Furthering its commitment to education, the Miami HEAT’s successful partnership with Carnival Cruise Lines continues to flourish, as the groups team up to provide 15 academic scholarships to children in the HEAT Academy.

On Thursday, May 29, HEAT stars Eddie Jones and Vladimir Stepania joined more than 300 HEAT Academy students to celebrate the announcement of this educational milestone for the HEAT Academy program, supported primarily by Carnival Cruise Lines.

“Now this is going to give us the ability, thanks to Carnival, to follow these kids as they move through the school system and help them get to college,” said Eric Woolworth, HEAT President of Business Operations.

Among the special guests that helped celebrate the announcement of the first-ever Carnival scholarships were Woolworth, HEAT Community Affairs Liaison/HEAT Academy Principal and member of the World Champion 1967 Philadelphia 76ers Wali Jones, Florida Congressman Kendrick Meek, Carnival Senior Vice President of Air/Sea Operations and Corporate Training Roberta Jacoby, Carnival Foundation Director Linda Coll, Florida Prepaid College Foundation Chairman Stanley G. Tate, Chairman of the Board of Miami-Dade County Public Schools Dr. Michael Krop, Miami Dade-County School Board Grants Administrator Pierre Rutledge and other local dignitaries.

HEAT Academy Carnival Photogallery

Developed by Carnival in collaboration with the Florida Prepaid College Foundation, the scholarships will enable 15 fifth-grade students currently enrolled in the HEAT Academy to receive a four-year tuition scholarship to an accredited Florida college or university of their choice, once the scholarships have matured in 2010. Carnival’s generous $50,000 donation toward the creation of these scholarships will be matched dollar-for-dollar by the Florida Prepaid College Program.

Founded by the Miami HEAT in 1999, the HEAT Academy was created to provide one-on-one student mentoring by certified teachers, Miami HEAT players and HEAT staff throughout the school year. HEAT Academy aims to increase student potential for success in and out of the classroom with a strong focus on preparation for the FCAT’s and enhancing a student’s ability to compete on a national level. Carnival Cruise Lines has been an ardent supporter of the program since its inception, serving as its primary presenting sponsor, along with co-sponsors Lucent Technologies and JPMorgan Chase. The program, which offers a curriculum co-developed by the HEAT and Miami-Dade County Public Schools, is currently in operation at Dunbar Elementary School in Overtown, Little River Elementary School in Liberty City, Riverside Elementary & Community School in Little Havana, and Horace Mann Middle School in Little Haiti.

*HEAT Academy students, teachers and administrators are celebrating improvement on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) in the recently released 2003 scores for grades 4 - 10. All four HEAT Academy sites have demonstrated vast improvements in FCAT scoring, as scores have risen since the HEAT Academy’s inception in 1999.