Peter Musso is a dedicated Upper School teacher who has spent the last 20 years looking at each new day as an opportunity to make a positive impact on his students at NSU University School. What brings him the greatest satisfaction is witnessing his students' development, their ability to achieve their aspirations, and encounter authentic happiness along their educational journey.

Five USchool student-athletes on our soccer, track and field, baseball, and lacrosse teams were named first team, all-county honorees by the Miami Herald and South Florida Sun Sentinel.

Our Track and Field team closed out an incredible season with a 2A FHSAA State Runner-Up trophy and top 10 finishes in 4x100m and triple jump at states.

USchool students visited local radio station WAVE 92.7 to share about their upcoming ventures in radio broadcast. Next year, students in Advanced Broadcast Journalism will host weekly radio shows featuring everything from sports and entertainment to local news and politics. 

Three of USchool's rowing teams that participated in the SRAA National Championship Regatta finished in the top 15, earning a first place ranking in the Freshman Quad category, seventh in the nation in Men’s Varsity 4+, and 15th in the nation in Women’s Varsity 4+.

Relationships children establish with their parents influence and shape the relationships they form in the future, which proves true for Upper School English teacher Evan Grosz whose decades-long ties with USchool stem from his parents’ longstanding connection to the Nova Southeastern University community. As the son of two beloved teachers, a USchool faculty member for the past 28 years, and now a USchool parent, both education and Shark pride run deep in his family. For most of his life, Grosz felt driven to pursue a career in teaching, having witnessed the happiness his parents experienced in their educator roles and the bonds they formed with students that became family.

Four Class of 2023 graduates earned prestigious Silver Knight Awards by the Miami Herald. Recognized as one of the nation’s most highly regarded student award programs, the Silver Knight Awards honors students who have excelled academically and applied their special knowledge and talents to contribute significant service to their schools and communities.

Upper School students in our Independent Research Study course who spent the year conducting research on an original research question celebrated their hard work by presenting their thesis, surprising findings, and the "why" of their projects to parents and faculty at the IRS Symposium.

Students earned 20 nominations and eight awards at the South Florida Cappies Gala. They also performed “Our Lips Are Sealed” during the gala as a nominee for Best Musical. We are incredibly proud of the work students produced on and off stage this season.

Our Sharks robotics teams made a big splash at the VEX Robotics World Championship, bringing home multiple awards after competing alongside top teams from around the globe.

As the culminating event of their study on the legal system, third grade students participated in a mock trial at the NSU Shepard Broad College of Law's practice courtroom, demonstrating all they learned throughout the unit as they played the roles of judge, jury, prosecution, and defense.

Upper School students in our Law Fellowship participated in a culminating experience where they argued a hypothetical case before the Supreme Court, showcasing the skills and knowledge they acquired throughout this collaborative program with the NSU Shepard Broad College of Law.

Our Class of 2023 graduates received acceptances to prestigious universities across the nation including Princeton University, MIT, Yale University, University of Pennsylvania, Brown University, Nova Southeastern University, University of Florida, Florida State University, and University of Central Florida – just to name a few.

Success continues for our Middle and Upper School students Speech and Debate teams who placed in the top 10 in their respective categories at the Tournament of Champions and the Novice & Middle School State Tournament. 

Meet Class of 2023 valedictorian and salutatorian Sarah Guttman and Leah Kuker. 

We are fortunate to have watched them both flourish over the years as USchool lifers and grow into the exceptional leaders they are today. We wish them all the best and continued success as Sarah goes on to study at Duke University and Leah at University of Miami.

NSU University School Lifer Sarah Guttman is culminating her 14-year educational journey at USchool as the Class of 2023 valedictorian. Since she first started at USchool in junior kindergarten, Guttman has worked hard her entire Lower, Middle, and Upper School career to achieve this high honor and has excelled academically and in extracurricular involvements and service. 

Students that have an early start at NSU University School benefit greatly from our innovative, inclusive, and personalized learning environment, which is evident with Class of 2023 salutatorian and USchool Lifer Leah Kuker. Since the age of five, Kuker has embraced the USchool experience and taken ownership of her learning. She participated in a range of enrichment programs throughout her academic journey that not only helped her discover her passion for math and science but also gain the knowledge and skills she will need as a student at the University of Miami where she will pursue her goal of becoming a pediatric dentist.

HPCC Systems presented an inaugural event called Code Sharks that introduced Middle and Upper School students in our Computer Science internship and robotics programs to the HPCC Systems Big Data platform and the supporting Big Data Language, ECL (Enterprise Control Language). Students were introduced to three public music datasets, and a series of challenge questions were posed for each one. In a 7-hour workshop session, students split into teams and answered as many questions as possible using ECL.

Middle and Upper School students earned top awards in their respective categories at the 17th Annual Florida Statewide Chinese Competition.

Five USchool varsity boys soccer team members were named first team, all-county honorees by the Miami Herald and South Florida Sun Sentinel.

USchool students received 20 South Florida Cappies Nominations for their spectacular performance and production of the musical, Head Over Heels. We are so proud to see all their hard work pay off after a successful year of theatre.

Senior Sunny Suaya won Nova Southeastern University's Student of the Year Award. Representing the best of USchool, Sunny was awarded the honorary title for living NSU's eight core values and exemplifying leadership as president of student council and throughout her academic career at USchool.

At the culminating event of our Stock Portfolio Internship, Upper School students presented their investment ideas and insights to program advisor and Chartered Financial Analyst Dan Altman, their peers, and family members.

