MIAMI (Nov. 21, 2019) – FIU and the Florida Lottery have continued a highly successful partnership, aligning one of the largest universities in the country to one of Florida education's greatest contributors.

Since 1988, the Florida Lottery has provided more than $36 billion dollars to education all throughout Florida. The Florida Lottery's sole mission is to maximize revenues for the enhancement of public education in Florida.

As part of the partnership, FIU and the Florida Lottery recognizes the impact of how the present influence we provide our students today will reflect on their future. The Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Program was created to establish a lottery-funded scholarship program to reward any Florida high school graduate who merits recognition of high academic achievement. Thanks to the Bright Futures program, Ayssa Rosa is attending Florida International University seeking a master's degree in counseling. She is currently the Associate Director at the Student-Athlete Academic Center, and ensures that all student-athletes study hard to earn the grades they need to ensure a bright future.

The Florida Bright Futures Scholarship by the Florida Lottery allows students to accomplish goals that otherwise may not have attainable. For Ayssa Rosa, "the Bright Future Scholarship opened doors of possibility for me. As a first generation student I was able to sit with my parents and decide where I would go to college, while having the peace of mind knowing that school would be paid for. I was able to save money and that encouraged me to start my master's program right away. I took no breaks and pushed myself to take advantage of all the opportunities presented to me since then."

As the Florida Lottery states, "today's students will become tomorrow's leaders, and the Florida Lottery is dedicated to continuing to make Florida one of the best and brightest in the nation. Make the grade, earn the score…. and graduate!"
 
About Bright Futures Scholarship Program
The Florida Lottery is dedicated to make Florida one of the brightest states in the nation.  The Bright Futures Scholarship Program, which is primarily funded by the Florida Lottery, was created in 1997 by the Florida Legislature to assist students in pursuing postsecondary educational and career goals. Since the program's inception, the Lottery has contributed more than $6.2 billion to send over 840,000 students to college.