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
Reading Scholarships, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
Juliette is reading at grade level thanks to New Worlds Reading Scholarship Account
Jul 20, 2023 • By Roger Mooney
Florida Tax Credit Scholarship, graduate, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
An education choice scholarship has Carlos on the pre-med track at the University of Miami
Sep 12, 2023 • By Roger Mooney
Florida Tax Credit Scholarship, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
Her name is Sidjourney and she wants to make big changes in her community
Aug 28, 2023 • By Roger Mooney
Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options, Florida Tax Credit Scholarship, Scholarship News, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
Many Step Up students are eligible to receive free computer/tablet and free internet service
Aug 9, 2023 • By Roger Mooney
Donor Corner, Scholarship News, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
Gold Coast Eagle Distributing donates $4.8 million to help Florida schoolchildren
Aug 7, 2023 • By Roger Mooney
Reading Scholarships, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
Juliette is reading at grade level thanks to New Worlds Reading Scholarship Account
Jul 20, 2023 • By Roger Mooney
Your gift will change a student's life
Our dedication to students doesn’t end when they receive a scholarship. Your support will enable Step Up to maximize the impact of the scholarships the students receive.
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Browse More From The Blog
CDW Helps Provide Technology Resources and Digital Equity to Step Up For Students
CDW has partnered with Step Up For Students to help provide technology resources and digital equity for recipients of Florida’s Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities, and the Reading Scholarship program. “At CDW, we understand how important it is for students to have access to the technology resources they need to be successful […]
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New autism center in Florida Keys offers education, therapy, resources – and hope
For 23 years, the Carrie Brazer Center for Autism in Miami has served students on the autism spectrum and others with neurodiverse conditions. During that time, Brazer, a Florida-certified special education teacher with a master’s degree in special education, noticed that families from the Florida Keys were driving as much as three hours to come […]
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Earthquake survivor uses education choice scholarship to become a 'Rising Star'
MARGATE, Florida – Sophonie Jean Baptiste was in the family’s second-floor apartment the day in 2010 when an earthquake rocked her native Haiti. She grabbed her daughter, Gema, who was not quite 3, and tried to run for safety while the three-story building they lived in crumbled. They didn’t make it. Nearly five hours later, […]
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20 years of Educational Opportunity, Florida Tax Credit Scholarship, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
Cancer doesn't interrupt path to med school for alumni of Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program
It was the beginning of the 2019-20 school year and Luke Desclefs was smoothly sailing toward graduating Jacksonville’s Bishop Snyder High School that spring. His course load wasn’t heavy. His grades were in order. His plans for college were in place. Then in October, he noticed a lump on his neck. Cancer. Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a […]
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Education savings account allows Dylan to gain independence one step at a time
SEMINOLE, Florida – Dylan Quessenberry was 15 when he walked up a flight of stairs for the first time. It was 20 steps, linking two floors at his school. But for Dylan, who has cerebral palsy, that staircase was more than just a route to the cafeteria at Learning Independence For Tomorrow (LiFT) Academy, a […]
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Universal Property & Casualty Insurance Company donates $5 million to help Florida students
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla.– Step Up For Students announced April 28 a $5 million contribution to the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program fromUniversal Property & Casualty Insurance Company (UPCIC), helping more than 655 Florida schoolchildren attend the K-12 school that best fits their learning needs. Since 2017, UPCIC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Universal Insurance Holdings, […]
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Podcast: Florida mom looks forward to additional benefits of education savings account
reimaginED Senior Writer Lisa Buie talks with Karen Prewitt, whose son, Caleb, 15, is benefitting from a change in Florida law that is merging the McKay Scholarship program into the state’s Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities. Click here to listen to the podcast. Born with Down Syndrome, Caleb attends North Florida School […]
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Podcast: Young, energetic and eager to enlighten a new audience about Education Choice
On this podcast, Walter Blanks Jr. and Nathan Cunneen talk about their new endeavor, the School Choice Boyz podcast with Roger Mooney, manager, communications, at Step Up For Students. Both Walter and Nate are products of school choice. Nate attended Bradenton Christian School in Florida on a Florida Tax Credit Scholarship. Walter attended private schools […]
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Florida Tax Credit Scholarship, Gardiner Scholarships, School Spotlights, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
Northeast Florida Catholic school lauded for outreach efforts to immigrant families
BY LISA BUIE A parochial school program intent on extending education choice to children of migrant workers has received a national award for its efforts. The National Catholic Education Association announced that St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic School in Palm Coast, Florida, will receive the Catherine T. McNamee CSJ Award. The award is given to an individual or institution […]
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Two families, football and education choice helps Junior realize his dreams of a college scholarship
TAMPA, Florida – Jessie “Junior” Vandeross considers himself “blessed” because: His father died when he was 3. He has a heart murmur that was detected when he was in the seventh grade and threatened to end his athletic career. The grim memories of the day his father passed away surfaced when Junior was in the […]
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