Kenneth Griffin gifts $2 million to Miami organization fostering student leaders
By Natalie La Roche Pietri
July 2, 2026 at 5:53 PM EDT
The afterschool program Breakthrough Miami recently received $2 million from billionaire Kenneth Griffin's philanthropic and civic engagement initiative.
The education program鈥檚 mission is to build and strengthen student leadership. It achieves that through a students-teaching-students model. Mentors grow as leaders, and their mentees have someone they can trust.
鈥淭here are few places where a 14- or 15-year-old can begin a structured leadership journey that can continue through high school and college, gaining thousands of hours of real teaching, mentoring and workforce experience,鈥� said CEO of Breakthrough Miami Lori-Ann Cox in a statement. 鈥淕riffin Catalyst鈥檚 support allows us to scale this unmatched youth leadership pathway.鈥�
Griffin鈥檚 donation is expected to support more than 600 high school and college students each year. The funding will also help expand instructional coaching, recruitment and program capacity. Plus, it鈥檒l help increase the number of paid teaching apprenticeships and fellowships across South Florida.
READ MORE: Why Ken Griffin鈥檚 first Basquiat exhibition was always meant for PAMM
鈥淏reakthrough Miami has a profound impact on the lives of Miami students by teaching them the leadership and learning skills they need to pursue their dreams and aspirations,鈥� said Ken Griffin, an entrepreneur who founded multinational hedge fund Citadel, in a statement. 鈥淚 care deeply about the lives of young people, and I am excited to know that my support of Breakthrough Miami will make a meaningful difference in our community.鈥�
With Griffin's gift, Breakthrough Miami will also be able to conduct more evaluation and research aimed at testing the impact of its model, which is nationally recognized as one of the country鈥檚 top service leadership experiences.
Currently, the program serves 1,800 youth from more than 320 schools across Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties. But it's not stopping there 鈥� Breakthrough Miami is hoping to expand its reach by 40% by 2030.
This is a News In Brief report. Visit SA国际传谋 News for in-depth reporting from South Florida and Florida news.
The education program鈥檚 mission is to build and strengthen student leadership. It achieves that through a students-teaching-students model. Mentors grow as leaders, and their mentees have someone they can trust.
鈥淭here are few places where a 14- or 15-year-old can begin a structured leadership journey that can continue through high school and college, gaining thousands of hours of real teaching, mentoring and workforce experience,鈥� said CEO of Breakthrough Miami Lori-Ann Cox in a statement. 鈥淕riffin Catalyst鈥檚 support allows us to scale this unmatched youth leadership pathway.鈥�
Griffin鈥檚 donation is expected to support more than 600 high school and college students each year. The funding will also help expand instructional coaching, recruitment and program capacity. Plus, it鈥檒l help increase the number of paid teaching apprenticeships and fellowships across South Florida.
READ MORE: Why Ken Griffin鈥檚 first Basquiat exhibition was always meant for PAMM
鈥淏reakthrough Miami has a profound impact on the lives of Miami students by teaching them the leadership and learning skills they need to pursue their dreams and aspirations,鈥� said Ken Griffin, an entrepreneur who founded multinational hedge fund Citadel, in a statement. 鈥淚 care deeply about the lives of young people, and I am excited to know that my support of Breakthrough Miami will make a meaningful difference in our community.鈥�
With Griffin's gift, Breakthrough Miami will also be able to conduct more evaluation and research aimed at testing the impact of its model, which is nationally recognized as one of the country鈥檚 top service leadership experiences.
Currently, the program serves 1,800 youth from more than 320 schools across Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties. But it's not stopping there 鈥� Breakthrough Miami is hoping to expand its reach by 40% by 2030.
This is a News In Brief report. Visit SA国际传谋 News for in-depth reporting from South Florida and Florida news.