Two Busloads of Kids are Getting Scholarships to College! In case you missed the stories on ABC7, SNN 6 and in the Herald-Tribune recently, a great Community Foundation partnership has assisted a TURBO CHARGED scholarship opportunity for at-risk students. Nine Community Foundation of Sarasota County donors have donated $261,000 to Take Stock in Children so that 156 kids chosen by the Boys and Girls Club of Sarasota County will be mentored through their school years and upon graduation, receive scholarships to college. Each $1,500 provides tuition for one child to attend two years of community college followed by two years of higher education. How are these scholarships TURBO CHARGED? The state board of Take Stock in Children, the Florida Foundation for Community Colleges and the Florida Prepaid Program are offering a six to one match for these funds, raising the total to THREE MILLION DOLLARS in scholarships! Take Stock in Children had hoped to raise $500,000 by December 31, 2007, but thanks to our Community Foundation donors, that goal has now been upped to $600,000, all of which will be leveraged with the 6:1 match!

Stewart Stearns with the first Take Stock in Children TURBO CHARGED scholarship designee, Tonika Conaway, her mother, Cornelia, Veronica Miller of the Boys and Girls Club and Lisa Bechtold of Take Stock in Children.

Link to story on SNN:
http://www.heraldtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071205/VIDEO01/712050788/1032/