Thousands of South Floridians packed auditoriums, homes and restaurants Tuesday to watch broadcasts of former Sen. Barack Obama be sworn in as the 44th U.S. president.

More than 300 people stood and cheered inside the African-American Research Library in Fort Lauderdale when Michelle Obama appeared on screen with Laura Bush.

As the crowd waited for the swearing-in ceremony to begin, people clapped and sang along to Ain't No Stopping Us Now as the song flowed through the auditorium speakers.

Some of Broward's black elected officials greeted the group. County Commissioner Josephus Eggelletion Jr. and School Board member Phyllis Hope were among the leaders in attendance.

''I'm almost in tears because of the pride and the happiness,'' Hope said. ``It's hard to explain, but it's just a feeling that is so wonderful.''

For roughly 80 fifth- and sixth-grade students from Central Charter School in Lauderdale Lakes, the screening was a field trip in civics.

''We felt it would be a significant part of their education to see this,'' said Pete Edmonson, a music teacher at the school. ``This is a big part of history.''

Other people brought their own children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews to watch the festivities.

Najaia Edwards, 9, came with her mother, Shevella, while her 11-year-old sister took a test at school.

''It's history for me and my family,'' said Shevella Edwards, 42, of Lauderdale Lakes. ``I never thought that I would see an African-American president.''

Najaia said she has high hopes for Obama's presidency.

''I hope that he will make the prices go down and help more people because everyone is having troubles paying their bills,'' she said.

Cynthia Shaw, a registered nurse who lives in Fort Lauderdale, took the day off so she could watch the ceremonies at the library. Shaw said she has also been working on a scrapbook to preserve the memory of Obama's election.

''I wanted to be able to share this with my grandchildren,'' she said. 'I wanted to be able to say, `Your grandmother was a part of this.' ''

In Miami, more than 4,500 people reserved free tickets to watch the festivities on big screens at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts.

Police were helping direct traffic around the area Tuesday morning and the Hialeah-Miami Lakes Senior High marching band kept people entertained as they made their way inside the venue.

College students Elise Rogers and Layda Rodriguez reserved their seats at the arts center two weeks ago and showed up an hour before the doors opened Tuesday.

''I'm not an emotional person, but I got choked up on Election Night, so we'll see,'' said Rogers, a 22-year-old Florida International University student.

Many local universities also are hosting public screenings, including at FIU, Nova Southeastern University in Davie and Barry University in Miami Shores.

At NSU, more than 120 people jammed into the student lounge by 11:30 a.m.

Joseph Gousse, 23, of Lauderhill, was the first to arrive at the NSU event. Born in the United States and raised in Haiti, Gousse said Obama is reuniting all of us with his election to the White House.

''He has an Arab name, a white mother and an African father,'' he said. ``He's like us -- with roots from everywhere.''

Barry University professor Sean D. Foreman, who teaches a class on the U.S. presidency, told his students to attend the watch party instead of class.

''In all my years as a teacher, I've never seen such excitement from students,'' said Foreman, who has taught at Barry since 1999.

Many students donned different Obama shirts and held small American flags as they watched the inauguration on a 12-foot-by-8-foot screen in the center of the student union center.

Adrian Gongora, 18, said the energy in the room was awesome. ''I've never seen anything like this before,'' he said.

There was an energy going around Dan Marino's Fine Food and Spirits in South Miami as people filed in for the watch party.

South Miami Mayor Horace Feliu, a lifelong Democrat, milled among the scores of attendees, shaking hands and slapping backs.

''The dream is still alive,'' Feliu said. ``When people pray, dream and hope together, great things can happen.''

Many employers have chosen to give workers the day off; about 5 percent of U.S. businesses are closing Tuesday -- more than the number closed on Election Day and about as many as the day before Thanksgiving, according to the Society for Human Resource Management.

Back in Fort Lauderdale, Steve Carson, 63, a retired teacher and assistant principal, is on vacation from Atlanta and wanted to watch the inauguration with friends at the African-American Research Library.

''We're just enthused about being here,'' Carson said. 'It's a once-in-a-lifetime event. Kind of a `Where were you when this happened?' kind of thing.''

Miami Herald staff writers Carli Teproff, Ileana Morales, Michael Vasquez, Laura Morales and Jose Pagliery contributed to this report.

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