In the mid-1970s, Saturday morning cartoons were still finding their way. The major networks hadn’t yet fully figured out the powerful connection of children’s entertainment and in-store purchases as they would in the next two decades.  

An early arrival on the children’s television programming scene was Schoolhouse Rock! The animated show ran for six seasons and was heavy on education, especially about science, grammar, economics and civics. One of the most-remembered episodes covered how a bill became a law. It became a classroom staple of social studies teachers for years to come. The story follows a walking, talking bill through the chambers of Congress and to the White House where it is signed into law.

The three-minute piece is very matter-of-fact, absent of politics and makes no assumptions about what a viewer may or may not already know about the legislative system – check it out on YouTube.  

I share this because it reminds me of how I’m often asked just how grants made by the Community Foundation of Sarasota County came into being and what results donors hope to see as a result of a gift made in the name of philanthropy.

In my “Schoolhouse Rock” version of demystifying how a charitable giving can transform our community, this is what I share:

There are three branches of philanthropy: those who dream, those who unite and those who realize. It takes all of us.

Gifts are the vehicle to make change.

Gifts are given on behalf of individuals and families who have a deep sense of caring and responsibility to help with issues close to their hearts.  They want to make the greatest impact possible with their gifts. 

Gifts vary in size. During the Giving Challenge – our community’s annual online giving day that returns in April of next year – the average gift is around $50. Sometimes gifts made through our foundation are 1,000 or 10,000 times that size. The point is that all gifts make a difference, no matter the amount.

Philanthropic giving represents the needs of and wishes for our community. Giving is highly personal. Donors support both what makes their hearts soar and that which breaks their hearts.

When our community foundation is able to bring together like-minded, giving people around different causes, the potential is multiplied for gifts to make a greater difference. That is when we evolve from a community that responds to emergencies (always necessary and possible through Season of Sharing, which knows no season) to a community that changes systems and circumstances that challenge us (the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading is one such example).

If there is a change you want to see in our community, please tell me about it. The Community Foundation of Sarasota County exists to improve our region. While “Schoolhouse Rock” teaches us that legislation defines what activities are permissible, charitable giving opens the door to what is possible and achievable. For that, no special session is needed.

Roxie Jerde is president of the Community Foundation of Sarasota County 

WARNING, The following content contains satire. If you have been experiencing sense of humor failures please remain in your safe zone and move to the next item in the Daily.

Not all four-letter words are bad. Here are three words you should be aware of.

MOTE

Okay MOTE, now it’s your turn to be the public policy piñata. It’s time to beat you with a stick so hard it makes a hole and then we can see what comes out.  Well, blessed be the folks with the big visions, they provide hope for the world. Wow MOTE, what an amazing opportunity, not just for our community but for the 3.16 Million who live within one hour’s drive of the proposed aquarium site. There are many benefits on this project but I want to focus on a real simple one.  When you were a kid in elementary school two of the most beautiful words were FIELD and TRIP. I was spoiled rotten with field trips growing up right outside NYC. The best museums, planetariums, gardens; the best field trips. The day that field trip permission slip went out if you saw me you might have thought that I had one of the golden tickets. By 3:05pm I was in front of my mom, permission slip in one hand and pen in the other.  Yes, kids love field trips, how do we know; no kid is ever sick on a field trip day. MOTE will be an amazing place for school field trips. Who knows, could be a great new way to test the usefulness of a public private project; how many field trips can be generated. Certainly a better use of time then talking for hours about how many of the other kind of “trips” it will generate. Just saying.

STOP

From their website: “STOP! is a civic group formed to safeguard the growth and development of the City of Sarasota. Our focus concerns the city’s zoning regulations. Currently, these codes prevent formal citizen input and feedback on pro posed development in our downtown while creating hulking buildings on narrow sidewalks, unrealistic traffic planning and walkability/ pedestrian hazards. The new Form-Based Code, currently under consideration, would reduce public input in all outlying areas of the City.” Okay, this is confusing to me because last time I checked, STOP sounds a bit like a plan for inaction. However, it’s not just really transparent, it’s really simple.  YES… STOP… the only truly universal injunction; perfect for political bumper stickers for issues that are not burdened with nuance, you know, like urban planning.  As I said, I appreciate STOP’s transparency since I’ve heard just about every red herring and straw man concern whether it’s on growth policy or on site specific issues.  So although I disagree with STOP and in fact would like them to STOP, I really do appreciate their clarity.

