The Education Foundation of Sarasota County’s College, Career, Life Readiness initiative recently received a $15,000 grant from the Bank of America Charitable Foundation to help fund its Student Success Program. The Student Success Program is designed to provide students with the tools and resources they need to prepare a plan for their lives after high school. At LaunchPad4U, the education innovation site housing the Education Foundation’s fourth Student Success Center, similar services are offered to those available on partnering high school campus Student Success Centers where Education Foundation college-career advisors guide students on planning for life after high school.

Another prong of Student Success programming is through PLANit Sarasota, the Local College Access Network (LCAN) operated by the Education Foundation. PLANit Sarasota’s goal is to provide students from low socio-economic backgrounds with an array of services to make college and high-value certifications more accessible. Since 45.4 percent of students in Sarasota County Schools are economically disadvantaged, these programs are important to assure that students will have the support that they need.