Bay Education Foundation is Turbo Charged
Bay Education Foundation Participates in Turbo Charge II to Purchase
Prepaid College Plans for Take Stock In Children Scholarship Recipients
The Bay Education Foundation has joined the Take Stock in Children Turbo Charge II challenge, a matching program to provide four-year prepaid college plans to eligible students in Bay District Schools.
"This is almost unbelievable," said Marilyn Fenimore, President of the Bay Education Foundation. "In this program, we can buy triple the number of scholarships that we ordinarily purchase. Because this match can only be obtained with new funding, we hope that additional donors will be very motivated."
The Foundation must have all new funds in hand by Dec. 31.
According to Fenimore, the Bay Education Foundation is ordinarily able to purchase one scholarship with $5,000 because the Florida Prepaid Foundation provides a dollar-for-dollar match. In the TurboCharge II program, the Foundation will be able to purchase three scholarships through additional matching funds.
Take Stock in Children has entered a special partnership with the Foundation for Florida*s Community Colleges, PROJECT STARS of the Florida Prepaid College Foundation and a group of private donors to triple contributions made by new donors.
"The statewide goal of TURBO CHARGE II," said says Karen Tucker, Executive Director of the Bay Education Foundation, "is to increase dramatically the number of scholarships for motivated, deserving kids. The catch is that we can only access these scholarships with money from new donors. We'll work the match as long as funding is available."
The Take Stock in Children program differs from other scholarship programs because it is both a drop-out prevention program and a college preparatory program.
"Our typical student comes into the program in grade six or seven. We mentor, supervise, and encourage our kids throughout their middle and high school years," said Tucker. "Students who are unwilling to follow our rules are dismissed, and
their scholarships are recycled to another student."
Tucker explains that the students are required to get good grades, exhibit good
behavior, and remain drug-free and crime-free.
Currently, the Bay Education Foundation has 79 Take Stock in Children scholarship students in grades 6-12 and an additional 32 are enrolled in college.
Prospective donors and other interested persons can contact the Bay Education Foundation at (850) 873-7157 for additional information.