We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Karyn Cunningham a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Karyn, thanks for joining us today. What did your parents do right and how has that impacted you in your life and career?

The list of things my parents did right is long and so is the list of things that they probably did wrong. I think both are equally important. The things they did right, I try to emulate and the things they did wrong, I learn from and try not to repeat. I was adopted at birth and am proud to have been chosen to be a part of my family. I come from a long line of strong women. My mother, her mother, and my father’s mother were all Irish immigrants and came to the United States to forge a new life and live the “American Dream”. Each in their own way taught me to be strong, resilient, kind, caring and most of all to put family, faith and community above all else. They were each trailblazers in their own right. My mother worked as Chief nurse anesthetist at Baptist Hospital. She was highly respected in her field, which was largely male dominated. She was tough but kind and compassionate. She passed in 2008, but to this day, I still run into former colleagues of hers that remember her fondly. The lesson that I have learned from my mom, my dad and those that came before them is to truly serve the community, you must serve humanity. I have made that the hallmark of my tenure as an elected in Palmetto Bay. Working with our seniors, our youth and those that need lifting during tough times helps lift all of us.

Karyn, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I was elected as Palmetto Bay’s Mayor on November 6, 2018. A native of Miami-Dade County and a graduate of Miami Palmetto Senior High, I graduated Cum Laude from the University of South Florida in 1985 and holds certification in Elementary Education and Psychology. She received her Urban Education Certification from Florida International University in 1987.

I began my career teaching First Grade and has been with Miami-Dade County Public Schools for 36years. During her time as a classroom teacher, Karyn worked closely with the PTA to bring additional programming and activities to our school community. In 2004, Karyn took her career outside the classroom by serving with United Teachers of Dade. At UTD she served in many capacities during her seventeen years. I specialized in review of public policy, community engagement, communications, and membership support.

There is nothing really remarkable about my education background, my credentials or my career, but I think what propelled me to run for office and serve my Village of Palmetto Bay community is the combination of all of my pieces.

In 2004, I left a first grade classroom to work with the UTD, the Teacher’s Union. I was given an opportunity to take all I learned as a teacher and then add to it a new skill set of advocacy and policy review. There are few organizations that allow one to grown to in service to the community. I have been blessed to be able to travel, present, and advocate all across the US on behalf of the union. It was that experience that led me to running for office to create change in my hometown of Palmetto Bay.

During my tenure, I have spearheaded many initiatives focused on residents and quality of life in Palmetto Bay. Some of those initiatives included:

Passive Park Initiative- allowing the Village to take steps in acquiring parcels of land for the expansion of parks within the Village. The acquisition of these properties will enable us to increase our tree canopy which not only enhances the beautification of our community but increases home values as well.

IBus Park & Ride- which established the first of its kind pilot program using the Village’s IBus to transport commuters to the county’s Metrorail System on the busway as part of reducing vehicular traffic and reduce our carbon footprint by removing as many automobiles as possible from our roadways – positively impacting current traffic conditions.

Safe Schools Initiative- which directs our Village police officers to make their presence known at our public and private schools by completing their official reports on school property to have a higher profile for our students, teachers, and their families.

After Hours with Karyn- which allows residents to meet with me for coffee and discuss their ideas, issues, and vision for the Village.

Mayor is In- Offering open office hours to provide residents the opportunity to meet with her- no appointment necessary!

Saturday in the Park- a monthly opportunity giving residents the opportunity to meet with to discuss their ideas about how to improve our cherished parks and green spaces.

Annual Kids Town Hall- giving our youngest residents the opportunity to have their voices be a part of governing. Through the Kids Town Halls changes were made to park amenities at Coral Reef Park and Palmetto Bay Park.

Annual Principals’ Breakfast- A strong advocate for schools, Mayor Cunningham has partnered with the Village to host an annual breakfast uniting public and private schools in the community to provide education networking opportunities and sharing of best practices among PTA/PTSAs, local administrators and businesses.

Local Business Initiatives- Palmetto Bay is home to many local mom and pop businesses. To recognize those local businesses, the Village has worked in partnership with our Economic Development Council, our Palmetto Bay Business Association and Chamber South, to develop real strategies for our businesses, especially our “Mom and Pops” to rebound and thrive.

Annual Pine Rockland Cleanup- Working with student groups and other organizations, Mayor Cunningham has hosted annual clean ups of our environmentally fragile areas to raise awareness of the importance of these sensitive environments in our community.

During COVID recovery she was actively involved with local organizations, such as Christ Fellowship, Feeding South Florida and Be Strong, to provide essential relief though bookbag and food drives to the community.

I am also actively involved on the boards of many local not-for-profit organizations. She is the past Vice-President and current Board Member of The Melissa Institute for Violence Prevention and Treatment and is the Co-Chair of the South Dade Coalition for Chamber South where she served as a Board member from 2016-2018. In addition, she serves on the Advisory Board of Common Threads, The Yaegar Foundation, The Salvation Army Adult Rehabilitation Center Board, Community Health of South Florida Capital Fund Advisory Board, the Palmetto Bay Business Association, Friends of Chapman Field Board, The Edge Helps Foundation, and is the 2nd Vice President of the Miami Area Salvation Army Advisory Board.

The coolest thing so far was when I was featured in the 24th Edition of the Book of Leaders (2021) , published by Miami Today, highlighting Miami’s top 52 South Floridian achievers who “are shaping the development of Greater Miami”, also serves on the Florida League of Cities Transportation and Intergovernmental Relations Committee, the Green Corridor Pace District, MDCPS Citizen Oversight Committee (representing the Miami Dade League of Cities), and most recently was appointed to the American Flood Coalition Member Advisory Board.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

In two words, HARD WORK! I have always considered myself to be a bit of a fringe person. I know and engage with many people, but don’t consider myself to be a part of the “in crowd”. In politics, the way one advances is often in being a part of the in group. Maybe it is party affiliation or professional organizations. I don’t play in that arena. I love my community and I love the residents and being able to help them or at the very least hear them and see how we can work together to make the Village a better place to live, work, learn and play.

I am not sure where the journey will take me but I do know that at the end of the day hard work is what gets you there. My mother use to tell me that you don’t need people to be your friends, you need them to respect you. I hope to leave a legacy for our community that has been born out of hard work, respect, collaboration and service.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

Don’t second guess yourself. There are always people in your profession that will want to tear you down to build themselves up. When you are elected, everything you do will be judged or opined over. Politics in Palmetto Bay, like our country, has become very negative. I have had over 15 negative mailer sent out about me and weekly emails from a developer PAC that blame me for everything from the environment to taxes. The use of social media has helped to spread these messages. I have learned that you can’t second guess every decision you make. You make decisions based on information and facts not based on fear.

Contact Info:

• Website: karyncunningham.com
• Instagram: @karyn.cunningham
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KarynForMayor
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karyncunninghamutd/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/MayorCunningham