"For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning." Excited to welcome Dr. Steve Gallon III, Vice-Chair and elected District 1 School Board Member for the Miami-Dade County Schools (M-DCPS) in Miami-Dade County, Florida, the 4th largest school district in the nation. Tune in to hear how he rose from the streets of 1980s Liberty City to impactful community servant, lifelong educator, and successful entrepreneur. We discuss bridging the achievement gap, what makes M-DCPS so unique, how Dr. Gallon successfully manages to stay true to himself in a cut throat and highly critical political area, what's on his current reading list, and much more! Dr. Gallon is a lifelong educator who served as a teacher, assistant principal, elementary and high school principal, district administrator, and Superintendent of Schools. He started his career as a classroom teacher. He has taught at the elementary, middle, and senior high school levels. He graduated Magna Cum Laude with a degree in English Education from Florida A & M University in Tallahassee, Florida and became the first of his six siblings to graduate from college. Dr. Gallon earned a Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership and a Doctorate in Educational Administration and Supervision, both from Florida International University in Miami, Florida. He also participated in postdoctoral leadership institutes on School Reform and Management at Harvard and Stanford Universities. Dr. Steve Gallon III rose through the ranks as a professional educator and over the next 25 years, distinguished himself in the field of education, specifically in the area of supporting improved teaching, learning, and leadership in urban educational settings. He became an assistant principal and was later appointed principal of Holmes Elementary. In his third year, after marked improvements in student outcomes and community involvement, the school was removed from the State of Florida’s List of Critically Low Schools. He then became principal of Miami Northwestern Senior High School, where he would serve for seven years – earning the third longest tenure in the school’s 60-year history. On November 8, 2016, Dr. Gallon was decisively elected as the Miami-Dade County Public Schools District 1 School Board Member. In 2020 Dr. Gallon was re-elected unopposed to another 4 year term. In April 2021, he was voted Chair to National School Boards Association Council of Urban Boards of Education's (CUBE) Steering Committee. Host: Brittany Sharpton