Rose Ellen Greene

Located in the heart of Little Haiti sits Jesse J. McCrary Jr. Elementary School — a school full of young students hoping for the chance and opportunity to learn, to grow and to be enriched by all that a well-rounded education has to offer. What started out as a volunteer experience for community builder Rose Ellen Greene grew into a partnership with FIU and The Education Effect with expansion of the program into the school. Established in 2011, The Education Effect is a university community school partnership dedicated to improving educational outcomes in schools spanning Miami-Dade County.

Rose Ellen’s contribution to The Education Effect allows for transformational change to take place at Jesse J. McCrary. As a part of The Education Effect, the students, parents and teachers will be positively affected by the resources and opportunities that will now be made available at the school. The goal of The Education Effect is to create best practices for what the students, parents and teachers need in order to succeed in ensuring that the children’s abilities are properly nurtured to foster steady growth. For Greene, “The more you experience something, perhaps the more effective you can be in developing programs to respond to it.” In order to promote a transformational effect, it is imperative to start engaging with elementary school students because what they learn at a young age will ultimately extend past elementary school and better their chances for success in the future.

FIU is critical in providing knowledge, commitment and the care necessary in positively impacting Jesse J. McCrary students. “I can’t accept that students who come from less advantaged backgrounds are not able to succeed,” says Greene. Her ultimate goal is to make sure these children live a dignified life, and it is because of her generosity and commitment that The Education Effect will establish a pipeline for the development of the students at Jesse J. McCrary.

Greene has the confidence in FIU to serve as the provider and facilitator to further the goals of The Education Effect and has, furthermore, inspired FIU to continue having hope in our community, as she has always had hope for the students at Jesse J. McCrary Jr. Elementary School. Greene is a believer in systems change, and it is her determination to make a difference in the lives of Jesse J. McCrary students that fuels FIU’s great desire to continue impacting the lives of Miami-Dade County Public School students.