Ask Jetzabel Rodriguez how her friends and family would describe her, and she has a ready answer: kind, curious, and a leader. At Achievement First Providence High, the sophomore is among the top 10 students in her class and makes sure everyone has a role during group projects. At home, she’s often in the kitchen, cooking for her family and imagining a future as an executive chef.
Her interest began beside her mother. As a child, Jetzabel would pull up a chair to help prepare meals, earning the nickname “my little chef.” Today, she cooks dishes rooted in her Dominican heritage, including rice, beans, plantains, and sancocho, and bakes cakes for family celebrations. Her specialty is banana bread.
What she loves most happens when someone takes a bite.
“I like people eating my food and feeling satisfied,” she said. “I want them to say, ‘Oh my God, this is really good.’”
Now, Jetzabel is figuring out how to build a future around that feeling. She hopes to attend Johnson & Wales University and eventually become an executive chef. She has already begun researching the profession and exploring opportunities to gain hands-on experience, including plans to intern at a restaurant in Newport.
At AF Providence High, her Foundations of Leadership course has given her dedicated time to explore her interests and think through the steps ahead.
“At such a young age, I’ve always tried to figure out, ‘What do I do when I’m older? What is my purpose?’” she said. “FOL really taught me what my purpose is and what I want to do.”
Her counselor, Daniel Palmisciano, has been an important part of that process, encouraging her to consider what she can do now to prepare for junior year, college, and her eventual career. Having first worked with Jetzabel as her teacher, he has also seen how she approaches a classroom: ready to contribute and willing to push herself.
“Jetzabel’s leadership is something that really shines through,” Palmisciano said. “She leads by example. She is always volunteering, asking questions, and pushing conversations beyond a surface-level answer.”
He is one of several educators who have helped shape Jetzabel’s experience since she joined AF Rhode Island in kindergarten. Her journey began at Iluminar Elementary with founding principal Kevin Lohela and continued through Iluminar Middle before she arrived at Providence High. Along the way, she has been influenced by educators including Katelyn Mike, a former Iluminar Elementary teacher who now serves as Iluminar Middle’s principal. Lohela remembers Jetzabel as a joy and a light in the Iluminar community.
Jetzabel, second from the right, at Iluminar Elementary.
Today, she brings determination to both her schoolwork and her plans for the future. In addition to her standing among the top students in her class, she has earned high honor roll twice. She proudly wears the shirt she received during the school’s honor roll celebration.
“I work really hard to be the way that I am,” Jetzabel said. “Even if I make a mistake, I take that mistake and change it.”
Her family encourages her to aim higher, and her teachers and counselor help her see the possibilities ahead. Jetzabel brings her own sense of purpose to the work.
“I feel like I’m driven by myself,” she said. “I have this deep root of wanting to be a good student and being good to myself. That pushes me forward.”
There is plenty to learn between cooking family meals and leading a professional kitchen. Jetzabel is ready to begin, with a college goal, plans for practical experience, and a clear sense of what makes the work worthwhile: making something that other people love.
