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
Donor Corner, Beyond the Scholarship, Florida Tax Credit Scholarship, Scholarship News, Step Up For Students
Cadence Bank donates $400,000 to scholarships for Florida students
Jan 22, 2025 • By Ashley Zarle
School Spotlights, Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options, Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities, Florida Tax Credit Scholarship, Step Up For Students
Ed Choice scholarships are a boon to the expansion of Key West's Catholic school
Jan 28, 2025 • By Roger Mooney
Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
CES Academy of Lakeland strives to accommodate gifted students like Aleksandar
Jan 27, 2025 • By Roger Mooney
Donor Corner, Beyond the Scholarship, Florida Tax Credit Scholarship, Scholarship News, Step Up For Students
Cadence Bank donates $400,000 to scholarships for Florida students
Jan 22, 2025 • By Ashley Zarle
Florida Tax Credit Scholarship, Rising Stars, School Choice, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
The option of an education choice scholarship will expand Joly's options for college and beyond
Jan 21, 2025 • By Roger Mooney
Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
The right educational setting has Khloe learning with resilience
Dec 20, 2024 • By Roger Mooney
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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
Florida Tax Credit Scholarship, Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
Top grades and desire to ease family's financial burden leads to coveted QuestBridge scholarship
DORAL – When he begins his freshman year this fall at Boston University, Alvaro Saenz plans to major in biomedical engineering, a decision driven by his lifelong love of science and his desire to dedicate his life to helping people with special needs – such as his brother. “It combines the best of both worlds,” […]
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Florida Tax Credit Scholarship, Personalized Education Program, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
A student with many interests has many options thanks to his Personalized Education Program
Cooper Campen is the spelling bee champion of Alachua County who plays the trumpet, reads John Grisham novels, and would like to be a mechanical engineer. Or a doctor. Or a lawyer. He is 12 years old, a young man of many interests. Science. History. Music. Words. And this: Education choice. Cooper, 12, is homeschooled […]
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Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities, Gardiner Scholarships, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
What can Emma do? Amazing things, that's what
CLEARWATER – On the desk inside Emma Coto’s bedroom is a sign that says, “This Girl Can.” That’s as good of a place as any to begin this story because sitting at the piano next to the desk is Emma, and she’s playing the theme to “Jurassic Park,” her favorite movie. Emma is 11, and […]
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With education choice scholarship, parents feel they are doing 'something greater' for Emilio
APOPKA – The days were long when the family lived up north, when Maria Alvaracin and her husband, Fernando Ramirez, worked two and sometimes three jobs each in one day just to afford rent and food and gas for the car they shared. Maria cleaned houses and worked the overnight shift at McDonald’s, while Fernando […]
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Education choice scholarship a 'humongous blessing' for straight-A student Briana
The first quarter academic awards ceremony at Grace Christian School was coming to an end, and Lynette Thomas had yet to hear her daughter’s name called. Briana Thomas had enrolled at the pre-K-to-8 faith-based private school in Ocala as a sixth-grader that August and had aced every test. Lynette thought it was odd Briana hadn’t […]
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Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities, Gardiner Scholarships, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
Nearly housebound by a rare set of genetic disorders, Tristan has seen the world thanks to his ESA and virtual reality
Tristan Drummond was born 10 weeks premature with one kidney and enough genetic disorders that doctors gave him a 50/50 chance to turn 1. He had his first surgery when he was 2 days old and has far exceeded that dire prediction. He will turn 12 in June. But his lungs are filled with scar […]
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Mikaela's goal is simple: From head of the class as a student to head of the class as the teacher
BY ROGER MOONEY TAMPA – Be a doctor, some say. Be a lawyer, others suggest. You’re so smart, you should do something big, they tell her. Mikaela Powell politely listens to those who see her top-of-the-class grades and encourage her to pursue a lofty education and a lucrative career. What they don’t know is the […]
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Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities, Gardiner Scholarships, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
Sugar and spice and tackles: Payton wants to coach football just like her dad
BY ROGER MOONEY NAPLES – Payton Gibbs stood at midfield wearing black pants, a red pullover, and a red ballcap emblazoned with the University of Massachusetts logo. From a distance, she looked like a football coach watching her team during pregame warmups. From closeup, too, because on a brisk November afternoon in Amherst, Massachusetts, the […]
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Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options, Florida Tax Credit Scholarship, Scholarship News, School Spotlights, Step Up For Students
Two Catholic schools join Florida's growing list of Purple Star schools that accommodate military families
BY ROGER MOONEY These four words serve as a beacon to military families stationed in Florida who are searching for the right educational fit for their children: A Purple Star School. “It lets them know that we want them here and that we want to honor them and support them,” said Stasia Holzbaur, the office […]
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Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options, Florida Tax Credit Scholarship, Step Up For Students, Student Spotlights
Education choice scholarship a boon for this military family
E BY ROGER MOONEY MIRAMAR – William Ivins moved his family to South Florida ahead of his retirement from the United States Marine Corps and enrolled his children at Mother of Our Redeemer Catholic School, hoping they would reap the same rewards as he did from a faith-based education. But, as William and his wife, […]
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