More than 12,000 Dade County students will gather at the Miami Arena today and pledge to keep their bodies clean of drugs and their community clean of trash.

"It's hard to save the environment or anything else if you feel crummy about yourself," said Edmund Benson, founder of the ARISE foundation, a nonprofit organization that encourages people to save the environment.

The 9 a.m.-to-noon rally, titled "Great Expectations," is sponsored by ARISE and Dade County Public Schools. It is a team effort by various groups to encourage students to feel good about themselves, overcome obstacles in their lives and make responsible decisions.

The self-esteem rally coincides with Red Ribbon Week, when students pledge to live a drug-free life.

"It all starts with a commitment, and if students make a commitment to lead a healthier lifestyle, the rest will follow," said Monica Heymann, coordinator of Red Ribbon Week, which ends Sunday. Several speakers, including FBI agent Gordon McNeil, will talk about overcoming hardships in their lives.

McNeil was shot in the neck, head and right hand when bank robbers and FBI agents were involved in a 1986 shoot-out in Kendall. Two of his colleagues were killed.

State Attorney Janet Reno will swear in about 5,000 elementary children to envirocop status. They will be in charge of recycling operations at their schools.

"The focus is on the in vironment -- the inner self -- and the environment," said Rasamma Nyberg, executive director of the division of student services for Dade County Public Schools.

"Students will publicly proclaim that they're working on their lives. And we, as adults, will cheer them on and give them support by saying we have great expectations."

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