Take Stock in Children of Alachua County
Scholarships. Mentors. Hope.
Take Stock in Children (TSIC) breaks the cycle of poverty by identifying high-achieving, low-income public school students who show the potential to go to college and providing them with holistic support.
Eligible students must: attend an Alachua County Public School or Florida Public School of Choice (Florida Virtual, Local Florida Public School District Virtual, or Florida Public Charter School); maintain a 2.5 G.P.A and good behavior; and be financially eligible.
Benefits: Students are paired with a mentor and meet with them at lunch at least twice monthly during the school year. Upon high school graduation, students receive a 2-year college scholarship.
How to apply: Applications are released in the fall semester and students are interviewed in the early spring semester. For this year’s cycle, applications are scheduled to be available beginning on November 1 with interviews happening in January. Family income eligibility guidelines are here. You can apply through our virtual application portal below.
Volunteer as a mentor
Be a force for change
Mentors are a critical component to the success of Take Stock in Children. Mentors serve as positive role-models, advocates, coaches and friends. As a Take Stock Mentor you meet weekly with your scholar at their school and have an opportunity to help a child reach their goal of a college education.
At its core, mentoring connects students to trusted adults who can guide them through critical growth and personal development. Mentors help students understand that they are never truly alone. By consistently meeting with their students, mentors develop strong relationships that positively impact the lives of students.
It takes a mentor to encourage students, help them develop their skills, and build their confidence. Take Stock in Children mentors serve as positive role models by displaying values of punctuality, dependability, and reliability.
Lend your time, talents, and experiences to help guide a student to graduation.
How to Apply
Apply, Train, Meet, Change A Life Over Lunch
Steps to becoming a mentor
- Complete our TSIC Mentor Interest Form.
- Complete the 2025-2026 Mentor Application.
- Complete the Alachua County School Board Volunteer Form for Level I clearance. The Alachua County School Board requires any volunteer to fill out the following form to be approved to volunteer in the schools. In the form process, you will need to click Level I & Level II clearance. Once you receive your approval email from the Volunteers office for Level I clearance, please forward your approval email to me at concementka@gm.sbac.edu
- Complete the Level II Interest Form. Once this step is complete, you should receive an email from the ACPS Volunteer Office for the next steps to complete Level II Clearance.
- Due to a new state-level mandate, the district now requires all volunteers working with students to obtain Level II clearance, which includes fingerprinting through Fieldprint Florida. The current cost is $82, and we understand that this is a significant and unexpected expense for our mentors.
- If you are in need of financial assistance for the Level II Clearance requirement, please remember to state so in the mentor interest form so we know best how to assist you.
- Attend a Virtual Mentor Training Session
- Once you have given either verbal or written confirmation that you have completed the following items above, we will match you to a Take Stock in Children scholar and coordinate an introduction meeting with your new Take Stock mentee.
- Meet bi-weekly (a minimum of 15 sessions in a school year) with your mentee and change a life over lunch!
Volunteer as a mentor
Be a force for change
Mentors are a critical component to the success of Take Stock in Children. Mentors serve as positive role-models, advocates, coaches and friends. As a Take Stock Mentor you meet weekly with your scholar at their school and have an opportunity to help a child reach their goal of a college education.
At its core, mentoring connects students to trusted adults who can guide them through critical growth and personal development. Mentors help students understand that they are never truly alone. By consistently meeting with their students, mentors develop strong relationships that positively impact the lives of students.
It takes a mentor to encourage students, help them develop their skills, and build their confidence. Take Stock in Children mentors serve as positive role models by displaying values of punctuality, dependability, and reliability.
Lend your time, talents, and experiences to help guide a student to graduation.
Students
Eligible students must: attend an Alachua County Public School or Florida Public School of Choice (Florida Virtual, Local Florida Public School District Virtual, or Florida Public Charter School); maintain a 2.5 G.P.A and good behavior; and be financially eligible.
Benefits: Students are paired with a mentor and meet with them at lunch at least twice monthly during the school year. Upon high school graduation, students receive a 2-year college scholarship.
How to apply: Applications are released in the fall semester and students are interviewed in the early spring semester. For this year’s cycle, applications are scheduled to be available beginning on November 1 with interviews happening in January. Family income eligibility guidelines are here. You can apply through our virtual application portal below.
Sponsor a Take Stock Student
Sponsor a Scholarship
Sponsoring a Take Stock in Children scholar from induction to graduation costs $5,000. This $5,000 covers the cost of the student’s 2-year Florida Prepaid scholarship as well as the services they receive while enrolled in Take Stock in Children. With your support scholars will have the opportunity to attend college tours, engage in career exploration and learn about financial literacy, all while receiving personalized assistance with college applications and more!