REPRESENTATIVE SANSOM---SPEAKER DESIGNATE OF FLORIDA'S HOUSE---TO PARTICIPATE IN TAKE STOCK EVENTS IN KEY WEST AND MARATHON.

 On Saturday, May 31^st  at 11:30 a.m., Rep. Sansom participated--along with FKCC's Dr. Jill Landesberg-Boyle--in Monroe's eighth Take Stock In Children Graduation Ceremony, held at the new Marathon High School.  A full house attended  this ceremony, honoring the 45 Take Stock graduates from all three high schools---Coral Shores, Marathon, and Key West.  Families, mentors, donors, and many friends attended and this event was open to the public. 

Rep. Sansom (R) from Destin, Florida was first elected to the House in 2002, and is expected to hold the Speaker's Chair for the 2009 and 2010 legislative years.   (Pictured is Rep Sansom, along with Dignitaries from the Monroe County Education Foundation, School Board,  Dr. Landesberg-Boyle, FKCC President, and  Superintendent Acevedo)

The 45 proud seniors in this year's eighth graduating class joined 179 from Monroe County who preceded them and are already in college.  Following these seniors are over two hundred Take Stock students in grades 7 through 11 who have signed contracts awarding them full tuition, four-year college scholarships.  These students have committed themselves to good behavior and good grades, staying crime and drug free, and attending regular weekly meetings with their mentors.  In return, each student receives a fully paid, four-year college scholarship.   

Monroe County is the Take Stock leader in Florida:  Program coordinator Jim Hall says, "All qualified students from the 7th to the 12th grade who want to go to college already have their scholarships.  No other county can make that claim." 

TAKE STOCK ACROSS FLORIDA.    Now in its thirteenth year, Take Stock In Children has served over 13,500 students in Florida, both in secondary schools and in college.  Its mission is to help low-income, at-risk children graduate high school and attend college.  

For more information on mentoring a student or donating to the scholarship fund, call Jim Hall at 305-293-1546.