By Janette Neuwahl Tannen [email protected] 05-06-2026

It could be a Post-it note-or several-stuck to your door with silly stickers and kind thoughts, a heartfelt card, or a gift, personalized for the recipient.

Those are some of the ways that University of Miami senior Margaret Todd shows her appreciation for friends, mentors, and co-workers. It is through these acts of kindness, or her sincere, upbeat personality, that Todd has the uncanny ability to transform the mindset of nearly anyone around her into a happier one.

"Marge is like pure sunshine," said Heather Stevens, assistant to the senior vice president for student affairs, who also helps advise Student Government (SG) and has mentored Todd. "She comes into a room with exuberance to be there, and she brings this positive energy that we can have a good time and accomplish things."

As a student leader, Todd's thoughtful approach also helps others feel included and heard at the University, whether it's in Student Government Executive Board meetings, in its ECO Agency-where she served as chair this past year-on the Homecoming Executive Committee, or in the Division of Student Affairs' communications office, where she worked for the last three years.

"She is so positive in every room that she enters but wants to make sure that other people feel that way too," said Ivana Liberatore, a friend of Todd's, who just finished her term as Student Government president. "At every executive board meeting, she was instrumental in fostering a community of friendship within SG, and honestly, within everything that she does. She is good at connecting people in every organization she is a part of."

Todd graduates with honors from the Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science, majoring in ocean sciences with minors in meteorology and geospatial technology. Her passion for marine science and the environment led her from Falls Church, Virginia, to the University and to ECO Agency, where she has been involved since her sophomore year.

As chair, Todd helped lead several sustainability initiatives, including installing a shaded, solar-powered table with charging outlets outside the Cox Science Building; planting a native butterfly garden with Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden; advancing glass recycling efforts; and organizing the first ECO Gala in partnership with the Abess Center for Ecosystem Science and Policy, said its co-adviser, Teddy Lhoutellier. It is one of many collaborative events she planned for ECO in the last few years, friends said.

Despite her many commitments-including Student Government, student affairs, and serving as vice chair of marketing for this year's Centennial Homecoming-Todd also completed an honors thesis examining how Saharan dust may fuel sargassum blooms in the Caribbean.

"It's unreal the time management skills she has, but Margaret gets it done," said Peter Kellogg, a recent alumnus, friend, and former ECO board member.

Her adviser, Maria "Josefina" Olascoaga, said Todd quickly mastered the coding needed for her research.

"Once she had it going, Margaret was very independent and quickly managed to analyze different regions and time periods with very detailed, clean coding," she said. "She learned a lot."

During her time at the U, Todd said one of her favorite experiences was working in the communications office at the Division of Student Affairs. She began writing articles for its news site, which has been a big source of support for Lindsey Hines, its director of marketing and communications.

"She started writing, and little by little, it has gotten to the point where I can just throw ideas at her, and she does interviews and creates articles," Hines said. "She has been a tremendous help because she takes the initiative, wants to learn, and does not want to be complacent."

Hines said it's not just Todd's productivity she will miss after graduation, but her bubbly, happy aura. Each week, Todd would scrawl an open-ended question on a whiteboard to engage staff in the office, and many times, employees from other divisions would come in to add their own answers or just read the humorous responses.

"She makes it her goal to include everyone and make them feel welcome," Hines added. "She is one of the most thoughtful students I have encountered at the U. And she is always thinking about others and not herself."

Outside of academics, Todd enjoys Taylor Swift and Hurricanes sports events. She rarely misses a football game and counts the football team's success this year as one of her favorite college memories. She met friends at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas for New Year's Eve and even made it to the National Championship at Hard Rock Stadium.

"I couldn't have asked for a more exciting season," Todd said. "It had my heart racing!"

She also helped coordinate a partnership between ECO and UM Athletics for the baseball team's April "Green Game," where they promoted sustainability efforts like composting.

After graduation, Todd hopes to combine her interests in marine science and communications.

"Because of the opportunities I pursued as a student, I was able to gain experiences in two completely different fields that have unique crossovers," she said. "Nowhere else could I be pursuing a senior thesis in ocean sciences while writing stories for News@theU. It is something that is unique to UM, and I am grateful I got to experience it."