(239) 643-4755
info@championsforlearning.org

Future Ready Collier

Are You Ready For Be Future Ready Day?

On Saturday, March 25, 2023, students in Collier County will have the unique opportunity to attend Be Future Read Day at Coastland Center Mall hosted by Future Ready Collier.

This event will allow students an opportunity to receive an instant admissions decision to a local college, be able to start and complete their FAFSA, and can be the first to apply to the JumpStart scholarship. All in one afternoon!

This event is for students that may want to go to college, haven’t made college plans yet, or are realizing they want to seek a certification or degree.

Be Future Ready Day was designed as an idea through Future Ready Collier to help high school seniors in Collier County be ready for life after high school.

Champions For Learning is proudly supporting Future Ready Collier to help coordinate this day to help the class of 2023 no matter their future plans.

Champions For Learning will be tabling at the event to promote the JumpStart Scholarship to provide Collier County students an opportunity to earn extra financial assistance.

To support Future Ready Collier, Champions For Learning volunteers and staff will be on site to assist students and families in completing Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) applications.

Future Ready Collier is inviting local colleges Florida Gulf Coast University, Keiser University, Florida SouthWestern State College, and Lorenzo Walker Technical for instant admissions decisions and admission fee waivers for students. This means that a student that brings their transcript, ACT/SAT, and CCPS student device could get their decision right there, a great move in the right direction for these students.

Future Ready Collier volunteers will be on site to help student seniors complete their FAFSA.

This is an important step to ensure students have the funding they need to pay for what degree or certification they are seeking.

The JumpStart scholarship will open that day at 11 am which totals 30-credit hours (a full year at a state college). This scholarship will be a first come first serve priority. No essay required.

Students will be asked to bring their FSA ID, social security numbers, 2021 Federal Income Tax Returns, CCPS laptop, and high school transcript.

We are so excited to help get Collier County students ready for their future!

Click here to access the flyer for more information Be Future Ready Day

Read more

Emily Budd-Schepperly is Future Ready Collier’s First Dedicated Director

Champions For Learning is pleased to announce that Emily Budd-Schepperly has joined the staff team in the newly created role of Future Ready Collier Director.

In this role, Emily provides leadership, management, and coordination for the implementation of the Future Ready Collier network, administered through the backbone support of Champions For Learning. Future Ready Collier is a collective impact network of more than 60 organizations, businesses, schools, and community members working to ensure every child in Collier County, Florida is ready for kindergarten, every student is supported during their school years, and every young person enters adulthood with a vision, and plan to accomplish that vision. Budd-Schepperly will manage and lead network initiatives and objectives of Future Ready Collier.

As a native of Collier County, Budd-Schepperly brings 10 years nonprofit leadership experience. She comes to Future Ready Collier from the David Lawrence Centers for Behavioral Health (DLC) as their Director of Development. During her five years at the David Lawrence Centers, she was responsible for driving philanthropic revenue to the organization. She has been facilitating a youth mental health awareness program in collaboration with Collier County Public Schools. This work included utilizing DLC donors and resources to support programs within the school settings.

“We are very excited to have a standout leader with Ms. Budd-Schepperly’s experience join us as we continue to grow the Champions For Learning team and affirm Future Ready Collier’s established role in the community,” states Barbara Evans, President and CEO. “Champions For Learning serves a unique role in the community and it’s a continued honor to be the backbone for this collaboration of dedicated partners in education.”

About Champions For Learning™

Champions For Learning™, the education foundation in Collier County, is an independent, community-based, non-profit 501 (c) (3) organization that strives to create life-changing learning experiences for every student. With a vision of a community that is 100% engaged in support of student success, Champions For Learning serves a unique role in bringing the community together to support a culture of learning and innovation. Our organization has been awarded the GuideStar Platinum Seal of Transparency and Charity Navigator’s highest four-star rating, both demonstrating our commitment to sound fiscal management, accountability, and transparency, as well as achieved the highest distinction as an exemplary Local Education Foundation. Become a Champion for Learning and visit www.ChampionsForLearning.org.

About Future Ready Collier

Launched in 2016, Future Ready Collier is a collective impact initiative designed to build an educational pipeline for college, career, and life readiness. Future Ready Collier focuses on three main goals. Ensuring all children are kindergarten ready. Ensuring all youth are provided support during their elementary and middle school years. Ensuring all young people are career ready by graduating high school on track to obtain a degree or credential. The Education Foundation of Collier County – Champions For Learning is the backbone organization facilitating this network of more than 60 organizations, businesses, schools, and community members that have increased the high school graduation rate to more than 90% in Collier County. Learn more at futurereadycollier.org.

Read more

Cards for Kindergarteners coming full circle

Last month Bailey M., a senior from Naples High School, chose to spend his community service hours making 28 cards for local kindergarten students. 

These cards were delivered by Champions For Learning to Sea Gate Elementary, the same elementary school Bailey attended.

