Can Gloria Estefan save Miami's schools? In case you haven't heard, despite its subtropical location, the Miami-Dade County school district isn't doing so hot. First, its school board meetings, which resemble certain scenes from the movie Animal House, became public-television sensations. Then, its superintendent, Rudy Crew, almost lost his job. And now, with schools in South Florida about to open their doors for the 2008-2009 year, the district confronts hundreds of millions of dollars in budget cuts. All of which has whipped Latin music sensation Gloria Estefan into action. In what will be her first South Florida concert in four years, the five-time Grammy Award winner will perform at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino and donate a portion of the ticket sales to public schools in Miami and the surrounding cities. Sounds fine. But South Florida's schoolchildren wonder: Who's Gloria Estefan?
"Gloria Estefan will sing for sing for school funding," by Steve Rothaus, Miami Herald, August 12, 2008