With the departure of Mr. Grapel, the former computer science teacher at Coral Gables Senior High School, the position became vacant, waiting to be filled as Cavaliers continued their journey in studying software design and coding. Mrs. Jolice Lewis, a former faculty member at Ponce De Leon Middle School, will be stepping up to assume Grapel’s role in the classroom, where students are eagerly anticipating expanding their technological expertise.

Growing up in the 1980s, when contemporary technology was first being introduced into classroom settings, Ms. Lewis was always drawn to computers. What started off as a hobby for video games in her adolescent years became her lifelong passion for computer science.  

“I’ve always wanted to do something with computers and programming and everything like that, because I think it’s great that you can create something out of nothing, and then be able to help somebody with it,” Ms. Lewis said. 

Although computer science is largely theoretical, it is grounded in scientific research. Understanding the fundamentals of this notion dates back to her exploration of technology during her formative years, which merely served as the foundation of her intrigue.

With this passion at the forefront of her mind, Lewis went on to study at Miami Dade College where she obtained her Associate of Arts Degree.  Ambitions of pursuing higher education prompted her next step, becoming a Panther at Florida International University. As time progressed, she decided that FIU was not the right fit for her and transferred to Florida Atlantic University where she eventually graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in computer science.  

Following her graduation, she joined the Ponce De Leon Middle School family as a clerical. Lewis then became the school’s drama sponsor, where she began to fall in love with working alongside students. It was during her tenure at Ponce that Lewis made the self-discovery that she wanted to become an influence on young adults by teaching her lifelong passion.  

“It’s different now because before I was a clerical, here at Gables I get to work work with and teach the kids on an everyday basis, and you know what I realize now is that teaching is actually fun and interesting, not as frighting as I thought,” Ms. Lewis said.

Her newfound love for teaching kickstarted Lewis’ career at Gables, where she is passionate about working with her students and teaching a myriad of diverse classes. Ms. Lewis will be teaching everything from Fundamentals to Programming to Object Oriented Programming, as well as the rigorous course load of the International Baccalaureate and Advanced Placement Computer Science classes.