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Welcome Back, Eagles. Year Four Has Started.

Dear Freedom Families, Friends, and Supporters,

Welcome to a new school year and Freedom’s fourth year!

What began in 2023 as a bold idea is now serving more than 200 Eagles across Freedom Naples, our new Freedom Ave Maria campus, and Freedom Anywhere. We are excited to welcome so many new students, families, Success Coaches, teachers, and team members.

We begin the year with incredible momentum. Freedom was recently recognized with the SWFL Inc. Innovation Award, a 2026 Global Recognition Award, and the Everglades Champion School Award. We were also selected as one of just 12 Yass Prize Alumni Award Contenders nationwide and will head to Miami this September for the Yass Prize Alumni Accelerator and pitch competition, building on our recognition as a 2024 Yass Prize Semifinalist.

We are also proud of student Lauren Sharp, whose America250 poetry recognition earned her an all-expenses-paid trip to New York City and the unforgettable opportunity to ring the bell at the New York Stock Exchange.

Our second campus, Freedom Ave Maria, is officially open, bringing our personalized, flexible model to even more families. And with the final stretch of our $1 million matching grant underway, there is much more ahead.

Thank you for believing in our students, our team, and our vision of Economic Freedom Through Learning.

Here’s to an incredible year.

Soar Eagles!

Christopher Marker
CEO & Chief Learning Officer

🌴 Freedom is Headed to Miami

We are excited to share that Freedom has been selected as one of just 12 Yass Prize Alumni Award Contenders nationwide! This September, Freedom will head to Miami for the Yass Prize Alumni Accelerator, where we will pitch our vision for the next chapter of growth and the opportunity to bring Freedom to even more students and families.

This one feels especially meaningful. Freedom was first recognized as a 2024 Yass Prize Semifinalist, and that original investment helped us expand student access, grow our Success Coach team, provide scholarships, and build momentum around a very big idea: high school can be more personal, more flexible, more connected to real life, and more focused on each student's future.

Fast forward to today, and that idea is growing! Freedom now serves 200+ students across Freedom Naples, our new Freedom Ave Maria campus, and Freedom Anywhere. We are building a More Than a High School® experience around personalized academics, dedicated Success Coaches, college and career pathways, real-world learning, financial literacy, AI-forward education, and the skills students need to pursue their own American Dream.

If selected for Alumni Award funding, we plan to build on that momentum by creating more student seats, strengthening Naples and Ave Maria, growing Freedom Anywhere and our flexible learning options, expanding the Success Coach and program infrastructure behind the model, and preparing to bring Freedom to additional Florida communities.

Why do we want to grow? Because more families are asking for this kind of education.

We are incredibly grateful to the students, families, educators, donors, partners, and friends who helped take Freedom from a bold idea to where we are today. Now we get the chance to share what comes next on a national stage.

Next stop: Miami. 🌴🦅

Freedom Ave Maria Principal Jill Striz with Freedom student volunteers.

🎉 Freedom Ave Maria Is Officially Open!

What a celebration! Freedom Ave Maria officially opened its doors on August 10, and on August 20, our Freedom family joined community leaders, partners, families, and friends for our Grand Opening and Ribbon Cutting. With 50 Eagles enrolled, an incredible team, and a unique 10,000-square-foot learning space, our second campus is officially soaring!

This milestone would not have been possible without the extraordinary support of the Dekko Foundation and its $1 million matching grant, which has helped accelerate Freedom’s growth and bring our vision of Economic Freedom Through Learning to more families. We are deeply grateful to Dekko and every donor who has contributed toward the match.

Thank you also to the Greater Naples Chamber, Immokalee Eastern Chamber, Barron Collier Companies and Ave Maria Development, Ave Maria Master Association, FGCU, FSW, CCSO, Immokalee Fire Control District, and our many families, students, volunteers, and community partners. A special thank you to Germain Honda of Naples Service for sponsoring the delicious food!

We are grateful to everyone who helped make this next chapter of Freedom possible. 🦅

What a summer for Freedom Eagle Lauren Sharp! Lauren was one of only 250 students nationwide selected in America250’s America’s Field Trip contest for her original poetry about what America means to her. Her award included an unforgettable trip to New York City with her mother and the extraordinary opportunity to participate in the New York Stock Exchange bell ringing on August 6.

