Day 31: March 3, 2010

Miami has a rich tradition of powerful community leadership. Over the years, advocates have successfully tackled homelessness, education, health care and community safety. Additionally, the magic city has led the way in establishing a Children’s Trust, a special district supported by local taxes and entirely dedicated to children.

During our time in South Florida, the Worst To First team toured a world class facility, the United Way Center For Excellence in Early Education. This center is a phenomenal laboratory for cutting edge early learning and has partnerships with fourteen universities including Harvard. On top of running their own exemplary early learning school, the staff trains, certifies and provides resources to early learning schools throughout the region as well.

Visiting the center helped me understand the challenges and opportunities for early learning in South Florida and also underlined the need, statewide, to leverage this marvelous resource and all that they have learned about how to prepare our kids for success in school and life.

Towards midday, Harve Mogul, President of Miami-Dade United Way and Joe Pena, my friend and Director of the United Way Center, hosted a great luncheon with various leaders where many issues were discussed.

That morning I was also honored to address a group of about 70 community leaders at the Center and then we walked from United Way to Riverside Elementary, an outstanding urban title one school. As I walked into downtown and over the Miami River a group of cheering Miami Dade College students, about 60 strong, met up with us and marched toward their metro campus. Encouragingly, these students are leading Florida in community engagement and involvement. Truly, Miami is primed to advocate from Worst to First!

A very special thanks to Joe Pena for all his help!