Florida was awarded one of seven States Leading Recovery grants from the national nonprofit Accelerate.
In advance of the 2025-26 school year, Florida and the University of Florida Lastinger Center for Learning received a $500,000 grant to support ongoing efforts to sustain and scale high-dosage tutoring to address statewide academic gaps.
“As federal funding for pandemic recovery efforts ends, states have stepped up and shown they are ready, willing, and committed to improving outcomes for all kids,” said Kevin Huffman, CEO of Accelerate. “We are excited to partner with the UF Lastinger Center for Learning as they take the lead in making tutoring a lasting part of their academic recovery strategy.”
The UF Lastinger Center for Learning is the administrator of the Florida Tutoring Advantage, a statewide tutoring program that equips public school districts, tutors and families with resources and skills to have a significant and lasting impact on learners across the state.
“Accelerate’s support of the Lastinger Center will enhance our ability to reach more students, how we measure impacts of the Florida Tutoring Advantage, and put into place a cohesive approach to implementation and decision-making. We are thrilled to join this national initiative to invest in what works for all students,” said Director Phil Poekert, UF Lastinger Center for Learning.
Since being signed into legislation through HB 1361 in 2024, the Florida Tutoring Advantage has established relationships with thought leaders, districts and tutoring services partners. As recipients of the States Leading Recovery grant from Accelerate, Florida Tutoring Advantage will be able to expand its work with districts, enhance its ability to measure impact data, and elevate its plan for sustainability and scalability.
Additionally, the Florida Tutoring Advantage will participate in Harvard’s Strategic Data Project (SDP) Data Fellowship. The fellowship develops data leaders’ capacity to advance strategic initiatives, uncover valuable insights, and build a strong data culture in partner organizations. The fellowship will also provide the Florida Tutoring Advantage with the opportunity to collaborate on data research projects and learn about tutoring implementation best practices from educational researchers and leaders across the country.
“The partnership between Accelerate and the Lastinger Center is welcome news for our students. We know these programs work. The earlier we can reach a student in need of extra support, or specialized curriculum, the better off that student will be in the long run. Research and data about what programs work best for students is critical. Accelerate and the Lastinger Center are dedicated to data-driven outcomes that lead to continuous improvement in the services we offer Florida students,” said Senate President Ben Albritton.
The states selected to receive grants are Florida, Indiana, Maryland, Tennessee, Texas, and Washington D.C. Arkansas, a former grantee, will be part of this upcoming cohort thanks to the generous support of the Walton Family Foundation. In addition to the $500,000 or $1 million in funding each will receive, Accelerate will provide all States Leading Recovery grantees with implementation support. All grantees were also required to match the grant with philanthropic and public funds.
To learn more about the Florida Tutoring Advantage, please visit floridatutoringadvantage.com.
About Accelerate – The National Collaborative for Accelerated Learning:
Accelerate is a national nonprofit organization that serves as a central hub for proliferating effective, evidence-based academic interventions. By bridging gaps between research, policy, and practice, Accelerate aims to embed proven high-dosage tutoring programs into public schools now and for the long term.
Accelerate funds innovation in schools, supports high-quality research, and advances a federal and state policy agenda to support this work. Accelerate was incubated and launched by America Achieves in 2022, and is a lead technical assistance partner to the National Partnership for Student Success (NPSS). In its initial years of work, Accelerate has made grants to over 60 programs across 29 states and has funded and supported over 65 research studies, including 25 randomized control trials.
Accelerate is supported by Arnold Ventures; Arrow Impact; Gates Foundation; Bill & Crissy Haslam Foundation; Overdeck Family Foundation; and Walton Family Foundation.
For more information, visit http://www.accelerate.us.
About the University of Florida Lastinger Center for Learning:
The UF Lastinger Center for Learning creates educational systems where every child and educator experiences high-quality learning that supports achievement of the critical milestones predictive of success in school and life. Its programs focus on kindergarten readiness, third-grade reading proficiency and algebra proficiency. Over the last two decades, the Lastinger Center has made significant strides for real, scalable solutions in collaboration with educators and families in Florida and around the country. To learn more about the Lastinger Center, please visit https://lastinger.center.ufl.edu/.