On Thursday, April 22 and Friday, April 23, 2021, twenty teams from Miami-Dade County Public Schools presented their inventive solutions to combat critical issues within their communities over Zoom to a panel of judges comprised of local Miami leaders. Solutions ranged from a school-wide compost program to a financial literacy course for students and parents alike. The grand prize winners were Team YOU MATTER! from Dorothy M. Wallace COPE Center (COPE South), Team Progressors Over Poverty from Miami Norland Senior High School, and Team Agents of Change from Miami Palmetto Senior High School.

• Dorothy M. Wallace COPE Center- COPE South chose the challenge on mental health issued by social entrepreneur Solome Tibebu. Team YOU MATTER! designed a program that provides support and motivation for youth of all cultures experiencing social and emotional issues such as depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, parental concerns, gender identification, and general stress.
• Miami Norland Senior High School chose the poverty alleviation challenge issued by Helah Robinson of LIFT, to increase financial literacy and create awareness of resources such as banking options for students to form a better future for families in their community. The goal was to ensure that all young people understand that poverty is not a lone fight, and there are places to lean on when you are falling behind.
• Miami Palmetto Senior High School chose the challenge issued by Leisha John of Ernst & Young, which asked teams to enhance the environmental literacy of their classmates. Team Agents of Change fostered climate literacy and sparked civic action in their community by hosting cross-generational youth-led conversations on climate change to enact legislation to reduce Miami’s carbon footprint.

Winning teams received a MacBook Pro laptop, AirPod Max headphones, and $2,500 scholarships for continuing education.

Additional awards were presented to teams from North Miami Senior High School for People’s Choice, John A. Ferguson Senior High School for Collaboration, Ronald W. Reagan/Doral Senior High School for Originality, and Homestead Senior High School for Resilience.

Relive the celebration of the twenty teams from Miami-Dade County Public Schools who participated in Aspen Challenge: MIAMI 2021, designing and implementing solutions for some of today’s most pressing issues. Teams presented their work during the virtual Solution Showcase on April 22nd and 23rd. The embedded video below is from the Awards Ceremony after the conclusion of presentations on April 23rd.