Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Scholarship Breakfast Celebrates 33 Years of Building Futures Through Education
For more than three decades, the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Scholarship Breakfast, hosted by the 5000 Role Models of Excellence Project, has stood as a powerful testament to the life-changing impact of mentorship, recognition, and opportunity. Now in its 33rd year, the annual gathering continues to expand access to higher education for young men across Miami-Dade County and throughout the nation.
Founded in 1993 by Frederica S. Wilson, then a Miami-Dade County Public School Board member, the breakfast was created to help young men enrolled in the 5000 Role Models of Excellence Project pursue college and career success. Through the generosity of corporate sponsors, civic leaders, and community partners, thousands of students have received scholarship support that has transformed dreams into tangible outcomes.
Held in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the breakfast serves as both a fundraiser and a moment of affirmation. Each year, the event publicly recognizes the academic achievement, leadership, and perseverance of Role Model students before an audience of more than 3,000 attendees representing South Florida’s richly diverse and immigrant-driven community. The room is filled with elected officials, business executives, educators, faith leaders, mentors, scholarship recipients, and proud families—each united by a shared commitment to uplifting young men.
Congresswoman Wilson, whose career has been deeply rooted in education and youth advocacy, has long emphasized the power of acknowledgment. The breakfast embodies that philosophy, reinforcing how a single moment of recognition can change the trajectory of a young man’s life.
What began as an effort to raise funds to send young boys to college has grown into the largest event of its kind in the United States. Today, more than 10,000 5000 Role Models students are enrolled in colleges and universities nationwide, supported by a program that prioritizes discipline, excellence, and service.
This year’s celebration also highlighted the expanding influence of the program through the induction of three iconic cultural figures into the 5000 Role Models of Excellence family: Flo Rida, DJ Khaled, and Trick Daddy. Each honoree was recognized not only for global success in music and entertainment, but for their deep roots in South Florida and their continued commitment to community uplift, mentorship, and inspiring young people to dream beyond their circumstances.
The program’s long list of alumni further reflects its extraordinary impact. Former Role Models now serve as leaders across government, business, sports, medicine, public safety, and the arts. Among them are Miami-Dade Commission Vice Chair Kionne McGhee, Miami-Dade Commissioners Oliver Gilbert and Keon Hardemon, Miami Gardens Mayor Rodney Harris, Senator Dwight Bullard, Miami Beach Mayor Michael Joseph, Councilman McKenzie Fleurimond, and North Miami Mayor Alix Desulme.
The legacy also includes trailblazers such as Udonis Haslem, Lestar Jean, Barrington Irving, Academy Award–winning filmmaker Barry Jenkins, and television actor and entrepreneur George Ray III, alongside physicians, diplomats, educators, law enforcement officers, and college administrators.
Many scholarship recipients ultimately return to South Florida to raise families, pursue careers in service, and reinvest in the communities that shaped them. A significant number come full circle—serving as mentors within the 5000 Role Models of Excellence Project and guiding the next generation of young men toward success.
As the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Scholarship Breakfast continues its historic journey, it remains a living symbol of intergenerational impact—rooted in love, strengthened by community, and driven by the belief that investing in young men is investing in the future of the nation.
