The Miami Urban League launched its largest initiative to date to combat the problem of failing schools in Miami on January 4th. The Development Revolution, which the League announced on the first day of the new school season, will target parents and other adults in the communities surrounding Miami-Dade’s failing schools, most of which are located in predominantly Black neighborhoods.
The highlight the social problems in the communities where students who attend these schools live, the League also debuted an exhibit, called “Take a walk in my shoes through Liberty City,” which presented sobering statistics for Miami’s Liberty City neighborhood, where more than half of the population lives below the poverty line, and where just 4 percent of adults over 25 have a college degree or higher. The Development Revolution kick-off brought out longtime supporters of the League, including former Gov. Jeb Bush, who praised the effort and called education the most important issue facing Florida. Florida’s Commissioner of Education, Dr. Eric J. Smith, also attended the kick-off and expressed his strong support for the League’s efforts. Miami Urban League president T. Willard Fair serves with Smith on the state board, as chairman.
Miami-Dade School Superintendent Alberto Carvalho addressed the gathering at the Urban League, and stressed that despite the progress that Florida’s students are making, more must be done.
During the event, the League officially adopted Dr. Henry W. Mack/West Little River Elementary School, located just down the street from the Urban League offices. Principal Martha Harris was on hand for the kick-off, which included a flag raising for the Urban League of Greater Miami’s new Development Revolution emblem.
Unlike many educational programs that focus on school reform, or on students and teachers, the Urban League’s Development Revolution will focus on the adults. “Until the people to whom these children belong get excited, and energized, and outraged about educational achievement, we are not going to change these conditions,” said Fair. “Our communities will perish without a renewed focus on achievement, and you can’t produce that by talking to the children, if they don’t arrive at school ready, able, and most importantly, enocuraged to learn, by their parents, their preacher, their coaches, and by every adult they come in contact with on a regular basis.”
The theme of the Development Revolution is “Black is beautiful, and smart.” Fair hopes the theme will encourage young people to embrace education as a key goal in their lives. However, the program will target all students, including a focus on both Black and Hispanic achievement.
Related: Watch coverage of the Development Revolution kick-off on local news station WSVN.
For photos of the event, see below.
[flickr-gallery mode=”photoset” photoset=”72157623030144959″]
