General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsA millionaire gave everyone in a Florida neighborhood free college scholarships
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An Impact Felt Across Generations
Epiphany might be too strong of a word
it was more of a voice. A feeling that now is the time. Youve achieved more success than you ever imagined. Its time now to recognize that youve been blessed
to be thankful and to share your good fortune with others.
Having had his own life so radically transformed by education, Rosen knew that this was an area he wanted to focus on, and Tangelo Park was the place.
Tangelo Park is built on land once used for orange groves. Originally built as housing for workers at the nearby Martin Marietta, it has become an isolated residential area. There are few services nearby for residents, and few public transit options. African Americans comprise 90 percent of the community, with many living below the poverty line.
I fell in love with the neighborhood, says Rosen. I knew I wanted to do some type of scholarship program for them.
The Tangelo Park Program, started in 1993, gives every neighborhood child age 2 to 4 access to free preschool. Parents have access to parenting classes, vocational courses and technical training.
For a program that took just one hour and four people to develop, the impact has been wide and deep. Tangelo Park Elementary is now a grade-A school. Every high school senior graduates.
But theres more. Much more.
Every high school graduate who is accepted to a Florida public university, community or state college, or vocational school receives a full Harris Rosen Foundation scholarship, which covers tuition, living and educational expenses through graduation.
Nearly 200 students have earned Rosen scholarships, and of those, 75 percent have graduated from collegethe highest rate among an ethnic group in the nation.
I was part of the first generation of pre-K children in the Tangelo Park Program. Now Im about to be the first generation of my family to go to college, says Antionette Butler, a senior at Dr. Phillips High School. Butler plans to use her Rosen scholarship to attend UCF and study neurology.
Donna Wilcox used her Rosen scholarship to earn a bachelors degree in interpersonal/organizational communication at UCF, and then went on to complete her M.A. in mass communications at the University of Georgia.
When people have the resources to go and succeed, theres a ripple effect, she says. It becomes generational. No one in my family ever went to college before, but now, my baby sister cant even picture a life without college. My mother even went back and got her degree. I showed her that she could do it.
After spending $9 million on his adopted neighborhood of 2,500 residents, Rosen was asked if the program has a stopping point.
I will be involved in the program until Tangelo Park is a gated community and the average home is selling for $1 million. Then Im gone.✦
https://pegasus.ucf.edu/story/rosen/
I guess he did not believe in No We Can't
narnian60
(3,510 posts)Fantastic, beautiful, uplifting story
shraby
(21,946 posts)Bernie's idea is better.
tk2kewl
(18,133 posts)We need to do better
kcr
(15,318 posts)I've heard of this guy once before. The mega-rich who help should also work just as hard to convince their peers that their greed is the problem. That should be the focus.
tk2kewl
(18,133 posts)They get massive donations from some of the most destructive forces in society to do some fashionably good stuff while providing their benefactors with tax deductions and inside deals
kcr
(15,318 posts)They often do more harm than good. Education reform is a perfect example.
UglyGreed
(7,661 posts)how great this man is. I posted this to show when people are given the resources they can and will succeed simple as that.
kcr
(15,318 posts)My response to the person I was responding to was an agreement with what I took was a general point that charitable solutions, particularly ones so specific and targeted like this aren't the answer. I was also trying to speak to the point of your OP. American society is trending ever more toward an individualistic way of thinking. The notion that "throwing money at a problem isn't the solution" is one result. Nothing is ever a systemic problem anymore.
UglyGreed
(7,661 posts)rude and forgive me as I misunderstood your reply. Just having a tough week physical and sometimes I leap before I look when my condition gets the best of me.
kcr
(15,318 posts)Especially not by DU standards during primary season My first thought when I read your OP was to think about how people say things like "You can't fix insert-poverty-problem by throwing money at it" Boostrappers love that phrase. Even though I don't think relying on charity is the solution, this does serve to show how that isn't true. Look how graduation rates shoot through the roof when you "throw money at the problem". Better funding and support of our public schools and pre-k programs would do wonders.
UglyGreed
(7,661 posts)does prove Bernie's theory if people have a chance to succeeded they will take that opportunity and make the most of it. We can all work to achieve this for our children if we only believe it can happen. I expect the right and far right to oppose this type of action but it really makes me sick to see it from some on the left.