STOP has their sights set on the June 3rd city commission meeting where “the approval process for large new buildings” will be discussed. So let me guess, you want to STOP the current process? May I ask just how large “large” is? It’s true some projects are large, that is a fair point but some projects are not. So STOP… Yes, that seems like a reasonable course of inaction. Come to think of it, let’s not bother with bumper stickers, let’s get special license plates. You might want to watch that meeting on June 3rd or better yet, STOP by. Pardon me but this is a city, not a country club at it’s maximum membership level.

BEST

BEST: Boosting Effectiveness and Supporting Transparency. That’s complicated, that’s significantly more complicated than STOP. BEST is a new non-partisan group formed by Joel Schleicher and Jonathan Mitchell, two city residents and philanthropists who would like to see city governmen t operate more effectively. And by this they potentially mean, no city government; just county government. All of it; pensions, parks, drainage, roads, police, planning, building, water etc. Hmm, well there are two types of issues in local government, complicated and very, very complicated. This item falls in the latter category. However, these are two extremely credible gentlemen and no matter the outcome, there is much we can learn from this inquiry. I will say this, if this discussion gets traction then it will likely be the only thing we will be discussing in one form or another. That might not be a bad thing. BEST is having an introductory event on May 8 at 5:30pm at the Bird Key Yacht Club.

Paul Caragiulo is a former Sarasota city and county commissioner. 

Photo Illustration by Paul Caragiulo.

In last month’s column I wrote about the importance of individuals and organizations remembering their purpose—their why.

At the annual STRIVE Awards luncheon held recently, the Education Foundation of Sarasota County had the privilege of recognizing 62 juniors and seniors who individually and collectively represent our organization’s WHY. Their stories show impressive resilience, grit and courage in overcoming setbacks to graduate from high school.

There was an earlier time when educators, parents and advocates could leave an event like STRIVE Awards, comfortable in the expectation that students graduating with a high school diploma had good opportunities for going forward with their next chapter.

That premise does not hold true now as the 21st century forces us to address harsh realities. Every one of this year’s STRIVE students representing the Class of 2019 has a plan for postsecondary education. Their choices include technical college, military service, and two-year and four-year college degrees. Some aspire to earn advanced degrees.

They are wise to further their education. Their personal success and our society’s well-being depend on innovative, educated young people being prepared to solve complex problems in the modern world.

In short, this is why the EFSC invests in meaningful and important work that goes beyond supporting students to get their high school diplomas.

The emphasized words in the following underscore our bigger purpose: Our vision is to see students graduate from high school prepared to successfully get to and through their postsecondary paths and equipped to flourish in productive careers.

Yet, we know, and a growing body of research supports, that success in high school doesn’t necessarily translate to success in college and other post-secondary pursuits.

The reasons for this are numerous and complex and are explored in a timely and evidence-based research document, “The Opportunity Myth,” as shown in the following excerpt:

“For years, getting more students through high school has been a huge goal of educators and policymakers across the country. The effort has largely paid off: High school graduation rates have risen steadily, past 80 percent. (Note: Sarasota County Schools 2017-18 graduation rate was 89.8 percent.)

“When students collect their diplomas, they believe they are prepared for what’s next—because that’s what they’ve been told throughout their K-12 years.” 

Based on weighty research,  “The Opportunity Myth” cites key resources behind high-quality academic experiences, how to close the outcomes gap for students who are behind their peers, creating programs and structures that address inequities of the status quo, the importance of high expectation environments, the damaging effects of implicit bias, and more.

