(Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) – The Broward Education Foundation inducted the newest members to the Hall of Fame of Distinguished Alumni, which honors and recognizes alumni of Broward County Public Schools. The event was presented by BrightStar Credit Union.
The keynote speaker was Broward County Superintendent of Schools Robert Runcie and the master of ceremonies was Twan Russell, Miami Dolphins senior director of community affairs.
With the centennial celebration of the Broward County School System now underway in 2015-2016, it seems fitting that this year’s Lifetime Achievement Award, which is presented to an alumnus who is dedicated to improving public education, was presented to Michael H. Roland, student activities liaison and a 30-year veteran of Broward County Public Schools. Roland, a resident of Davie, graduated Stranahan High School in 1959.
Roland is founder of the South Florida Leadership Training Camp, an annual five-day leadership workshop for high school student leaders held at Nova Southeastern University. Since 1990, nearly 7,000 SFLTC campers have been given the opportunity to participate in a variety of leadership development activities that are conducted in both small and large groups. The alumni of the program represent some of the finest leaders in our community, across the state and throughout our country. Roland also administers and supervises the Student Volunteer Service Program, which he also created, the Teen Trendsetters Reading Mentors Program, which he brought to Broward County, and the development of student leadership. The result is that students in Broward County provide more than 300,000 hours of service annually to their schools and communities. The Lifetime Achievement Award was sponsored by Toyota of Hollywood.
The three inductees who received the Community Achievement Award, sponsored by Bank of America, for significant achievements in any field were:
Fort Lauderdale City Commissioner Romney Rogers, managing partner of Rogers, Morris and Zeigler, graduated from Stranahan High School class of 1971. A native of Fort Lauderdale, Rogers is a member of the board of the Fort Lauderdale Transportation Management Association, Broward Metropolitan Planning Organization and SunTrust. He has been active in a number of organizations including Greater Fort Lauderdale Chamber of Commerce, Broward Housing Partnership, Inc. Affordable Housing Non-Profit, where he is founding director, Stranahan House, Bonnet House, Rotary Club and more.
Dr. Rosalind Osgood, Vice Chair, Broward County School Board and CEO and President of Mount Olive Development Corporation, graduated from Fort Lauderdale High School class of 1983. She has served Broward County as a minister, social worker, teacher and community advocate. Among the organizations she is involved with are Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Fort Lauderdale Chapter of Links and American Association of University of Women. Dr. Osgood was the first female chaplain of the City of Fort Lauderdale Police Department. She has received the Bank of America Local Heroes Award, Friends of the Broward County Library Community Service Award and JM Family African-American Achievers Award, among others. She also is an inductee into the Broward County Women’s Hall of Fame.
A 1982 graduate of Hollywood Hills High School and resident of Pembroke Pines, Henry Rose is President of Unicol, Inc. and president of the Falcon Foundation. He spearheaded the effort to build the stadium at Flanagan High School through the Great Flanagan A Stadium campaign, which evolved into the Falcon Foundation, which raises funds for all nine schools in the Flanagan Innovation Zone. In 2014, Rose was a founder, officer and board member of Build Futures, Inc., which assisted in the passing of an $800 million Broward County School Board bond. Rose is active in the Miramar-Pembroke Pines Regional Chamber of Commerce and City of Pembroke Pines Planning & Zoning Board and sits on the board of directors of Family Central, Florida Consortium of Public Charter Schools, Visions of Images and the Broward College/Pembroke Pines Endowed Scholarship Fund. Previously Rose was involved in several education related boards.
The three inductees who received the Education Achievement Award, sponsored by Patriot Insurance Company, for their dedication to a career in public education were:
Shirley Baker of Planation is an Instructional Facilitator/Graduation Coach for Broward County Public Schools. A member of the first graduating class from Hollywood Hills High School in 1969, Baker founded Mentoring Tomorrow’s Leaders, a drop-out prevention, leadership development, re-engagement, peer mentoring program, which has been chosen as the best program making significant strides in increasing graduation rates, especially among black males. She has received numerous awards including Life Changer of the Year, Links Outstanding Educator and Urban League of Broward County Outstanding Achievement Award, among others. Baker is involved in several community organizations including Early Coalition, Broward County Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma theta Sorority, South Florida Leadership Council United Negro College Fund and more.
Thomas Keller is a post-secondary Automotive Instructor at Atlantic Technical College and class of 1976 graduate of Boyd Anderson High School. The Sunrise resident is a leading author for updating automotive curriculum frameworks to industry standards. He is an Automotive Service Excellence Certified Master Technician, certified in the Toyota Technician Training and Education Network Program and is a Skills USA advisor and state automotive skills committee member. Keller has received several teaching related honors and awards including Atlantic Technical College Teacher of the Year. He assisted in writing the Broward County Automotive Repair ordinance and served on the committee for three years.
Valerie Smith Wanza, Ph.D. is a resident of Pompano Beach and Director of School Performance & Accountability for Broward County Schools and member of the Miramar High School class of 1988. The owner of educational consulting company Principal Voices, Wanza also is an adjunct professor and member of the Associate Graduate Faculty at Florida Atlantic University. Wanza is involved in charitable organizations including Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and Koinonia Worship Center & Village where she is a volunteer educational advisor and program consultant for the annual academic tutorial program. She serves as an annual mentor to at-risk female students at select Broward County schools. She has been recognized with many educational leadership rewards, including being named Florida Middle School Principal of the Year.
Each of the honorees received a star in their name at the Wall of Fame Plaza at the KCW Administration building in downtown Fort Lauderdale.
“This is an illustrious list of Broward County Public School graduates who have made positive contributions to education, the community and have achieved success in their careers,” said Thomas P. Severino, president/CEO of the Broward Education Foundation. “It is with great pride that we welcome them into the Hall of Fame this year.”
Sponsors were BrightStar Credit Union, Toyota of Hollywood, Bank of America, Patriot Insurance Company, JM Family Enterprises, Inc., Hoffman’s Chocolates and Fort Lauderdale Media Associates.
About the Broward Education Foundation:
Established in 1983, the nonprofit Broward Education Foundation (BEF) aligns with Broward County Public Schools by providing support for innovative teaching to advance Pre K-12 achievement; critically needed educational materials for Title I school teachers and students, and scholarships for qualified high school seniors. Each year, the Foundation contributes more than $2 million to Broward County schools, serving as the catalyst for educational excellence.
For more information, call 754-321-2030, visit www.browardedfoundation.org, like our Facebook page and follow us on Twitter.
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