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Located in Plantation, Florida; a beautiful, family-oriented suburb just west of Fort Lauderdale and north of Miami.

Located in Plantation, Florida; a beautiful, family-oriented suburb just west of Fort Lauderdale and north of Miami.

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Student-Led Initiative Earns Official City Proclamation

Student-Led Initiative Earns Official City Proclamation

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An exceptional display of community leadership and artistic service has earned students from American Heritage Schools high municipal honors. In August 2025, senior Elizabeth Xiao (Class of 2026) founded the Symphonies for Seniors – Broward Chapter, serving as President alongside Vice President Nelson Shi, an American Heritage sophomore. Over the past academic year, the student-led organization has utilized classical music to enrich the lives of hundreds of senior citizens across South Florida.

Measurable Community Impact

Under the administrative guidance of Xiao and Shi, the chapter has grown into a powerful regional network of youth artists. The organization's current metrics demonstrate a highly sophisticated operational scale:

  • 60 Student Musicians Mobilized: uniting performers from over 15 regional schools and collaborating with more than 20 professional music educators
  • 14 Concerts Executed: delivering high-caliber live performances across Broward County, with additional events scheduled
  • 10+ Senior Living Communities Served: providing therapeutic, high-quality musical programming directly to hundreds of elderly residents

A substantial cohort of talented American Heritage Schools students forms the core performance backbone of these events, including Elizabeth Xiao, Nelson Shi, Julie Ye, Alicia Suen, Noah Duro Andre, Lucas Dong, Byron Liu, Andrew Chen, Kabir Gandhi, Russell Bi, Conan Matos, Samuel Danzig, Shengzhe Ma, Allison Suen, Shengning Ma, Talia Grenir, Chloe Chen, Amy Wang, Haoxi Luan, Andrea Win, Braydon Xiong, Louis Chen, Jonny Jiang, Aaron Alter, Katherine Perez, and Jingxuan Zhou.

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Municipal Recognition and Commission Performance

The strategic and social value of the initiative caught the attention of local government officials. Following multiple successful performances within the City of Lauderhill, Mayor Denise D. Grant attended the group's concert on March 1, 2026. In recognition of their civic contribution, Mayor Grant presented the students with an official city proclamation, formally declaring March 1, 2026, as “Symphonies for Seniors – Broward Chapter Day.”

Elizabeth Xiao, Nelson Shi, and student violinist Amanda Nunez were also invited to perform at the City of Lauderhill Commission Meeting. The special performance allowed the student-musicians to showcase their artistic training before city commissioners, reinforcing the profound connection between elite arts education and meaningful community service.

More information can be found:

The group’s website: https://www.symphoniesforseniors.com/browardchapter

The group’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/symphoniesforseniors.broward?igsh=ODFoNXFrdWV3MHJw

March 1, 2026 Video of City of Lauderhill Mayor Denise D. Grant Announcing “Symphonies for Seniors – Broward Chapter Day”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2O4bmUNNr2c