around the clock, each with different tasks to produce a project at the end of the year. Including portraits of the victims, podcasts talking about each role in the club, dedication from all the students and Mr. Major.
Special thanks to Mr. Major for his time, guidance, and wisdom helping us complete this article. If you want to check out the club, visit their website at dwtbfirstshot.org or their Instagram @dwtbfirstshot
