SWAG on Six, an acronym for Students Working at Greatness, is an ongoing series in which NBC6 profiles an outstanding high school student.
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Every high school would love to have a student like Kyla Hottz, the one who seems to be involved in everything, the kid who teachers rely on to get things done, the senior sought out by her peers for advice.
“They always think that I know the answer to everything when it comes to school or clubs,” Kyla said with a chuckle.
Her peers respect her because Kyla is an outsized presence at Monarch High School in Coconut Creek. She ran the recent homecoming events and the dance marathon, which raised $18,000 for Nicklaus Children’s Hospital. She’s the student council president, student government vice president, a debate team member, a varsity soccer team veteran, a Police Explorer; she even received her city’s Do the Right Thing award when she found a child who was lost – and the list goes on and on, a symptom of her relentless curiosity.
“To not be discouraged, because a lot of people give up right when something like an obstacle gets in the way,” Kyla said.
On this day, we watched as Kyla and her student government colleagues worked on projects with the special needs students.
“She’s a really great role model, especially to our new student government members who are just starting out as freshmen, and she’s a great role model to all of them,” said Julie Solinsky, veteran biology teacher and student government advisor.
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I asked her how Kyla compares to the best students she’s had in her career.
“She’s one of the top; she’s wonderful,” Solinsky said.
Of course, there are many ways to be a role model. Kyla’s friends tell us what sets her apart is her attitude: Completely selfless, always willing to lend a helping hand.
“She literally will go out of her way to talk to people who don’t have anyone to talk to,” said Daniella Abadir, a junior at Monarch.
“If she sees someone sad or down, she’ll always try to help bring ‘em up,” said senior Jake Weiner. “It’s super important because a lot of people have things going on you might not know about.”
“I try to do little things that will make their day,” Kyla said.
Kyla has learned the lesson many adults never figure out – that leading with empathy makes the best impression.
“Having empathy is the biggest thing because you never know what someone’s going through; that’s why it’s better to always be nice. Even if someone’s not doing something right or being disrespectful, they could have something going on at home,” Kyla said.
You could call it wisdom beyond her years, an innate feel for human nature which will carry Kyla through college and whatever her career path turns out to be.
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