Pictured: Left to right: Venice High School student Gabriel Morales, Education Foundation Scholarships Manager Heather Ferrigno; Ferrigno, Venice High School student Katelyn Lunsford; Education Foundation Student Success Coach Diana Berris, Sarasota Milit

This is always an exciting and inspiring time of year. It’s graduation season—a major milestone for students as they turn the page to their next chapter.

For us, it’s also scholarship season: a powerful reminder of our mission and a benchmark for our vision—to unite the community in preparing each and every student for life. It’s the time of year when we see the hard work quite literally pay off for local students, and it’s an honor to be one of many scholarship providers in our community connecting generous donors with aspirational students.

Sarasota County boasts a historic 93% graduation rate. But for many graduates—especially those lacking financial resources or guidance—the next steps can feel overwhelming.

This year, the Education Foundation supported Sarasota County students with nearly 70 scholarships—and we’re not done yet. We remain committed to helping students prepare for life after high school. As part of that effort, we launched a new program called Future-Ready Scholars. In its first year, the program awarded 44 students a one-time $1,000 scholarship. Ten students also received a $2,500 DeLynn Foundation Future-Ready Scholarship.

Our scholarships support a wide range of postsecondary paths—from university degrees to high-level certificates and vital trades like electrical work, plumbing, and automotive technology—fields that are essential to every community. Postsecondary plans have expenses beyond tuition and fees that many scholarships don’t always cover. These non-qualified expenses can include books, uniforms, housing, and supplies—costs that can come with a wide range of variance. For some students, these costs are a barrier to starting or finishing a program. The Education Foundation, as well as many other scholarship providers, offer scholarships to help pay or offset these non-qualified expenses based on financial need, so it’s beneficial for students to pursue all types of scholarships.

One student, Cody, exemplifies what’s possible when a community steps in to support a young person’s future. After working with our Education Foundation Success Coaches, Cody received the STRIVE Award as both a junior and senior—an honor given to students who have demonstrated resilience in overcoming challenges. He also received a Future-Ready Scholarship and a Jump Start Scholarship. This fall, Cody will attend State College of Florida to study cybersecurity and technology.

Scholarships can be the differentiator in whether a student continues to postsecondary education, and we continue to believe that an investment in a child’s education is the best investment anyone can make. If you’re inspired to help students succeed, we invite you to get involved. It’s an investment in all of our futures.

Jennifer Vigne is the President and CEO of the Education Foundation of Sarasota County.

Pictured: Left to right: Venice High School student Gabriel Morales, Education Foundation Scholarships Manager Heather Ferrigno; Ferrigno, Venice High School student Katelyn Lunsford; Education Foundation Student Success Coach Diana Berris, Sarasota Milit