Lauren’s achievement reflects what we strive to develop in every Eagle: creativity, confidence, citizenship, and pride in our country. We are incredibly proud to see her represent Freedom on a national stage. Soar, Lauren! 🇺🇸🦅

🏆 Freedom Earns Two Major Honors

Freedom is proud to celebrate two exciting recognitions that showcase the breadth of the Freedom learning experience. We earned a 2026 Global Recognition Award for our innovative approach to AI-driven education and workforce readiness, recognizing how personalized learning, AI certifications, career exploration, internships, and dual enrollment prepare Eagles for success in a rapidly changing world. Freedom was also named a 2026 Everglades Champion School, the only high school in Collier County to receive this prestigious recognition from the Everglades Foundation.

Together, these honors reflect what the Freedom model is all about: learning that is innovative, hands-on, relevant, and connected to the real world. A special congratulations to Success Coach Briana Chieco, whose leadership of our Everglades experience helped students turn environmental education into meaningful learning and stewardship. From emerging technology to Florida’s unique ecosystem, we are preparing students with the knowledge, skills, and experiences to pursue Economic Freedom Through Learning. Soar, Eagles! 🦅

Pictured from left to right: Kylee Furar, Jill Striz, John Whitcomb, Sabrina Dieuvelhomme, and Jorge Agobian,

🦅 Meet the Freedom Ave Maria Team

As Freedom grows, so does our Freedom family! With 52 students already enrolled at Freedom Ave Maria, our second campus represents an exciting next step in scaling a personalized education model that families are actively seeking. Most importantly, growth does not mean losing what makes Freedom special. Our new Ave Maria team brings extensive teaching, leadership, coaching, and real-world experience to ensure students continue to be known individually, supported closely, and challenged to build their own pathways toward college, career, and citizenship.

Leading the campus is Principal Jill Striz, joined by Success Coaches John Whitcomb (Mathematics & Civics), Jorge Agobian (Science & Civics), Sabrina Dieuvelhomme (ELA & Consumerism), along with Kylee Furar, Office Manager. Together, they will bring the Freedom model to life in Ave Maria through personalized academics, dedicated Success Coaching, AI-powered learning, dual enrollment, internships, and real-world experiences. We are thrilled to welcome this talented team as Freedom continues to grow and serve more Eagles!

🚙 Freedom Hits the Road with Rick Hendrick Chevrolet

You may be seeing a little more Freedom on the roads this year! Thanks to our friends at Rick Hendrick Chevrolet Naples, Freedom now has two Chevy trucks wrapped in Freedom red, white, and blue, helping us take our mission into the community wherever we go. Hendrick has been a generous educational sponsor and partner and their charitable sponsorship is also being recognized through the naming of one of our classrooms at Freedom Naples, a lasting reminder of their investment in our students.

But this partnership goes far beyond philanthropy. Freedom students interested in the automotive industry have gained valuable exposure to real careers, including paid internship opportunities at the dealership, connecting education directly to workforce experience. That is exactly the kind of community partnership we value: local businesses investing their treasure, talent, and time to help students explore careers, develop skills, and build pathways toward Economic Freedom Through Learning. A huge thank you to the entire Rick Hendrick Chevrolet team for continuing to invest in Freedom and our Eagles!

Freedom was recently featured in the Naples Press as part of a story highlighting the continued growth and evolution of educational choice in Collier County, another exciting reflection of the expanding opportunities available to local families.

Freedom Ave Maria was recently featured by Neapolitan Family, spotlighting the expansion of Freedom’s personalized high school model and the exciting new educational choice now available to students and families in the Ave Maria community.

💙 The Final Push: Our $1 Million Match is 75% Complete!

We are thrilled to share that our Freedom community has reached 75% of our $1 million matching goal! What an incredible testament to the families, donors, businesses, foundations, and friends who believe in our students and our vision of Economic Freedom Through Learning. Every gift is being matched dollar-for-dollar, doubling its impact as we expand access, strengthen our programs, invest in our Success Coaches, and bring the Freedom experience to even more students. We are so close, and now we need our entire Freedom family to help us finish strong. Watch our video, visit our giving page, and help us close the final 25%!

We have scheduled some amazing events for our Freedom Eagles, Families & Friends.

☕️ 09.01 - Coffee & Connection - Join Freedom parents and supporters for coffee at 8:15am in Naples (Starbucks (2180 Airport Pulling Road)

☕️ 09.08 - Coffee & Connection - Join Freedom parents and supporters for coffee at 8:15am in Ave Maria (The Bean)

🇺🇸 09.11 - 9/11 Never Forget Project and Flag Display (Naples & Ave Maria locations)

We are grateful to the DEKKO FOUNDATION for their support of our innovative Freedom Institute, Freedom AI and Freedom Ave Maria educational programs and campuses.

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2706 Horseshoe Dr S, Naples, FL 34104, USA