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Student Leaders
Founded by students. Led by students.
All five Student Leaders serve as Co-Founders and Honorary Directors, attending and participating in Board meetings. Four Student Leaders also serve as C-Suite Executives, in charge of day-to-day responsibilities.
Michael
D. Harris
Chief Executive Officer,
Co-Founder & Honorary Director
Michael D. Harris is Chief Executive Officer and one of the Co-Founders of H2O, and has served as an Honorary Director since November 2024.
Michael is a student at American Heritage School Palm Beach, part of the Class of 2027. As a dedicated scholar and athlete, he has excelled academically, managing a rigorous courseload of advanced placement and honors classes. Since his freshman year, Michael has played varsity soccer and volleyball, and has played club soccer since 2019. Currently, he plays for Team Boca, a top-ranked national club, on its UPSL semi-pro team.
Michael is passionate about STEM. He is particularly interested in computer and mechatronics engineering. He is an active member of the Pre-Engineering Society and serves as the Vice President & ICC Rep for the SECME club. Additionally, he holds the position of President for the Black Student Union (BSU) at his high school.
Michael is looking forward to continuing to follow his passions into college, while continuing to work towards the mission of H2O and help those in need.
Kayla M. Ugarte
President,
Co-Founder & Honorary Director
Kayla M. Ugarte is President and one of the Co-Founders of H2O, and has served as an Honorary Director since November 2024. Kayla is currently a junior in high school and is currently on the honor role.
Kayla is also an involved athlete, participating in varsity basketball and varsity lacrosse for all three years of her high-school career. She received an award for being the "most-improved" player on her basketball team demonstrating her perseverance and dedication. She also participates in academic competitions, such as HOSA (Health Occupations Students of America) and the Florida State Spanish Conference in which she has received a "sobresaliente" (the highest ranking) for her impromptu speech two years in a row and helped her school to win first overall in their division during her sophomore year.
She also is an active participant in her community— as of the current academic year, she has more than 150 hours of community service without including the time she has devoted to H2O. In addition to running an H2O club at her school, Kayla is president of her school's Key Club, vice-president of the book club, and secretary of Spanish club. Through all of these organizations, Kayla aims to leave an impact on her community
Kayla is looking forward to continuing to help her community through H2O.
Khloe D. Ugarte
Vice President, Treasurer,
Co-Founder & Honorary Director
Khloe D. Ugarte is Vice President, Treasurer and one of the co-founders of H2O, and has served as an Honorary Director since November 2024. She currently is a middle school student, where she is on the honor roll and has received the "Highest Standing Academic Accomplishment" award in the 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 school years, which is rewarded to the student in each grade level who has the highest GPA at the end of the year.
Khloe also participates in multiple sports and extracurricular activities, including JV basketball, varsity soccer, varsity lacrosse, and the swim team. She also engages in academic competitions, such as the IAC Regional History Bee (in which she was a finalist in 2023 and 2025 and qualified for the national competition), and the MathCounts competition for her district, which she has done for her entire middle school career. She has served on student council as a representative for her advisory in the 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 school years.
For the current academic year, Khloe has more than 160 hours of community service, without including the countless hours she has devoted to H2O. She has volunteered several times at The Lord’s Place, a social services organization in West Palm Beach, and it was there that she had the idea to create a charitable organization. She also is a member of The National Junior Honor Society, an organization that recognizes middle school students for their academic achievement, service, leadership, character, and citizenship. Khloe is excited about helping to make a difference in the lives of people in our community.
Evie Burns
Secretary,
Co-Founder & Honorary Director
Evie Burns is one of the co-founders of H2O and has served as an Honorary Director since November 2024.
Evie is a senior in high school, where she is fifth in her class, and is dedicated to community service and making a social impact. She balances her academics with volunteering as well as her involvement in activities, both in and outside of school, with over 390 service hours.
She has been an officer (Secretary and current Vice President) of the National Honor Society, works part time at a local restaurant for the past two years, and has been a champion level Irish dancer for fourteen years.
She aims to inspire peers to get involved and create positive change in their communities, including through her work with H2O.
Michelle Roldan
Co-Founder & Honorary Director
Michelle Roldan is one of the co-founders of H2O and has served as an Honorary Director since November 2024. She is a freshman at the University of Delaware, where she is studying environmental engineering and friendly urban planning. She invested in H2O’s cause as she grew up in Miami, constantly seeing the struggles of the underprivileged and their hardships. She is excited to bring her creative spirit and dedication to H2O.
Adult Advisors
Board of Directors.
Although H2O was founded by and the day-to-day activities are managed by the Student Leaders, Florida law requires directors to be over the age of 18.
Driscoll R. Ugarte
Director
Driscoll R. Ugarte has served as a Director of H20 since November 2024. He is a corporate and securities attorney and partner with the law firm of Duane Morris LLP. With nearly 25 years of experience and leadership on transactions exceeding an estimated $15 billion in aggregate value, Mr. Ugarte is a sought-after advisor on mergers and acquisitions, capital markets, securities regulation, and private equity.
Mr. Ugarte serves on Duane Morris's governing Partners Board, a select body responsible for firmwide strategy, governance, and institutional leadership. He is also co-Team Lead of Duane Morris's Life Sciences and Medical Technologies Industry Group, directing sector strategy, client development, and thought leadership initiatives nationally.
Mr. Ugarte received his J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center and his B.A. cum laude from the University of Florida.
Danielle Burns
Director
Danielle Burns has served as a Director of H20 since November 2024. She is a consumer lending litigation and wealth planning attorney and is a Special Counsel with the law firm of Duane Morris LLP. She is admitted to practice law in Florida as well as the United States District Court, Southern District of Florida. Her practice focuses on consumer collection matters for financial institutions and lenders in loan default actions, tax, including estate planning, Federal Estate and Gift return preparation and filing, and probate and trust administration and litigation. In addition, Ms. Burns has experience in consumer lending litigation, specifically the handling of contested foreclosure litigation matters, as well as experience in contested family law matters.
Ms. Burns earned her Juris Doctorate and LL.M in Taxation from the University of Florida Levin College of Law.
M. Derek Harris
Director
M. Derek Harris has served as a Director of H20 since November 2024. He is a commercial litigator and is a partner with the law firm of Carlton Fields LLP. He is an experienced litigator who combines strategic insight with a results-driven approach in partnering with clients to achieve their business goals. Mr. Harris represents and advises clients through all phases of litigation, including trials of complex litigation cases in state and federal courts in Florida, Georgia, and Alabama. He has extensive experience with antitrust, catastrophic personal injury, class action, commercial contract, and insurance coverage and bad faith litigation.
Mr. Harris earned his Juris Doctorate from Georgetown University Law Center in 2002 and his bachelors degree from the University of Delaware.
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