APR. 26, 2012 Step Up For Students on Comcast Newsmakers
Watch SUFS President Doug Tuthill as he explains the program on Comcast Newsmakers.
APR. 24, 2012 Interview with National School Choice Week President
Listen to the podcast interview with Andrew Campanella, president of National School Choice Week.
APR. 10, 2012 "I’m just a dad looking to do the best for his son"
RedefinED online : Listen to an interview with a Step Up dad as he talks about his son Jack, who he says is not a “one size fits all” student.
MAR. 26, 2012 School choice. Parental choice. Education reform. Join the debate.
We invite you to join a civil conversation about how to make education work for everyone. Click here to read redefinED.
FEB. 06, 2012 Florida leads nation in learning options
Sunshine State News reports on a national study of private learning options, with author saying "you get closer to true equality with choice." Read HERE.
JAN. 06, 2012 Tax credit scholarship expands options
Doug Tuthill writes in the Orlando Sentinel that "this scholarship is part of an increasingly customized public education system." Read HERE..
NOV. 16, 2011 Legislation to serve more scholarship students
The St. Petersburg Times Gradebook writes about a new Senate bill that would expand the scholarship program in 2012-13 to $250 million to "ease a growing waiting list." Read here.
NOV. 08, 2011 Hillsborough County Commission honors SUFS Chairman John Kirtley with commendation
Hillsborough County commissioners recently declared that they were proud to call Step Up For Students Chairman John Kirtley a resident of Hillsborough County. The county commission honored John with an official commendation on Nov. 2, noting particularly the $200,000 gift he and Step Up For Students made last spring to support two single-gender preparatory academies in the Hillsborough County school district. For video of the presentation to John, click here.
OCT. 17, 2011 Step Up For Students named among top 400 nonprofits
The Chronicle of Philanthropy lists Step Up For Students 212th overall and No. 3 in terms of growth in its annual ranking of nonprofit organizations that have raised the most money in private support. Read here.
SEP. 18, 2011 Tax Credit Scholarship a proven success
In the Jacksonville Business Journal, Doug Tuthill says businesses are helping thousands of disadvantage students in Duval County. Read HERE.
AUG. 31, 2011 Scholarship students slightly outperform public school students
The St. Petersburg Times Gradebook reports on a new state report that finds "low-income students attending private schools in Florida with tax-credit vouchers appear to be making slightly bigger academic gains than similar students in public schools." Read HERE.
JUL. 28, 2011 Low-income families lining up for vouchers in Florida
The St. Petersburg Times writes that rising enrollment "is another strong sign that demand for vouchers among low-income families is rising fast." Read HERE.
JUL. 26, 2011 SUFS Chairman John Kirtley honored for education reform work
Step Up For Students Chairman John Kirtley recently received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Hispanic Council for Reform and Educational Options (Hispanic CREO). In awarding the honor, Hispanic CREO president and CEO Julio Fuentes said, “The parents of more than 34,000 low-income children are empowered in a way that would have been unthinkable if not for John Kirtley’s tenacity and the Legislature’s commitment to this scholarship program. Hispanic CREO can think of no one more deserving of this honor.”
JUN. 15, 2011 New law encourages companies to give more
Florida has made it easier for companies to give more to the Step Up For Students program beginning on July 1. The new law, which was signed by Gov. Rick Scott on June 2, allows each company to redirect up to 100 percent of its corporate income or insurance premium taxes each year toward scholarships for low-income students. That’s up from the current limit of 75 percent. The law also protects companies by increasing the time they can carry forward each tax credit from three to five years.
JUN. 06, 2011 Small but prideful advancements
The Tampa Tribune calls Step Up Chairman John Kirtley "an education champion who backs his words with deeds -- and dollars." Read HERE.
MAY. 25, 2011 Donor steps up for kids
The Tampa Tribune reports as Hillsborough school superintendent MaryEllen Elia thanks John Kirtley for his $100,000 donation to a magnet school. "All parents, we believe, should have choices," Elia said. Read HERE.
APR. 24, 2011 Families vouch for program
The St. Petersburg Times reports on scholarship schools and families in Hernando County: "Parents are grateful for the help in sending their children to private schools." Read HERE.
APR. 17, 2011 Program helps open doors
The Ocala Star Banner reports that the Step Up For Students Scholarship "helps open doors to private schools." Parent Jon Davison calls it "a blessing." Read HERE.
APR. 10, 2011 Black leaders tout scholarships
The St. Petersburg Times reports: "Private path to success in school: Black leaders tout the role of charter schools and vouchers for children." Read HERE.
MAR. 20, 2011 The next educational step
When it comes to kids’ education, “public” or “private” matters less than success or failure. A commentary in the Folio Weekly newspaper in Jacksonville. Read HERE.
FEB. 16, 2011 A new look from Step Up For Students
Step Up For Students welcomes you to a new look and more features to this web site. We've tried to group items that are of interest to Parents, Donors and Schools, and we've included detailed instructions for each group under the heading "How It Works." Parents, we'll be set to receive applications for the 2011-12 school year during the first week of March. Sign up will start with existing families to renewing scholarships for their students.
JAN. 03, 2011 Florida voucher program set to expand
Florida’s corporate school voucher program could expand by $35 million next year, which would be enough to send 6,000 additional children on the waiting list to private schools throughout the state. Read more.
DEC. 07, 2010 Study: Fla. Tax Credit Program Improved Public School Scores
A study, summarized in an article in the latest issue of the journal Education Next, finds that a Florida program that supports private school scholarships for students through corporate-tax credits had a positive effect on the test scores of students in nearby public schools that were forced to compete for those students. Read more.