The Honorable Mayor Rick Baker of St. Petersburg has been selected as the 2009 Leading Light Award recipient from the Sunshine State School Public Relations Association.
Baker was nominated for this award by Pinellas County Schools’ Superintendent, Julie Janssen. This state award recognizes the contributions of those who have served our communities as ‘shining lights’ in support of K-12 public education.
The award will be presented on Thursday, Dec. 3 during the Florida School Boards Association annual Joint Conference at the Grand Hyatt Tampa Bay, Tampa.
Baker has been “leading the light” for educational changes in the City of St. Petersburg for the past eight years. Through the Mayor’s Mentors & More initiative that he began, Mayor Baker stepped outside the traditional role of city government to advocate for quality education. He has engaged many in the community to join him in making “St. Petersburg Schools the Best” and has made his support of the city’s public schools one of the top priorities of his administration.
Baker has personally raised money for 1,001 scholarships for at-risk students through the Pinellas Education Foundation’s Doorways Scholarship Program. He also enlisted the support of corporate partners in the city by establishing a corporate partner at each of St. Petersburg’s 43 schools. These partners provide mentors, resources and funding to those in need. He created an administrative policy that allows city staff to mentor on paid time, and has himself mentored a student for the past seven years.
As a way to honor top school administrators and their corporate partners for improving their FCAT score to an “A,” Mayor Baker created the “Top Apple Awards.” Since 2001, the number of “A” and “B” schools in St. Petersburg has increased. In 2001, there were no “A” elementary schools. Today there are 16 “A” elementary schools.
In order to continue the success of students and school improvements, Mayor Baker sought ways to recruit and then retain good teachers. St. Petersburg became a pioneer in this effort by creating the A+ Housing program. This program allows teachers who live and teach in St. Petersburg to receive a forgivable loan for down payment assistance on an affordable home. To date, 85 loans have closed totaling more than $1,400,000.
“I can’t think of a more deserving winner for this award than Rick Baker. He has been an invaluable asset to our schools, providing much needed resources and services for our students and teachers,” said Dr. Julie Janssen, superintendent.
Past award recipients for the Leading Light Award which began in 2003, include: First Lady Columba Bush, Walt Disney World Executive Al Weiss, Big Brothers, Big Sisters and Comcast.
