Madeleine joined the Pace family in pre-first and has been an enthusiastic member of the community ever since. She is currently a tenth grade student and says that she enjoys all of her coursework. Since her time at Pace she has won the Orkin Scholar award once in middle school and once in high school. At Pace she participates in Cheer and Track and Field as well as being a member of the Knightly News. Madeleine would like dedicate her work to her parents and brother for always supporting her no matter what. 

John joined Pace in Pre-first and is involved in the cross country, swimming, and soccer programs. He serves as a student ambassador and member of the honor council. John has received the Wheeler scholar-athlete and faculty scholarship awards. Outside of Pace, John is a member of the Young Men's Service League, serves as an assistant coach at Brookwood Hills for summer swim team, and enjoys playing golf with his friends. John spoke in the fall of 2022 at the TEDx event, "The Game Behind the Game," was a member of the TEDx committee last year, and is excited to have the opportunity to co-chair this year's event. He would like to thank his family, friends, teachers, and coaches for always pushing him to work his hardest on the field and in the classroom. He would also like to thank Mr. Kaufman for his advice and support along the way in his TEDx experiences.

Robert A. Kaufman co-created TEDxPaceAcademy with Michael Fu '21 in 2019. He has organized all five TEDxPaceAcademy events to amplify exceptional students and stories. Kaufman earned his undergraduate degree from Brown, his Master's from Dartmouth, served as a Fulbright Scholar in Norway, and is currently pursuing his doctorate in Educational Leadership from the University of Southern California. He sees TEDxPaceAcademy as a living scrapbook to honor his grandparents, Rose Lubin Dreiseszun and Abraham Dreiseszun: may their memory forever be a blessing.

Harriet joined Pace in third grade and is involved in cross country, track and field. This year will be Harriet's second year serving as student council president. Harriet has helped her team win several cross country state championships and has also been apart of the 4x800 meter relay that has won two state championships and holds the 4A state record and the number three all time record. Harriet received the “courage to strive for excellence award” during her sophomore year for embodying Paces motto. Harriet would like to thank her family, teachers, teammates, coaches, and the entire athletic training staff for helping her get this far.

Graeme is a fifth grade student at Pace who is passionate about golf and spending time with friends and family.

Teah, a current junior, joined Pace in the 8th grade. She’s involved in Model UN at pace, winning awards at several models, a member of the social innovation fellows program, as well as an art’s laureate in the 8th and 9th grade. In addition to this, outside of school, Teah works at a doggy daycare, plays club soccer, plays guitar and illustrates. She’d like to thank her family for all of the support.

Bennett Cummings, a Junior at Pace Academy shares his expierence as growing up in Atlanta as being different than the people around him. Bennett is the Junior class officer for SAB and the Treasurer for Baking for Breast Cancer. He loves serving his community with Pace and is a dedicated counselor for Keeping Pace. Bennett is also very involved with his account Bennett’s Camera on Instagram as it has allowed him to share photos where he is happy. Bennett would like to thank his family and friends as they have helped him through high school. He would also like to thank John Hardesty, Madeline Ganz, and Mr. Kaufman as they have truly been a huge help in helping to create his speech and for allowing him to have his story told.

Hi, my name is Sam Halpern. I am 13 years old and a 8th grader at Pace Academy. I am proud of my Jewish religion and enjoy baking and playing sports.

Roman came to Pace Academy in 6th grade. He loves to play drums, draw from time to time, read non-fiction books and listen to lofi, hip-hop, and r&b. He plays sports such as basketball, soccer, baseball and football and dedicates everyday to his parents, grandma and great-grandma: Khristal Pace, Tolton Pace, Sharon Jackson and Helen Cotton.

Anika is a fifth grader in the Lower School. She started at Pace Academy in Pre-First. Her favorite subjects are math and writing. Outside of school, she likes softball, gymnastics, art, and spending time with family. At Pace, she likes the kind teachers and the excellent education she is getting. She would like to dedicate her speech to all her family and friends.

Nekhi Stover began Pace as a Freshman. For Pace, he plays football and baseball. He occasionally golfs outside of Pace. He is involved in the band program at Pace being in both the high school band and the Jazz band. He also started the school's percussion along with his fellow companion, Roman Pace.  He is also involved in the school’s Model UN program and has received a couple of awards for achievements made while participating. He tutors lower schoolers in the mornings, helping them sharpen their math skills. Outside of Pace, Nekhi is a part of multiple drumming communities where he has learned from master drummers and sharpen his stills in fixing and playing drums. Ultimately leading to him to starting his business cause High Pitched Drum Experts.  

Paige Vadnais entered Pace in Pre-First. She is the Sophmore Vice President and is involved in the Model UN program. Outside of school, Paige mountain bikes, plays the electric guitar, and runs her Etsy business where she sells upcycled and homemade clothes and jewelry. She would like to thank her family for being so supportive and giving her the privilege to attend Pace. She would also like to dedicate her speech to all the bands that have inspired her.