Another excerpt further supports the authors’ points:   

“Millions of students across the country are working hard to get through school, only to find themselves ill-prepared to live the lives they hope for. They’re planning their futures on the belief that doing well in school creates opportunities—that showing up, doing the work, and meeting their teachers’ expectations will prepare them for what’s next. They believe that for good reason: We’ve been telling them so.”

“The Opportunity Myth” conclusion asks us to consider what it would take to make students’ school opportunities a reality.

This research is being discussed on a statewide level. The authors followed up their findings with examples of how to improve, and several local communities are participating in discussions about how to apply their ideas in partnership with organizations like Impact Florida and TNTP.  

The EFSC sees value in raising awareness of this report’s depth and complexity and its thought-provoking questions that cause us to critically examine structures that were designed based on inaccurate and possibly outdated assumptions that aren’t supported by facts.  

As painful as critical self-analysis might be, we do have choices. A place to start could be heeding what research suggests are four key resources that are necessary to students’ success.

As defined by the researchers, the four resources students need at school are: (1) consistent opportunities to work on grade-appropriate assignments; (2) strong instruction where students do most of the thinking; (3) deep engagement in what they’re learning; and (4) teachers who hold high expectations for students.

We look forward to delving more deeply into this important research, and we invite community education champions to join the discussion.

Jennifer Vigne is president of the Education Foundation of Sarasota County. 

Photo: Jennifer Vigne (right), EFSC president, on stage with student STRIVE recipients from Pine View School.

This is a moment of truth for Governor Ron DeSantis. With limited public debate, Senate President Bill Galvano has maneuvered his pet project through the Legislature. SB7068 authorizes the construction of three massive toll roads, stretching from Naples to the Florida-Georgia line. However, as nearly 100 business and civic organizations noted this week, the plan is remarkably flawed and must be vetoed.

First, there is no transportation study to warrant the largest expansion of Florida’s highway system since the 1950s. This is highly unusual, and irresponsible, for a project that will tie up billions of public dollars in construction and ongoing maintenance.  To the contrary, a 2016 FDOT task force study recommended against new highways in favor of improving existing corridors.

Second, there is no mechanism for local input into the siting of highways or interchanges; amendments to address this problem were voted down. Developers and road-builders will benefit from the incursion of sprawl deeper into Florida. If past is prelude, cookie-cutter exurbs will displace rural residents as property values climb, farms and ranches sell out and jobs are lost. 

Third, the irreversible loss of natural areas may likely push our environment—and economic lifeblood—past the tipping point. The flawed wetlands mitigation banking system is unable to meet current demand. Furthermore, as reporters Craig Pittman and Mathew Waite have shown, even when mitigation occurs, artificial or restored wetlands provide a mere fraction of the critical ecosystem services—including flood protection, aquifer recharge, and pollutant filtration—as the natural wetlands that were destroyed. SB7068 will worsen water quality even as the state spends heavily to clean up its polluted springs, rivers, and coastlines in rearguard action. Though preservation is less costly and more effective than restoration, the Legislature has chosen to fund Florida Forever land acquisition at only 10 percent of its historic levels, while zeroing out conservation easement funding for working farms and ranches entirely.

Lastly, these new roads will not improve our safety from hurricanes, as Sen. Galvano claims. The deadly evacuation of Houston for Hurricane Rita in 2006 made this crystal clear. Instead, the state should invest in safe and accessible hurricane shelters in every local community and particularly in booming southwest Florida where need outstrips supply.

We know better and therefore we must do better, both for ourselves and future generations.

Sean Sellers is chair for the Suncoast Climate Justice Coalition. 

SRQ MEDIA hosted the fifth annual Women In Business Hear Me Roar Leadership and Awards Luncheon on Thursday May 2, 2019 at the Hyatt Regency Sarasota featuring nationally-recognized keynote speaker Geralyn Lucas, noted luminary Dorothy Butler Gilliam and the announcement of the winners of the 2019 Women in Business Competition.

