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Redesigned Florida License Plate Launched To Support Public Schools

The new 'Support Education' specialty license plate, released Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2018.
Consortium of Florida Education Foundations
The new 'Support Education' specialty license plate, released Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2018.

A fresh redesign of the ‘Support Education’ specialty license plate was released Tuesday statewide.

It's the first update to the plate since it first launched 25 years ago. It now shows two children basking under palm trees, opening books and stretching out under a beachy sunset.

When a Florida resident purchases or renews this specialty tag, proceeds go directly back to support public schools and classrooms in the county where the tag is registered.

“You’ve got to have a license plate, so why not have one that supports public education?” said Linda Lecht, president of the Miami-Dade nonprofit the . 

The statewide (CFEF) works with specific nonprofits in each County to distribute the proceeds.

The Miami-Dade branch has raised about $40,000 every year through the past specialty license plates, Lecht said. 

Lecht said she hopes the fresh design of the license plate will help bring in more funding for Miami-Dade Public Schools.

“Whether it’s taking them on field trips, or buying supplies, or whatever is needed in the classroom to make learning come alive, that’s what these funds are for,” Lecht said.

One of the nonprofit’s initiatives is to get kids outside and into what she calls “edible gardens” and “food forests.”

“Students have learned all sorts of science concepts, and also improved their eating habits,” Lecht said. “Whether its studying bungee jumping to learn about algebra, or studying robotics to better understand engineering, or its being out in a food forest and learning about science and healthy eating, all of these things are supported through the education license plate.”

County-specific education non profits -- like theand the -- also receive funds from the sale of the plates.

The specialty tag’s annual fee is $25, in addition to local taxes and state fees. 

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Under a Missouri School of Journalism fellowship, I spent my last college semester in New York City editing and producing videos for Mic, an innovative news startup in One World Trade Center. After late nights of deadlines, finessing video pieces, bonding with coworkers and experimenting with editing techniques, I produced and filmed my own mini-documentary focusing on evolving Mic video strategies.