“Starting school can be intimidating. For these Sea Gate kindergarten students, having beautifully drawn, encouraging cards from a 12th grade student reminded them that everyone starts at the same place. They loved the colorful cards,” shared Amy Snyder, Executive Director of Educator Programs at Champions For Learning.

Bailey made each card colorful with drawings of school supplies with a note inside, “Welcome to Kindergarten! Have fun and enjoy your year. Be kind and respect your teacher.”

Bailey said, “I wanted to include a message on the inside, but I wasn’t really sure how well they could read. So, I just tried to keep it pretty simple.”

The idea of making 28 cards for kindergarteners in Collier County came from a website the Collier County Public School District uses to communicate service opportunities with students. Many of the volunteer opportunities offered to high school students are as a result of an earlier collaborative effort through Future Ready Collier (FRC) to aid students in their search for approved service hours towards scholarships and other opportunities.

Champions For Learning is a partner and the backbone organization supporting Future Ready Collier, a network of organizations, businesses, schools and community members working to ensure every child in Collier County is ready for kindergarten, and every young person enters adulthood with a vision and a plan to accomplish that vision.

To learn more about Future Ready Collier, visit FutureReadyCollier.org

                   

Read more

Cards for Collier Kindergarteners

Starting kindergarten can be scary for some, but one Collier County student is doing what he can to make the beginning of the school year a little more enjoyable.

Bailey M. is entering his senior year at Naples High School. To get ahead on some community service hours this summer, Bailey handcrafted 28 cards for local kindergarten students to have as they begin school.

“I have a really fond memory of when I was in kindergarten, an older kid coming to read to us”, said Bailey. “I wanted just to do something similar for other kindergarteners today. So they have something fun to look back on.”

Bailey made each card colorful with drawings of school supplies with the note inside, “Welcome to Kindergarten! Have fun and enjoy your year. Be kind and respect your teacher.”

Bailey says, “I wanted to include a message on the inside, but I wasn’t really sure how well they could read. So, I just tried to keep it pretty simple.”

The idea of making 28 cards for kindergartners in Collier County came from a website the Collier County Public School District uses to communicate service opportunities with students. Many of the volunteer opportunities offered to high school students are as a result of an earlier collaborative effort through Future Ready Collier (FRC) to aid students in their search for approved service hours towards scholarships and other opportunities.  Champions For Learning is a partner with and backbone organization supporting Future Ready Collier, a network of organizations, businesses, schools and community members working to ensure every child in Collier County is ready for Kindergarten, and every young person enters adulthood with a vision and plan to accomplish that vision.

“There were a few opportunities that I was debating doing, but this one stood out to me. It just felt like something that was up my alley”, said Bailey.

When these cards are delivered to kindergarten students beginning their educational career, Bailey says he hopes they enjoy opening the cards and it is fun for them. That is why he included lots of colors and picture, so that it would appeal to kindergarteners.

Read more

New campaign aims to help Florida students get “Cash for College”

Champions For Learning, as the backbone for Future Ready Collier, has partnered with Florida College Access Network (FCAN) to launch the “Cash for College” campaign to promote Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) completion as a crucial step as students and their families make plans for education beyond high school. About 4 out of 5 students in Florida use some combination of federal, state, and school-based aid to pay for college, and the way to access that aid is by completing the FAFSA.

Targeting Collier County’s Class of 2020 and 2021, the campaign aims to counteract the impact of COVID-19 on college enrollment. Nationwide, direct enrollment after high school graduation was down 6.9% in Fall 2020, and enrollment declines were 2.3 times steeper for low-income high schools compared to higher-income schools. Research also shows that low-income, first-generation -, and students of color are among the least likely to complete the FAFSA.

More To Come!

Champions For Learning plans to offer special incentives to those that complete the FAFSA, and will be creating a website for students to access free FAFSA and college enrollment resources in the coming months.

Read more

Future Ready Collier Partners Recognized By The Florida College Access Network

The Future Ready Collier network of partners was recognized recently as an Unsung Hero of Community Resilience for the local efforts post-Irma to ensure that children and families stayed on track with their educational goals in the aftermath of the hurricane.  Lisa Church, Vice President Champions For Learning accepted the award on behalf of the partners at the recent FCAN Summit.

The Florida Unsung Heroes of Resilience Awards honors leaders throughout the state who helped students navigate an uncommonly tumultuous year.

During the 2017-18 school year, Florida students not only had to cope with damages to their homes and neighborhoods because of Hurricane Irma, but also had thousands of displaced students from Puerto Rico and other parts of the Caribbean being integrated into their schools mid-year. Additionally, the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shattered the sense of safety for students in Parkland and beyond.

“This award is in recognition of Florida community members who went above and beyond the call to support students impacted by extraordinary events that challenged our state over the past school year,” said Kathy McDonald, FCAN’s Assistant Director for Network Partnerships.

Future Ready Collier (futurereadycollier.org) is a network of local partners working to ensure every child is ready for Kindergarten, and every young person is career ready by graduating high school on track to obtain a degree or credential.  Champions For Learning, the Education Foundation of Collier County, is the backbone organization facilitating this collaborative effort.

Read more