Nonprofit Take Stock in Children Palm Beach County Requests Community Support in Effort to Assist At-Risk Youth to Reach Their College Dreams

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., Feb. 25, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- With the mission of helping at-risk youth reach their college dreams, Take Stock in Children Palm Beach County is undertaking an ambitious Scholarship Fundraising Drive to recruit and enroll 240 new students into the program, doubling the current number of students enrolled.

Take Stock must raise $228,000 by the deadline of April 15 in order to earn $468,665 of matching legislative funds through the Florida Prepaid Scholarship Foundation—doubling the power of the funds raised through this drive. If the fundraising goal is not met, the matching funds will be forfeited back to the Florida Prepaid Foundation.   

"Take Stock provides college readiness services, student advocacy and a full-tuition Florida prepaid scholarship to financially disadvantaged, at-risk students in Palm Beach County," said Bettee Collister, President and CEO of Take Stock in Children Palm Beach County. "With the Scholarship Fundraising Drive plus the $468,665 of matching legislative funds available, we can help so many more local students reach their full potential and live their college dreams. We need the community's support to make this happen."

"Everyone here at Take Stock is extremely excited by the wonderful opportunity we have to enrich nearly 250 more children's lives. We believe in our community and are confident with its help we can reach this amazing milestone," said Collister.

Students are the driving force behind Take Stock in Children's mentoring and scholarship programs—students such as Wilkine Brutus, a Take Stock in Children Graduate who earned a Bachelor's degree from Florida Atlantic University. "Despite our circumstances, I became my mother's foreseeable vision of success. It took a man from another realm to complement that vision. He was my mentor from Take Stock in Children," said Brutus.

Dollars raised through the Scholarship Campaign Fundraising Drive are solely for purchasing scholarships and will not be used toward program and operational dollars. Individuals and businesses are encouraged to learn more about Take Stock in Children Palm Beach County and to participate in the program. For more information, please call 561-683-1704 or visit www.takestockpalmbeach.org.

About Take Stock in Children   
Take Stock in Children is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization with a solid 18-year history of providing mentors, educational scholarships and hope for Florida's low-income and deserving youth. The organization has provided educational support and college scholarships for more than 18,000 children in partnership with more than 800 public schools throughout 67 counties in Florida. It is the only scholarship mentoring program that has attained a high school graduation rate of 92 percent in Florida. The program's multi-year commitment to students and their comprehensive program services begin in middle school and continue through high school graduation and into college. Special emphasis is placed on student accountability and specific measurable outcomes. Take Stock in Children students pledge to meet with their assigned mentor once a week, maintain a minimum grade point average of 2.5, and remain drug and crime free. Upon successful high school graduation, as a fulfillment of their contractual agreement, students are then awarded a college scholarship to any college, university or vocational school in the state of Florida. To learn more about Take Stock in Children, please call 888-322-4673 or visit www.takestockinchildren.org.

MEDIA CONTACT  
Megan Love Blomqvist  
QVIST Public Relations  
561-339-5721  

This press release was issued through eReleases® Press Release Distribution. For more information, visit http://www.ereleases.com.

SOURCE Take Stock in Children Palm Beach County