Confidence. Critical Thinking. Interpersonal Communication. Professionalism. Relationship Development. What a Leader (W.A.L.) is an exciting new training curriculum and youth competition offered by Jacksonville Arts & Music School (JAMS). W.A.L. officially launched in 2021 to promote early professional development. The program allows students to learn and participate in real-world activities enriched with challenges that cultivate essential leadership skills.​Research by The Center for American Progress reveals that 77% of corporations experienced leadership voids in 2019 alone. Gallup estimated that the lack of leadership capability costs U.S. corporations up to $550 billion annually. W.A.L. aims to address this significant opportunity gap by facilitating youth and young adult centered introductions to effective stewardship.

Participants in the workshop will learn about the risks associated with soil nutrient imbalance as well as ways to produce more sufficient, safe and nourishing food.

John Everett, Director of Workforce Development at Kids Hope Alliance (KHA) and the City of Jacksonville (COJ), has been named a Youth Excel Fellow as a part of the National League of Cities’ (NLC) Youth Excel Initiative.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Duval County education advocates know it’s not just students who are on social media, and they’re challenging parents to team up with their children for a social media challenge this summer. READ JAX, a community-wide initiative to increase third-grade reading scores in Duval County, announced the social media contest, “READ JAX Summer Social Challenge,” to highlight the importance of reading at least 20 minutes a day. The challenge runs through the end of July.

More than half of Duval County's third graders can't read at grade level, and the percentage has decreased over the past four years. Children from impoverished, minority communities lag the most, even though parents across all demographic categories recognize the importance of early literacy, according to new research from the Jacksonville Public Education Fund. Reversing the trend will take a communitywide effort that eliminates barriers that hinder parental involvement, JPEF says.