During the Summer of 2009, ten youth leaders from Community Youth Development were selected to participate at the Inaugural Lawton Chiles Leadership Corps. Organized by the Lawton Chiles Foundation, this two-day conference aimed to educate youth leaders on the alarming statistics related to education and to empower them to help Florida [...]
Archives for Florida Children
Florida Education: The Best Stimulus Plan is a Diploma
Here are the FACTS:
Nearly 104,000 students did not graduate from Florida’s high schools in 2009;
the lost lifetime earnings in Florida for that class of dropouts alone total more
than $27 billion.
Florida would save more than $1.5 billion in health care costs over the
lifetimes of each class of dropouts had they earned their diplomas.
If Florida’s high schools [...]
Educational March Madness: Brackets that Matter
For college basketball fans, March Madness is upon us once again. And while victory has eluded some of Florida’s teams, disqualifying them for NCAA tournament advancement, we can’t let another opportunity for victory pass Florida by; a victory steeped in the power [...]
Your Mission: Create a Summer to Remember
During the summer and away from the classroom, students tend to take a break from books and retreat into a more relaxed approach to life. While summer is a time for students to recharge and refuel in preparation for the upcoming school year, the break they take from reading can be detrimental. Unfortunately, the gap [...]
How do you respond to an F on your report card?
Did you know there are schools all around the country that focus on the strengths of their students first in their approach to education?
How would things change if we as a state began to focus on the strengths of our children?
Florida ranks 49th - Number of uninsured children
Florida ranks 49th. About 19 percent, or 763,000 of our children, do not have health insurance, versus a national average of 11 percent. Source: The Annie E. Casey Foundation Kids Count Data Center
Florida ranks 48th - Juvenile violent crime
Florida ranks 48th in the nation in juvenile incarceration rates, with a custody rate of 451.8 per 100,000 children ages 10 and up. Source: Every Child Matters Education Fund, “Geography Matters: Child Well Being in the States,” 2008

