Wrendly Mesidor believes the people making decisions about public education should understand what teachers and students experience inside the classroom.
Mesidor, a classroom teacher and candidate for Miami-Dade County School Board District 1, said his professional background would allow him to bring a firsthand understanding of educators’ challenges to the board.
“We don’t have many teachers on the school board, and we want to make sure somebody who knows what’s going on in the classroom, who’s actually living the experience, is there,” Mesidor said during an interview on the Can We Talk Podcast powered by Hy-Lo News.
Mesidor also serves as chairman of the North Miami Beach Community Redevelopment Agency’s Redevelopment Advisory Board, which reviews grant applications and other requests from businesses operating within the CRA’s boundaries.
He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Florida International University, where he said he was appointed the Student Government Association’s first student lieutenant governor. He later worked as a program specialist at Broward College, helping develop civic engagement and career preparation programs for students graduating from high school.
Mesidor said his father, a former professor from Haiti, inspired him to become more civically engaged. Before his father died in 2021, Mesidor said he frequently reminded him that voting was a right secured through the sacrifices of others.
“He said, ‘You better vote. Do you know how many people died for you to be able to have the power to vote?’” Mesidor recalled. “I wanted to make him proud, and I wanted to carry a little bit of his legacy.”
If elected, Mesidor said one of his priorities would be building on the work of outgoing District 1 School Board member Dr. Steve Gallon III. Gallon’s tenure included improvements in school grades and the creation of several academic and community initiatives.
“It’s not work we start all over again, but it’s work that we continue,” Mesidor said. “Those B schools — how do we make those B schools into A schools? How do we turn the C schools into B or A schools?”
Mesidor said addressing teacher pay and retention would be another major priority. He pointed to programs that recruit prospective educators, help them obtain teaching certifications and place them in classrooms as one way to strengthen the teacher pipeline.
Recruiting new educators, however, will not solve the problem if teachers cannot afford to remain in the profession, he said.
“We still have teachers now making under $50,000,” Mesidor said. “If you live in Miami, you can’t live under $50,000. You need to be making at least $70,000 for you to live in Miami.”
Mesidor said teachers often perform work outside regular school hours but are exempt from earning overtime. He argued that passion for teaching is not enough to retain educators who are struggling financially.
“If you’re not getting paid, there’s no motivation to stay in the school, no matter what passion you have,” he said. “Once you have quality teachers, you will have quality students. So I say, pay the teachers.”
Mesidor supports allowing parents to decide which schools their children attend, but he opposes policies that redirect resources from traditional public schools. He expressed particular concern about charter schools operating on the campuses of traditional public schools, a practice known as co-location.
“I believe our parents should be able to make whatever choice they think is best for their children,” Mesidor said. “But I don’t believe in the bureaucracy of those different types of schools taking away from the traditional public school.”
He said public schools must remain adequately funded for families who cannot afford private-school tuition or do not qualify for enough financial assistance to cover the cost.
“What about some of us?” Mesidor asked. “When I was younger, we couldn’t afford private school. We had to go to public school. What does that mean for the other children coming up who can’t afford private school?”
Mesidor attended public school through the eighth grade before his parents enrolled him in a private school. He later worked as a substitute teacher and completed a teaching internship through Miami-Dade County Public Schools.
Declining enrollment is another challenge Mesidor said the School Board must examine. He identified Miami’s affordability crisis, the expansion of school-choice options and fears surrounding immigration enforcement as possible factors driving families away from traditional public schools.
“Miami is not livable anymore,” Mesidor said. “A lot of families are moving out of Miami to different towns. School choice, immigration and affordability — those are three of the biggest issues I think are facing low enrollment.”
Mesidor, who is Haitian American, said he knows immigrant families who are afraid to send their children to school because of concerns about immigration enforcement.
“I know a lot of families right now that are not sending their kids to school because of the situation and being scared to even leave,” he said.
While acknowledging that the district must comply with federal and state laws, Mesidor said School Board members should examine how policies are implemented and work to protect students.
“How do we protect our kids? How do we protect our immigrant kids as well?” he asked. “How do we stop immigration from getting involved inside of the education process?”
Beyond academics, Mesidor said he would prioritize mental health services and career preparation. Schools serve as safe spaces for some children experiencing difficult circumstances at home, he said, making it important for students to have access to counseling and other support.
“Mental health is very real,” Mesidor said. “You have students in the classroom who are not getting the support that they need.”
Mesidor also wants students to have more opportunities to prepare for careers immediately after graduation. While he supports college education and expanded dual-enrollment programs, he said the district must create options for students who cannot afford or do not want to pursue a four-year degree.
“What about those who can’t afford college?” he asked. “What do we have for them if they graduate today? Do we have a job ready for them?”
Mesidor said financial literacy, entrepreneurship, mentorship and life-skills education could help students identify career paths and build connections with local business owners and community organizations.
“Sometimes you need that education, you need that person, you need some of the older generation to train the younger generation to get to that path,” he said. “So I say definitely education and mentorship.”
At 34, Mesidor said he is the youngest candidate in the District 1 race. He believes his age, classroom experience and understanding of emerging technology would bring a different perspective to the School Board.
“Maybe some people might see me as an underdog. Maybe they feel I don’t have the experience,” Mesidor said. “But I bring a different perspective to the table. I bring that young energy — the energy that will carry the next generation.”
Mesidor said schools must prepare students to navigate a world increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence and other technology.
“We are in a time of technology. We are in a time of AI,” he said. “Are we going back from AI? No. But how do we enhance AI? How do we make it better for our future generations?”
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