Last week three attorneys from The Elder Law Center of Kirson & Fuller attended a breakfast a Dubsdread benefiting the City Year Orlando charitable organization. City Year uses near-peer mentors in Orlando’s most under-served schools to address specific areas that lead to students dropping out with the aim to close the gap, between what students need to succeed and what schools are designed to provide.

By assisting in things such as Attendance monitoring and engagement, socio-emotional support and support in math and English, City Year strives to overcome challenges they face both in and out of school. And, in addition to working with individual students who are at-risk of dropping out, they also provide support to help transform the whole school – including leading school-wide events and activities, after school programming, and in class support for teachers.

As stated on City Year’s website, “Orlando is a world-renowned vacation resort for many families. It’s the land of Mickey Mouse, pools, and theme parks. But for many kids, this is far from reality. In Orlando, 87% of the city’s students are on free or reduced lunch, and more than half are off track in reading. The consequences for our community are real: Students who drop out are eight times more likely to become incarcerated and three times more likely to be unemployed. When a student drops out of school it has a lasting effect on our communities and society as a whole.”

Attorney Tracy Zanco attended the breakfast and had this to say, “City Year Orlando’s Legal Community Breakfast provided us with a great opportunity to learn more about City Year and to meet with City Year members who are interested in becoming attorneys themselves. I plan to attend more of their events in the future and to support their mission to enhance educational programs in under-served communities.”

Attorneys Ashley Reyes, Tracy Zanco and Christian Horde of The Elder Law Center of Kirson and Fuller with City Year Executive Director Jared Billings.

Attorneys Christian Horde and Tracy Zanco of The Elder Law Center of Kirson & Fuller.