ORLANDO, Fla. — There are dozens of college pennants pinned to the ceiling of the Parramore neighborhood’s Grand Avenue Neighborhood Center. They showcase the many schools, including all the major Florida universities, where neighborhood children have gone.
The felt flags indicate how far the area, which once had a high school graduation rate of just 50%, has come due in part to a city program that brings mentorship and other support to children living in the city’s most impoverished areas.
“In the beginning, the goal was simply to get kids off the street,” said Joseph Caesar, longtime program supervisor for Orlando Kidz Zone…