Who/What:
Jack & Jill Center to announce that high school graduates from its new Madelaine Halmos Academy (MHA) will be awarded a 2-year college scholarship at a family and student preview party for the new state-of-the-art elementary school building on June 17.
Elementary-age students along with their families will tour the building and receive the surprise announcement that each child who continues his or her education to graduate from high school will receive a 2-year college scholarship from the Jack & Jill Center Opportunity Scholarship Fund. The Jack & Jill Center Opportunity Scholarship Fund is being presented to 140 children enrolled in second through fourth grade – the classes of 2029, 2030, and 2031. Steve and Madelaine Halmos have graciously underwritten the scholarship fund.
“Madelaine and I hope to give kids from high-need families the same opportunity to live the American Dream that we’ve had. That opportunity is built on a foundation of a great education,” said Steve Halmos, honorary co-chair of the Madelaine Halmos Academy Capital Campaign.
The Jack & Jill Center Opportunity Scholarship Fund aligns with Jack & Jill Center’s credo of giving high-need families a hand up, not a handout. In order to receive the scholarship, students will be required to do their part and graduate high school on time. This scholarship program, available for every student, is unparalleled to other Elementary Schools in Florida and across the nation.
“With this new state-of-the-art school, we are able to significantly enhance our ability to develop lifelong learners with the potential for prosperous futures,” said Heather Siskind, CEO of Jack & Jill Center, “We are very thankful to the Halmos family and the community for their dedication to helping these children achieve success. The Jack & Jill Center Opportunity Scholarship Fund will provide even further assistance to help put the students on the path to a great future.”
Now housed at a leased space, the brand-new state-of-the-art MHA is the tangible result of a $10.6 million fundraising effort, $9.7 million of which has already been raised to date by the Madelaine Halmos Academy Capital Campaign.
MHA’s kindergarten–fifth grade program will serve 220 total students from high-need families, including early education and elementary school education, who will benefit from the Jack & Jill education program. MHA’s new building will create 37 new full-time jobs.
MHA will be fully operational on June 21, coinciding with the commencement of its STEAM Summer Camp. Early education is offered year-round, which has earned the highest level of accreditation and one of only a few in Broward County to be awarded with this accreditation. Most MHA students will come from high-need families and receive tuition funding from Step Up for Students, a state-approved nonprofit scholarship funding organization that helps administer five scholarships for Florida school children.
MHA provides a safe, academically sound and socially supportive environment for all learners. With its new building, MHA is significantly extending its offerings by providing an accredited school incorporating research-based best practices.
Some of MHA’s features include a technology-driven STEAM curriculum; dedicated, highly-skilled staff and educators with low student to teacher ratios; extended school day for students; daily healthy breakfast, lunch and snacks; extracurricular activities fostering healthy social-emotional growth and personal development, educational field trips, a quality after-school program to include enriched after-school and summer camp experiences, and on-site counseling and therapeutic services.
Fundraising momentum is still high to reach that goal, and the Campaign is seeking additional donors. For more information or to donate to the Madelaine Halmos Academy Capital Campaign, contact Chief Development Officer Maria Meyer at 954.463.8772 ext. 203 or mmeyer@jackandjillcenter.org, or visit www.jackandjillcenter.org/mha-campaign/.
Where:
1315 W. Broward Blvd. Fort Lauderdale, FL 33312.
When:
Thursday, June 17, at 5 p.m.
About Jack & Jill Center
Jack & Jill Center’s mission is to strengthen children and families through innovative education, supportive programming, and community engagement. It achieves its mission by focusing on both the children and family units as a whole, so that the entire household, children and parents alike, are able to reach their full potential. For over 79 years, Jack & Jill Center has served more than 20,000 children and families in South Florida. It currently serves as a NAEYC-accredited year-round early learning program for children aged 6 weeks though preschool, as well as an elementary school ― with a brand-new elementary facility, The Madelaine Halmos Academy, housing kindergarten through fifth grade unveiled in spring 2021. For more information about Jack & Jill visit www.jackandjillcenter.org.
