Hurricane Andrew struck South Florida early on Monday morning, August 24, 1992. Widely described as the worst natural disaster in modern U.S. history, the storm left 38 people dead in South Florida, 80,000 homes destroyed, and damage estimates of at least $20 billion. The area devastated by the hurricane was approximately three times the size of Manhattan. Almost 250,000 people were left homeless by Andrew--roughly the population of the entire city of Las Vegas, Nevada. Garbage generated by the storm in a single night was equal to the projected landfill for Dade County for the next thirty years.

Hurricane Andrew, the Public Schools and the Rebuilding of Community addresses the experience of the Dade County Public Schools--its teachers and students, administrators and staff--during the first school year following the storm. In particular, it examines the role of the schools in helping people cope with a disaster of the magnitude of Hurricane Andrew, and more specifically, with their role in rebuilding community.

Eugene F. Provenzo, Jr. is a Professor in the Social and Cultural Foundations of Education, University of Miami. He is the author of a wide-range of books on the History and Sociology of Education.

Sandra H. Fradd is Associate Professor of Education, University of Miami. She specializes in Bilingual Education and the Teaching of English to Speakers of Other Languages, and is the author of a number of books dealing with different aspects of bilingual instruction and assessment.