Maria Gloria, a Take Stock in Children (TSIC) scholar, was recently promoted to operations manager at the Fort Myers Branch of MIDFLORIDA Credit Union. She attributes TSIC for paving her way to college and teaching her about professionalism.
TSIC is a statewide program that provides at-risk children with a mentor and a college scholarship. In return, Take Stock scholars sign contracts in which they promise to remain drug-free, to avoid behavior that would get them into trouble with law enforcement, to attend school regularly, and to earn satisfactory grades. The students’ parents also sign the contracts and agree to provide home environments conducive to education. The SFSC Foundation is the lead agency for TSIC within the College’s service district of DeSoto, Hardee, and Highlands counties. The local program was established in 1996 and has awarded Florida Prepaid college scholarships to more than 667 local students.
Gloria, who calls Lake Placid home, is the child of migrant farm workers, who resided in Michigan and Florida through the agricultural seasons. While in high school, Gloria took dual enrollment courses at SFSC. She graduated from Lake Placid High School in 2017 and continued her education at Florida State University, where she earned her Bachelor of Science in Finance and Management Information Systems in 2021. She is a first-generation college graduate…