Robert Haughn
Secretary of the Florida Lottery John Davis is spotlighting the organization’s efforts to raise scholarship awareness.
Davis served as a guest speaker at the 2024 Learners to Earners summit, hosted by the Florida Chamber of Commerce. In his speech, Davis placed emphasis on the importance of educating youth to foster a stronger economy and how the Florida Lottery and its work with the Florida Chamber of Commerce has impacted that principle.
“Education is the bedrock of a thriving and sustainable economy,” Davis said. “It provides individuals with the skills and the knowledge that’s necessary for success. This principle is at the heart of our partnership with the Florida Chamber of Commerce and the Learners to Earners initiative, which aims to be able to align global education with the demand of the local economy.”
Davis celebrated the success of the Bright Futures scholarship, a merit-based scholarship primarily funded by the Florida Lottery in collaboration with the Florida Department of Education (FDOE) to help students pay for postsecondary education. Davis drew attention to the 950,000 students who have received Bright Futures scholarships since the program’s inception in 1997.
Davis highlighted the Florida Lottery’s efforts with the FDOE, Gov. Ron DeSantis and Education Commissioner Manny Diaz to expand the impact of Bright Futures through an initiative called Keep Florida’s Future Bright. The program, launched in September 2023, aims to raise students’ awareness of the requirements to receive a Bright Futures scholarship and inform them about what benefits each class of scholarship provides.
Davis said the initiative has made an impact since it launched last year.
“Since launching in September of 2023, commissioner Diaz and myself have been able to engage with more than 1,200 students, school officials, parents and community leaders across multiple counties,” Davis said. “Our outreach has been able to generate over $15 million in unpaid media exposure, showcasing the transformative impact of the Bright Futures scholarship program.”
Davis closed by asking summit attendees to lend a hand on the awareness effort by sharing the link to the Bright Futures website — FloridaBrightFutures.gov.
“May God continue to be with us all as we continue to work to not only create a learning environment for those who will be leaders,” Davis said. “Not just in this state, but in this global economy.”
