DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — For children learning to see themselves as tomorrow’s college students, the journey can begin with something as simple as arriving on campus after school.
At the Lemerand Center of Excellence at Daytona State College, students receive more than help with their homework. Through tutoring, enrichment activities and support services, they build academic skills while experiencing a college environment firsthand — an opportunity to imagine where their education could take them.
On October 7, students gathered on campus for a celebration of that promise as the Community Foundation and United Way of Volusia-Flagler Counties presented funding checks to Food Brings Hope Community.
The support includes $70,000 over two years through a Community Impact Grant for the Lemerand Center of Excellence and $3,000 from the Food Security Fund for FBH Community’s Fresh Market program. Together, the investments support two essential foundations for children and families: opportunities to learn and access to nutritious food.
“It’s an honor to present funds in support of LCE’s student success program,” said CF/UWVFC President and CEO Courtney Edgcomb. “The children are our future. It is important to fund programs like this. We encourage donors to continue giving back to our community with their financial gifts because the funds make a huge difference in the lives of so many in Volusia as well as Flagler counties.”
Established in 2023 through a collaboration among FBH Community, Volusia County Schools and Daytona State College, the Lemerand Center of Excellence helps students in underserved communities strengthen their reading proficiency and work toward academic success.
The program primarily serves elementary and middle school students who are reading below grade level and have been identified by their schools as needing additional intervention and support. Its comprehensive approach combines structured academic assistance with enrichment activities and wraparound services that help students grow and thrive.
For young learners, that support connects the work they are doing today with possibilities for the future. College becomes a place they know, and continuing their education becomes something they can begin to envision early.
The Fresh Market program extends FBH Community’s support to the family table. Through weekly food distributions, it serves hundreds of families in low- to moderate-income households throughout the greater Daytona area, while also providing nutrition education and supportive services.
The check presentations celebrated more than funding. They reflected a community’s investment in helping children learn, supporting families and giving young people room to dream about what comes next.