Sophomores Alejandra Coletti and Annie Schulze volunteered on a week-long dental mission trip to Vietnam where they assisted a team of dentists as they cared for more than 30 local patients. They also visited an orphanage and delivered goodies, including bracelets provided by members of our Operation Smile club, which supports and increases awareness of one of the world’s largest volunteer-based organizations with a global network of professionals who deliver surgical care to children born with a cleft lip or cleft palate in low- and middle-income countries.

Freshman Victoria Rybalka was selected to perform at the Chopin Foundation’s Young Pianist Concert, an annual event that showcases the future stars of classical music in live performances.

Junior Benny Kuttler has been collaborating on a project to develop RIFS-Reading, a new screening measure used to identify kindergarten and first grade students at risk for reading difficulties. This tool provides a low-cost, time efficient method to identify students who would benefit from early intervention.

We are proud to announce the 171 Middle and Upper School students who were inducted into the National Honor Society and National Junior Honor Society, respectively.

Three USchool varsity girls soccer team members were named first team, all-county honorees by both the Miami Herald and Sun Sentinel.

Four of our band students earned Superior ratings on their Solo and Ensemble state evaluations.

After a great season leading our Sharks to a regional championship and the state finals, USchool Boys Soccer Coach Thiago Oliveira earned the title of Miami Herald’s Broward County Boys’ Soccer Coach of the Year.

Nineteen Upper School students attended the Florida State Thespian Festival, the biggest high school festival in the world with more than 12,000 attendees, where they earned top honors in various categories for their Thespy pieces and participated in workshops with industry professionals, auditioned for colleges, and competed in individual categories. 

A group of USchool students and teachers volunteered at NSU's Marine Environmental Education Center at the Carpenter House for a beach cleanup, invasive plant removal, and turtle feeding as part of the annual All Fins In Ultimate Community Service Day.

Senior Rafael Guerra-Guimaraes was named Boys’ Soccer Player of the Year by the Florida Dairy Farmers for Class 3A and the Miami Herald and South Florida Sun Sentinel for Classes 4A-2A. Voted by coaches and media reps, Rafael is now a finalist for Florida’s Mr. Soccer award.

Senior Bradley Ginsburg won second place in the poem/essay category of Nova Southeastern University’s annual Holocaust Reflection Contest.

Mikaila Ulmer, founder and CEO of Me & the Bees Lemonade, inspired, encouraged, and empowered our future social entrepreneurs by sharing her entrepreneurial journey and how her passion for bees drove her to create a successful business with a purpose-based brand. A former Shark Tank contestant, Mikaila is a dynamic leader, businesswoman, and published author who is committed to biological diversity and the ability to make a positive impact on a local and global scale.

More than 30 Middle and Upper School French students competed in the annual Congrès de la Culture Française en Floride and brought home numerous awards for their individual and group competitions in the following categories: poetry recitation, impromptu speaking, reading comprehension, project, singing, and short skit.

Three of our exemplary students – Irie Gowen, Cora Rodriguez, and Gabriella Egozi – were named Pinnacle Award winners by the Broward County Non-Public School Association.

Students in our Psychology Internship visited Nova Southeastern University's Neuroscience Laboratory in the Center for Collaborative Research where they dissected a sheep brain. Led by NSU neuroscience faculty member Dr. James Muñoz, students learned how remarkably similar the anatomy of a sheep brain is to the human brain.

The Miami Herald selected our very own varsity girls soccer coach Diego Estremedoyro as the Broward Girls’ Soccer Coach of the Year. Diego led our incredible varsity girls soccer team to win a district championship and first regional title this season.

Seventeen qualified Speech and Debate team members recently competed at the state championship and brought home several top awards including first place in Public Forum Debate and third overall.

Our award-winning robotics teams at all three levels earned the title of tournament champions and will go on to compete at the worlds championship event. The Lower, Middle, and Upper School teams brought home several championship banners, trophies, and awards including the Excellence Award (the highest award presented), Skills Champion Award, Amaze Award, Design Award, and Innovate Award.

USchool's baseball team gave back to the Davie community by helping paint, pressure clean, and improve the fields and fencing at the Bamford Sports Complex for the town’s children who use the recreational facilities.

Both are varsity girls and boys soccer team ended the season strong as regional champions, earning runner-up trophies at the state championship.

Five Upper School students earned a combined total of 17 regional Scholastic Art and Writing Awards. Out of more than 300,000 works of visual and literary arts, one USchool student earned a National Silver Medal for her writing piece that exemplified originality, technical skills, and the personal voice.

Fourteen Upper School students competed in the National Science Bowl’s South Florida Regional Competition and had great success. Team 1 made it into the Top 10 and Team 3 came in second place overall.

Upper School math teacher Sharon Smith is a long-time member of the NSU University School community. Her immersion into our community first began as the daughter of an NSU alumna and sibling of a USchool graduate. Fast forward to today, Smith has been an advocate of our programs, mission, and students as both a USchool educator for the past 35 years and parent to two Lifers, also known as students who begin their journey at USchool in Preschool and remain with the school for 13+ consecutive years.  

Through our Razor's Edge Global program, a mentorship experience for international students in the Upper School, students have had the opportunity to connect with international graduate students from Nova Southeastern University who provided information about their college journey and helpful tips for how to be successful.

Seniors Christian Cassamajor-Paul and Sarah Guttman have advanced to finalist status in the prestigious and highly competitive National Merit Scholarship Program. Christian and Sarah represent the top one percent of program entrants and will be considered for Merit Scholarship awards based on their academic abilities, skills, and accomplishments.

Sixteen students on our Speech and Debate team qualified to compete at the Varsity State Championship tournament after their success at the FFL Region Qualifier. Students also earned top recognition at the Stanford Invitational where they competed against students from schools across the country.

Upper School students involved in our HOSA-Future Health Professionals club earned first and second place in their respective categories at the regional competition and are advancing to states.