Shining Knights: STEAM Academy senior Rozelle Brewster eyes career in graphic design

STEAM Academy senior Rozelle Brewster remembers moving to Mount Vernon when she was just four years old, trading her birthplace of White Plains for a childhood shaped by new schools and a new version of herself.

Rozelle has overcome her shyness while at STEAM and now leads an active social life, speaks up more and trusts her own voice.

“I feel like throughout school, I’ve always been really quiet,” she said in a recent interview. “But throughout STEAM, I feel like I challenge myself … I try to open up to people more.”

Her schedule is packed with rigorous AP classes in literature, calculus, government and politics and psychology. Asked why she takes so many challenging courses, she said:  “I feel like it’s good to be tested and at your limits -- to evolve from it.”

Rozelle’s growth didn’t happen all at once. Her academic journey took her through Rebecca Turner Elementary (when it was still known as Longfellow), then Hamilton, and later Mandela during the COVID-era shift.

When it came time to apply to STEAM, she described the process as “kind of like a college application,” built around writing an essay rather than taking a test. She chose a research-based prompt — a decision that, in hindsight, fits perfectly with her thoughtful approach to learning and life.

At school, she credits two teachers with helping her develop endurance when classes got hard: Brian Pally, who taught her AP history courses, and Steven Glinias, who taught AP chemistry.

Mr. Pally, she said, encouraged students before their first AP exam by emphasizing pride in the work they put in regardless of the final score. And Mr. Glinias helped her bounce back when her grades didn’t match what she was used to getting in middle school, she said.

Rozelle made a point of emphasizing her close family ties and parental influence.

She has two siblings, a 13-year-old sister and 9-year-old brother. She often helps with morning routines, including getting her brother to school before she heads to STEAM for second period.

Her father, who was born in Panama and moved to the United States at 18, works stocking shelves in a grocery store. Her mother, born in the Philippines, immigrated at 21 and works as a cashier in Scarsdale.

Rozelle recalled a period when her father faced back-related health issues and couldn’t work for several months.

“It was a lot,” she said, explaining how it pushed her to become more independent and help care for her siblings. “Even through his health issues, he’s still able to push himself and provide. So I feel like he is kind of a role model for me… to persevere even through the struggles.”

That same perseverance shows up in the way Rozelle balances her demanding workload, long hours doing her homework and building an art portfolio, which reflects a passion that began when she was young despite an initial interest in medicine.  

Her long-term goal is to work in design and advertising — potentially as a creative director — a role she believes will require exactly what she’s been practicing at STEAM: confidence, self-advocacy and connection-building.

As she winds down her high school career, Rozelle is busy applying to colleges in New York City – a list that includes Pratt Institute, NYU, Parsons School of Design and the New York Institute of Technology.

Through research, she found that art could be more than “just being an artist.”

“I realized… art can’t just be, ‘Oh, you just paint stuff,’” she said. “Every business needs a designer for their brand or identity.”

Rozelle pursues her artwork using poster boards, colored pencils and “a lot of sketchbooks.” Recently, she’s begun experimenting with digital art for the first time, using an Apple Pencil as she starts expanding how she creates.

Many nights, she and her friends keep each other on track, calling to check in and make sure everyone stays focused.

Even with all that effort, Rozelle has been learning a new lesson: taking care of herself, too.

“A lot of people say I work a lot, and I don’t recognize my achievements. I’m really trying to take breaks for myself because I always overwork myself,” she said. “I want to be more assertive, more confident … and just gain connections to where I can pursue my work.”

Outside school, Razelle has also used activities to break out of her shell.

During COVID, she got into dance, particularly K-Pop, and later joined a Hispanic dance club at STEAM, performing at school festivals including Hispanic Heritage and Black History Month celebrations.

She also participated in student government, National Honor Society and was part of Smart Scholars, including a later experience working with Lehman College and a professor she remembers vividly.

“He really encouraged [us] to be yourself a lot,” Rozelle said of Professor Jwendlen Nivens, who later wrote her a recommendation.

She said the STEAM teachers push students to succeed, but that her drive also comes from within.

“If you’re not driven to do the work, they’re not going to keep trying to push you,” she said. “You have to be your own.”