Jordan Zimmerman Offers Chance To Win 4-Year College Scholarship

FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla., June 5, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Fed up with a public education system that's broken, Jordan Zimmerman, businessman, philanthropist and education supporter, has put his money where he thinks the big ideas are by providing the dollars for a 4-year Florida public college scholarship.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxxH1vd8m10

To be considered for the scholarship, subscribe to Jordan's blog, www.yousleepwhenyoudie.com, and submit a specific, viable and creative idea in 250 words or less on ways that will improve Florida's education system. The contest runs from now until 7/31/12.

"The recent FCAT report declaring that only 27% of Florida's 4th graders passed the written portion of the test is abysmal," said Mr. Zimmerman.  "School executives further embarrassed themselves and the school system by dumbing down the pass rate. I felt I had to do something to shake the place up. Giving away a four-year scholarship in these financial times should be wake up call."

Mr. Zimmerman credits his father, Marvin Zimmerman, with instilling the motivation for a good education. "My dad told me if I wanted to be successful it had to start with getting a great education. The kids in Florida are just not getting what they need or deserve. The system has to be fixed immediately. At one time countries around the world followed the U.S.' education system and its curriculums. It was the finest in the world.  We got complacent and the curriculums didn't evolve.  Today it's the U.S. that lags behind the rest of the world's education systems, so much so that a lot of the world has passed us by. It's time for us to advance our curriculums and to lead the world once again. If we were to advance our curriculums, we would be in a position to have the success in the testing methodologies that our students so rightfully deserve," said Jordan.

Currently, Jordan is a trustee at the University of South Florida (USF), Tampa. He and his executive team rewrote the advertising program's curriculum -- something that hadn't been done since Jordan went through the program 30 years earlier. Zimmerman sponsors the USF Zimmerman Advertising Program. Jordan is a trustee at Pine Crest School, in Ft. Lauderdale/Boca Raton. Zimmerman is a long-time supporter of the PASS (Partnership to Advance School Success) program, including mentoring Principal Enid Valdez of Piper High School, (his alma mater). Over the summer of 2011, Zimmerman Advertising built a state-of-the art television studio and journalism lab at Piper, and rewrote the video program. Jordan also has been named to the Council of 100, a special group of private-sector advisors who make recommendations to Florida Governor Rick Scott from a business perspective.

Mr. Zimmerman has made his career of coming up with big ideas to fix big challenges.

What's a good idea worth to "Raise the Bar on Education?" It's worth a four-year college scholarship to any Florida public university.

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SOURCE Jordan Zimmerman