Pinellas County Schools is once again celebrating a record-high graduation rate for the 2018-2019 school year. According to the official report just released by the Florida Department of Education, the Pinellas County Schools high school graduation rate rose to 88.44%, up 2.44 percentage points from last year’s record high, and more than 16.5 percentage points…
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Anne Eason, Ph.D., a longtime LEAP Tampa Bay volunteer, was honored at last night’s Tampa Bay Lightning game as a Lightning Community Hero. The distinction comes with a $50,000 grant from the Lightning Foundation and the Lightning Community Heroes program, which Anne will donate to LEAP Tampa Bay through the Community Foundation of Tampa Bay.…
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It’s that time of year when the gym is crowded, storage bins are on sale at Target — and everyone has the best of intentions. With a new year comes New Year’s resolutions. And while we hear a lot about the number of people vowing to shed some weight, save more for retirement or finally…
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The notoriously complicated Free Application for Federal Student Aid will soon be getting a facelift, thanks to new legislation signed into law Thursday. The bipartisan FUTURE Act will cut the number of FAFSA questions by approximately 20% and will allow for better, more accurate data sharing between the Internal Revenue Service and U.S. Department of…
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Legislation that would simplify the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is on the way to President Trump for signature, according to the National College Access Network. On Tuesday, the House of Representatives passed the FUTURE Act (H.B. 5363), which if enacted would reduce the number of questions on the FAFSA by 20%. The…
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Above: Fuse scholarship recipient Lia Messina speaks at a Jan. 2019 event announcing the Fuse Scholarship Fund had reached $3 million. Promising early results for Fuse scholarship recipients show impact of financial aid on student success As a seamless transfer program between the University of South Florida and eight Florida state colleges, including Hillsborough Community…
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Approximately 69 percent of St. Petersburg College’s (SPC) diverse student population of more than 47,000 students, ranging from 16 to 95 years old, have low to moderate income. Low- income students often face barriers to success, including transportation. The Kresge Foundation awarded SPC a $50,000 planning grant for Advancing Student Transportation Solutions to understand student…
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Updated U.S. Census data shows that Florida’s higher education attainment rate continues outpace the national average. Florida is now ranked at #22 in the U.S. for completion of college degrees and workforce-related credentials, according to the Florida College Access Network. The latest data shows Florida’s higher education attainment rate increased to 49.6%, while nationally, the…
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New research from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center (NSCRC) provides fresh insights into the population of adults in the U.S. who started college, but never completed a degree. The researchers found that 36 million adults across the U.S. fall into the “some college, no degree” category. Locally, approximately 250,000 Hillsborough and Pinellas county residents…
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A “First Look” data dashboard revealing the number of Florida high school seniors who have completed the FAFSA since October 1, 2019 (when the 2020-21 FAFSA opened) is now available. The dashboard, published by the Florida College Access Network, provides the ability to filter by school, city and county. In addition to the current year’s…
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