The distinguished judicial service award 2008.

Presented by the Chief Justice

A judge is in a unique position to contribute to the improvement of the law, the legal system, and the administration of justice. The support of pro bono services improves the judicial system as a whole. This award is for outstanding and sustained service to the public, especially as it relates to support of pro bono legal services.

Judge Michael F. Andrews

Sixth Judicial Circuit

Clearwater

Judge Michael F. Andrews was appointed to the bench in Pinellas County in 1997. At the time he was the youngest judge in Florida. In May 2003 he was appointed to the circuit court where he presides over family law cases in Clearwater.

Judge Andrews was born and raised in Homestead. He is the son of a Bahamian emigrant father who found work as a custodian and a mother who worked as a maid. He is the sixth child in a line of eight children and the fourth boy. He is married with four children. After receiving a bachelor's degree in political science, he attended Florida State University College of Law where he earned his Juris Doctorate degree in 1991.

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Judge Andrews is an exemplary role model for the youth of Florida, especially those in the St. Petersburg/Tampa Bay area. He has for many years contributed his time, talents and personal passions for the continued self-improvement and education of Florida's youth particularly with Judicial Youth Forums, a program presented in partnership with the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity. The forums are designed to acquaint underprivileged youth with Florida's judicial system. Topics of discussion include personal responsibility, what is takes to be a good citizen and "staying out of the courthouse." Speakers tell stories of how they dealt with peer pressure, and of how they, too, face prejudices, but how they have tried to make good choices to have better lives.

Judge Andrews has continually enlisted the assistance of members of the judiciary to participate in the youth forums and has himself contributed more than 1,000 hours of his time to the program. He has also enlisted the assistance of the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office, the St. Petersburg Police Department, the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, the Tampa Police Department, the Florida Highway Patrol, and the Department of Drug Enforcement Administration.

In a 2006 St. Petersburg Times article covering one of the youth forums, Judge Andrews was quoted as telling a courtroom filled with more than 100 youth, "I'm worried, I'm genuinely worried. I believe we have a problem and if we don't get a handle on it soon, we are going to be in serious trouble." He provided many statistics, such as for every three black men in college, there are four in prison. He also impressed on the young men that they don't have to be one of those statistics. They have a choice.

Judge Andrews has been a Pinellas County school volunteer since 1992, a volunteer for the 500 Role Models of Excellence Project since 1995, and a volunteer for the Alphas Institute/Men of Tomorrow Program. His community service and sponsorship of the youth forums continually provide a positive impact on Florida's youth.