As the kiddos gear up to go back to school, Haute 100 Miami member Matt Damon is getting ready to defend them by joining the Save Our Schools March and National Call to Action in Washington, D.C. The rally includes a four-day conference from today until July 31 and a march to the White House on July 30.

Matt Damon will be joining other notables including actor Richard Dreyfuss, Jonathan Kozol, Linda Darling-Hammond, and Pedro Noguera – as well as scores of families, parents, and students – to march together in a rally against the public school reform movement. Groups including the National Association of Secondary School Principals are stout supporters of the cause, and will be joined additionally by teacher unions like the American Federation of Teachers and the National Education Association.

Organizers of the rally explained, “Equitable funding does not mean ‘equal’ funding – or even adequate funding. The market-based policies now advanced by the U.S. Department of Education in their Blueprint for re-authorizing No Child Left Behind do not address inequities of funding or opportunity for American children. They will take us in the wrong direction.”

Matt Damon and the other supporters will gather in support of equitable funding for all public schools and to end high-stakes testing for students, teachers, and schools. Additionally, the rally will advocate for local school communities to develop curriculum and for public education policies to be formed by teachers, families, and local leaders.

Our Haute 100 list details the accomplishments of the most influential people in each of our markets. To see the entire Haute 100 Miami list, click here.