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ACADEMY PREP INSPIRING & EMPOWERING FUTURE LEADERS
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igh-quality education is vital to positively shaping the futures of our youth and our society. That’s why International Diamond Center is proud to showcase the Academy Prep Centers for Education as this year’s Fifth C Foundation sponsorship. Brian Stamey, who represents both IDC and the Leclerc family, sits on the board at the Academy Prep Center in St. Petersburg. “Academy Prep has been near and dear to our family for years,” says Brian. “It’s so rewarding to support their efforts and see the great work that they do with the kids.” Academy Prep offers a rigorous middle school program, followed by eight years of graduate support through college, for students qualifying for full need-based scholarships, with the hope that they go on to be leaders in their communities in their own right. As tuition-free schools (scholarships are funded by individuals, corporations, and foundations), students attend academic classes and a broad array of enrichment activities for up to 11 hours a day, six days per week, 11 months out of the year. Most of Academy Prep’s bright young students come from impoverished neighborhoods. No matter — Academy Prep doesn’t flinch from holding their students to the standards they richly deserve to be held to. Supplementing a challenging academic curriculum that includes honors-level English and Math (geometry), the Academy Prep program broadens intellectual horizons through these college prep academic offerings coupled with a wide array of artistic, cultural, and community-based enrichments, including visual arts, chess, choir, band, dance, gardening, sports, career development, social skills, leadership skills, and community service.
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