inspirED
Meet our scholars, educators, donors and partners.
Transforming Our Community.
One Scholarship at a Time.
Step Up For Students Scholarships do more than fund education. They change lives. Students thrive in environments that fit their needs. Educators extend their reach to support vulnerable students. Communities grow stronger as educational systems improve.
This is inspireEd. Welcome.
Here, you will get an inside view of that transformation in progress. See what happens when students and their families discover the power of taking control over their academics. Watch as they forge new pathways to a better future. Find inspiration in their determination to achieve their dreams.
These are the stories of Florida students who have renewed hope because they have a school that better fits their needs or educational materials to unlock their potential. They are the stories of a community that has come together to support the belief that educational choice matters. Here, you can be a part of this incredible journey.
This is inspireEd. Welcome.
Here, you will get an inside view of that transformation in progress. See what happens when students and their families discover the power of taking control over their academics. Watch as they forge new pathways to a better future. Find inspiration in their determination to achieve their dreams.
These are the stories of Florida students who have renewed hope because they have a school that better fits their needs or educational materials to unlock their potential. They are the stories of a community that has come together to support the belief that educational choice matters. Here, you can be a part of this incredible journey.
Latest Posts
Student Spotlights, Beyond the Scholarship, Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options, Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities, Florida Tax Credit Scholarship, Gardiner Scholarships, School Choice, Step Up For Students
Private school scholarships allowed the Roland family to meet the academic needs of their children
Jul 22, 2025 • By Roger Mooney
Student Spotlights, Beyond the Scholarship, Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options, School Choice, Step Up For Students
Wait until you hear what Bishop Kenny High sophomore Christopher Trinidad is up to now
Oct 21, 2025 • By Roger Mooney
Student Spotlights, Beyond the Scholarship, Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities, Home Education, Homeschool, Step Up For Students
Meet the SkiSibs: The sister/brother combo conquering Florida one triathlon at a time
Oct 17, 2025 • By Roger Mooney
Student Spotlights, Beyond the Scholarship, Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities, School Choice, Step Up For Students
By running the Chicago Marathon, Caleb Prewitt continues to raise the bar for the Down syndrome community
Oct 16, 2025 • By Roger Mooney
Military Family, Beyond the Scholarship, Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options, School Choice, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
Education choice scholarship a 'game-changer' for military family transferring to Florida
Sep 16, 2025 • By Roger Mooney
Personalized Education Program, Beyond the Scholarship, Scholarship News, School Choice, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
Lofty dreams and a PEP scholarship power 12-year-old pilot in training
Sep 8, 2025 • By Roger Mooney
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Browse More From The Blog
Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities, Gardiner Scholarships, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
Fighting for life since birth, Peyton has 'overcome everything they told us she wouldn’t overcome'
BY ROGER MOONEY OKEECHOBEE – Peyton Williams entered this world with a damaged heart, a damaged airway and hardly any hope from doctors who examined her the day she was born. They told her mother her baby wouldn’t survive her first 24 hours. Then she was told Peyton wouldn’t live to her first birthday. Peyton […]
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Education choice scholarship gave Taty the 'true experience of what school is supposed to be'
BY ROGER MOONEY When she arrived at The Foundation Academy, a private K-12 school in Jacksonville, Tatyanna “Taty” Thibeaux was a shy student who didn’t say much and kept to herself. Some of that, her mother Lucy said, stemmed from a language delay. “When she was little, she really didn’t speak,” Lucy said. “She really […]
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Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options, Florida Tax Credit Scholarship, School Choice, School Spotlights, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
School choice in Florida’s oyster country
Editor’s note: This distinctive high school in the Florida Panhandle is another compelling example of how education choice manifests in rural areas, contrary to myths perpetuated by choice opponents in other states. To rebut that misinformation, reimaginED published a new white paper last week called “Rerouting the Myths of Rural Education Choice.” You can check […]
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School Choice, Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options, Florida Tax Credit Scholarship, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
Video: School choice at work in rural America
Editor’s note: This video spotlights a rural private school that caters to school choice students and is changing lives and communities for the better. To learn more about how choice is helping rural areas, check out our new paper, “Rerouting the Myths of Rural Education Choice.” When you think of school choice, you probably don’t think of places […]
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Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options, Florida Tax Credit Scholarship, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
Florida earns top education choice rankings in national report
BY LISA BUIE The Center for Education Reform in its annual education choice report has ranked Florida as the country’s No. 1 state for parent empowerment in education. The center’s Parent Power! Index gave Florida its overall top ranking, also rating the Sunshine State No. 1 for digital and personalized learning and education choice programs. […]
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Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities, Gardiner Scholarships, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
podcastED: Florida scholarship mom says adding flexibility could benefit her family
On this episode, senior writer Lisa Buie talks with Jacquelyn Forte of Pensacola, Florida. Forte is the mother of four children, including three who attend a Catholic school on state education choice scholarships. Her oldest child, Jude, initially received the McKay Scholarship for Students with Disabilities, which merged this year with the state Family Empowerment […]
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South Florida school a ‘builder of boys, maker of men’
BY TOM JACKSON Just now, the news Palm Beach Christian Preparatory School is making belongs on the sports pages — which is what you would expect when a bunch of coaches launches a private school. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. To its enormous credit, PBCPS embraces vigorous competition as one of its ideals, and for […]
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Education choice scholarships lead to right environment which leads to bright futures
BY ROGER MOONEY MIAMI – Louise Janvier uses the word “environment” often when talking about education choice and how it can rescue a child. “Sometimes, when a kid is going to go through things in life, they have to be in the right environment in order to pull through,” she said. “Some of them don’t […]
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20 years of Educational Opportunity, Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities, Gardiner Scholarships, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
Learning job skills, gaining confidence and making a very big friend with the help of an education choice scholarship
JACKSONVILLE, Florida – Not every student at North Florida School of Special Education rides Chief within minutes of meeting the big horse, but that’s what James Guha did one day during the summer of 2021. Oh, it took some encouraging and a little cajoling from Andrew Sack, the barn manager. Chief is big and a […]
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20 years of Educational Opportunity, Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities, Gardiner Scholarships, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
JJ Humphrey sees nomination for acting award as 'big deal' for him and other neurodivergent actors
What intrigued JJ Humphrey about his starring role in the play, “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time,” was his ability to relate to the lead character. While never mentioned in Mark Haddon’s novel, Christopher Boone, the protagonist, is on the autism spectrum. So is JJ. A neurodivergent actor playing a neurodivergent character. […]
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