Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northwest Florida is excited to announce we have been selected to benefit from a scholarship award program that will provide a pathway to college for ten local high school students and graduates, who are involved in our mentoring programs.
Florida Power & Light Company (FPL) is partnering with the Florida Prepaid College Foundation to award $4.2 million in college scholarships to students living in the most poverty-stricken zip codes in the state, providing 2-year scholarships to 1,000 students over the next four years. FPL's donation of $2.1 million, matched dollar-for-dollar by the Florida Prepaid College Foundation, is the largest contribution to date since the Path to Prosperity Scholarship Program launched two years ago. The Path to Prosperity Scholarship Program is a partnership with the Florida Chamber Foundation, to reduce childhood poverty in our state by providing deserving students with the ability to afford higher education.
"Florida is our home, and we are dedicated to creating a brighter future for all who live here" says FPL Vice President and General Manager of Northwest Florida, J.T. Young. "Through this partnership, we are honored to
help provide a more hopeful future for students who have so much promise and potential - and perhaps welcome them one day to the FPL team."
The Florida Prepaid College Foundation and Florida Chamber Foundation is partnering with Big Brothers Big Sisters Association of Florida, along with other organizations, to identify students and provide mentoring as part of the scholarship award. Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northwest Florida contacted high school students who met the scholarship criteria and among those eligible, ten students were approved. These recipients will be able to use the scholarships at Florida public colleges and universities, as well as technical and vocational schools.
"Having a wonderful partner, such as FPL, makes our work extra special" says BBBS NWFL President and CEO, Paula Shell. "They are opening a door many of our Littles would never be able to walk through and are truly changing lives for the better, forever. We are so excited to see the path each Little walks with this opportunity."
We are grateful to Florida Power & Light Company and their commitment to helping Florida students reach their full potential and their continuous support of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northwest Florida. We would like to invite our scholarship recipients, FPL representatives, and local media to a special award ceremony at our Pensacola office, located at 1320 Creighton Road, on May 18th at 5:30 p.m. Please RSVP by calling (850) 433-5437 or email Jennifer Harrington at jharrington@bbbsnwfl.org.