Congratulations to this year's inductees to the SRQ Women in Business Leadership Circle: 2019 Women In Business Competition Winners Luz Corcuera, Johnette Isham, Terri Najmolhoda, Christine Robinson, and Sally Schule, and Competition Finalists Lynn Hobeck Bates, Mireya Eavey, Ashley McCollum, Lisa Moore, Kay Rosaire, Renee Snyder, and Rachel West.  

SRQ MEDIA would like to thank the 2019 Hear Me Roar Leadership and Awards Luncheon event sponsors for their support of this community platform: Seaside National Bank & Trust, Community Foundation of Sarasota County, New Balance Sarasota, Diamond Vault, Sarasota Trophy & Awards Inc., The Hyatt Regency Sarasota, Sophie’s at Saks Fifth Avenue, PSAV, Waterworks Sarasota, Gold Star Limousines, Muse Salon & Spa, Saks Fifth Avenue, and Sue Ellen’s Floral Boutique.  Thank you to the participants in the Hear me Roar Pop Up Boutique and to our three hundred attendees.  

Check out the photos here

Florida Studio Theatre has announced its lineup for the 2019 Summer Mainstage and Cabaret Seasons. On the Mainstage, FST brings music, drama, and laughter to Sarasota with an Off-Broadway hit, a powerful musical biography, and a sexy, smart comedy of manners. In the Cabaret, some of New York City’s brightest and most accomplished musical performers bring the music of the 60s and the 70s, the Golden Age of Hollywood, and Frankie Valli to life. 

Florida Studio Theatre

Enjoy an active evening of fun! Participants will enjoy games, relay races, basketball, dodgeball, playing with a parachute and much more. The City of Sarasota - Parks & Recreation District is happy to provide this free event on May 17 from 5-7 pm. All ages are welcome. Participants are asked to meet at the Front Office, located at 2650 Waldemere St. Pre-registration is encouraged. 

Registration Form

The Florida College Access Network (FCAN) recently recognized three leaders throughout Florida who have made impactful achievements in workforce education. Chris Laney, Director of Education & Community Investment with CareerSource Suncoast, was among those recognized for the launch and his continued involvement in the State of Jobs Conference. The Workforce Education Innovator Award winners were nominated by their peers and selected through a competitive process. They will be honored at a special awards luncheon on May 8 at Rosen Centre Hotel in Orlando, as part of the 2019 FCAN Summit. 

CareerSource Suncoast

To commemorate April as Autism Awareness Month, Music Compound (MC) donated $1,000 to Easter Seals in honor of MC student and YouTube sensation, Jennifer Msumba and her initiative, “ReBranding Autism.” Jennifer recently shared her journey with autism and how she creates the videos for her YouTube channel at her free MC “ReBranding Autism Workshop.” When she first joined the MC, Jennifer was terrified to get up on stage. But once she finally faced her fears, her anxiety began to melt away. Because, Jennifer says, “I was playing music. Something about the music helped my anxiety.” 

Music Compound

United Way Suncoast is pleased to welcome three new board members – Cheri Coryea, Karen Droz and Cynthia Saunders – to the Manatee Area Board for the 2019 term.  Board members are heavily involved in the development and execution of United Way Suncoast’s goal to help struggling ALICE families through educational programs that give children the skills to succeed, and helping adults achieve long-term financial stability so they can support themselves and their families.  In Manatee County, United Way Suncoast is particularly focused on early literacy and is the lead partner for the award-winning Suncoast Campaign for Grade Level Reading. 

United Way Suncoast

Local nonprofit, Project 180, breaks the cycle of incarceration and recidivism by providing workforce education and financial literacy classes for inmates and a residential program to provide formerly incarcerated men up to two years of stable residency, food assistance, transportation, and financial assistance. In April, Project 180 received a $230,000 grant to purchase the three-bedroom house for which the organization had been paying monthly rent. The program’s success was recently noticed by Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation. Designed by and for formerly incarcerated individuals, the school has the potential to become an economic driver in the community. 

Project 180