Student Programs

Students often see college and career pathways as out of reach, and without the guidance and support to navigate complex financial aid and scholarship processes, they can become discouraged. This limits opportunities, perpetuating cycles of poverty, and weakening the future workforce.

The goal of Champions For Learning’s Student Programs is for students to be educated and empowered to choose and navigate their own path to success. Our students face major barriers to high school graduation and postsecondary education. Most students cannot turn to their parents for help with their homework, or for guidance in the college application and scholarship process, as they are the first in their family considering college. Commonly, our students are being raised by parents or guardians whose formal education ended before high school graduation, or who never attended high school at all. Many are living in single-family homes overcrowded with multiple families and have never had someone foster high self-expectations or self-efficacy in them.

Currently, over 250 students are enrolled in our College and Career Prep Programs that guide students in grades 8–12 who come from households classified as low income towards high school graduation and post-secondary education. Beginning in 8th grade, students benefit from positive mentorship, foundational workshops, and life-skills development. Beginning in 11th grade, students participate in more hands-on sessions focused on college access, financial aid, and technical training. We offer two tracks for students, Take Stock in Children, where students enroll in grade 8, and Pathways to Success, where students can enroll in grade 8 or in grade 10.

Our Community Based Programs connect more students in the community with resources to achieve educational success. College and Career Access initiatives include FAFSA, Scholarships, and Financial Aid training sessions for students and their families in partnership with the school district and local nonprofit partners. We support Collier County Public School’s High School Entrepreneurship Program, which offers unique classes where students collaborate in teams to spark deeper learning, critical and creative thinking, and team and skill-building to develop a viable business start-up product or service.