Orange Bowl Celebrates Middle School Students at Orange Bowl Leadership Academy
South Florida students dream BIG and lead the way as program builds future leaders
MIAMI LAKES, Fla. (May 31, 2025) – Today, the Orange Bowl held a celebration at Hard Rock Stadium to acknowledge and recognize nearly 400 students who participated in the Orange Bowl Leadership Academy (OBLA), an after-school mentoring program for students in select Broward and Miami-Dade middle schools.
Participants, parents, siblings, friends, teachers, and administrators were in attendance as the Orange Bowl honored each current student in the program in addition to handing out special Emerging Leader awards for students who excelled throughout the year.
The Orange Bowl Leadership Academy was established to provide South Florida youth the opportunity to dream and develop a plan to achieve those dreams, set and achieve personal goals, and understand their options for success in their homes, careers, and communities. OBLA primarily operates through workshops and interactive activities led by Orange Bowl Committee staff, members, and community partner professionals.
Approximately 400 students from 10 middle schools in South Florida are enrolled in the Orange Bowl Leadership Academy. Participating schools from Broward County include Driftwood Middle, Lauderdale Lakes Middle, McNicol Middle, Plantation Middle, and Silver Lakes Middle; and Miami-Dade County schools include George Washington Carver Middle, Horace Mann Middle, Madison Middle, Norland Middle, and North Miami Middle.
From October through May, students in the program met after school with teachers and mentors, including Orange Bowl Committee members. The students also met with guest speakers, including business professionals from the Florida Lottery and Moss. Additionally, the students took field trips for behind-the-scenes tours of AutoNation, Cinch Home Services, Moss, and Sidley Austin. These sessions are designed to inspire and unleash individual youth potential and focus on leadership skills while also creating career development opportunities.
“At the Florida Lottery, we believe in the power of education to unlock opportunity,” said Florida Lottery Secretary John F. Davis. “We’re proud to support the Orange Bowl Leadership Academy and its mission to inspire and prepare students for lifelong success. These young leaders are gaining skills, confidence, and experiences that will serve them far beyond the classroom. I look forward to seeing many of them earn Bright Futures Scholarships and continue making a difference in their communities and across our state.”
Support for the Orange Bowl Leadership Academy is provided by the College Football Playoff Foundation, whose philanthropic initiatives are directed toward education, specifically teachers, through its Extra Yard for Teachers program.
The Orange Bowl Leadership Academy receives additional support from sponsors, including Amazon, AutoNation, Bank of America, Cinch Home Services, Comcast, Deloitte, Florida Blue, Florida Lottery, Florida Power & Light Company, Moss, and Sidley Austin LLP.
To become involved and learn more about the Orange Bowl Leadership Academy, please visit orangebowl.org.
About Orange Bowl
Orange Bowl is a primarily volunteer, non-profit sports organization with more than 410 members that promotes and serves the South Florida community. With its primary mission since being created in 1935 to bring tourism to South Florida through an annual football game and events, it has also maintained a legacy of charitable contributions and community outreach. Orange Bowl’s community outreach is embodied by the four pillars of its Orange Bowl Cares program: Youth Sports, Education, Community Engagement, and Legacy Programs. The Orange Bowl features a year-round schedule of events culminating with the 2024-25 College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Capital One Orange Bowl on January 9, 2025. For more information about Orange Bowl events, including promotional inquiries and volunteer opportunities through the Ambassador Program, log on to orangebowl.org or follow @OrangeBowl and @OrangeBowlCares on social media.
About the Florida Lottery
The Florida Lottery is responsible for contributing more than $48 billion to enhance education and sending over one million students to college through the Bright Futures Scholarship Program. The Florida Lottery reinvests 99 percent of its revenue into Florida’s economy through prize payouts, commissions to more than 13,550 Lottery retailers, and transfers to education. Since 1988, Florida Lottery games have paid over $100.2 billion in prizes and created more than 4,300 millionaires. For more information, please visit www.floridalottery.com.
