Gift from SHS provides housing for international students at TCC

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (September 12, 2007) -- There's no place like home and thanks to a recent gift, the Tallahassee Community College Foundation will provide housing scholarships for ten of Tallahassee Community College's international students during the 2007-08 academic year. Student Housing Solutions (SHS), under the leadership of co-founders James Sauls, Steven Leoni and Peter Rosen, will present a check in the amount of $67,660 to the TCC Foundation during a ceremony on Friday, September 14 at 3 p.m. The ceremony will take place at Portofino Villas, located at 770 Appleyard Drive, just north of the TCC campus.

"We are incredibly grateful for this generous support from Student Housing Solutions," commented Robin Johnston, TCC Vice President of Development and Executive Director of the TCC Foundation. "It makes it much, much easier for foreign students to come to TCC, which directly supports our desire to foster global education by encouraging multi-national exchanges."

Student Housing Solutions is the largest locally owned and operated housing provider of student housing in Tallahassee. Among the 11 properties under the SHS umbrella is TCC's neighbor, Portofino Villas, the Exclusive Housing Provider for Tallahassee Community College.

Within walking distance of TCC's main campus, one of Portofino Villas' greatest assets is its location. This coupled with the fact that students from abroad oftentimes face a number of obstacles when moving to the United States, SHS felt a natural affiliation with TCC, especially as the College continues to see an increasing number of international students, according to Leoni, who is also president of Leoni Properties, Inc.

Leoni experienced the plight of an international student firsthand when he and his family hosted an au pair who also attended TCC as an international student. It quickly became evident to him the challenges first-time international students face when enrolling for college in the United States.

"Finding an apartment is the single most difficult thing they have to do," said Leoni. "It must happen quickly, many times prior to arriving in the country.

"We (SHS) wanted to find a way to make this a much smoother process for international students."

Betty Jensen, who serves as TCC's international student advisor, shared Leoni's enthusiasm over the partnership.

"I am thrilled at the opportunity to have something in place to help these students financially," said Jensen, a native of Peru. "As internationals, they have to pay out-of-state tuition during their entire stay in college and, unlike their American counterparts, do not qualify to apply for financial aid.

"The scholarship will help them tremendously while also making TCC more competitive in recruiting international students."

Like Leoni and Rosen, Sauls sees the partnership as a win-win situation for both TCC and SHS.

"Together, TCC and SHS form a winning combination when it comes to providing an education that is second to none and quality housing for students in the city of Tallahassee," Sauls, CEO of SHS, added.

Students who will be attending TCC while living in Portofino Villas on behalf of SHS' contribution are: Ayumi Kairada (Japan), Diego De Barros (Brazil), Laura Namara (Uganda), Doris Kobero (Tanzania), Randy Naraine (St. Maarten), Aristole Maccaw (St. Maarten), Kimberly Firth (England), Maria Amores (Ecuador), Martha Camacho (Venezuela) and Elena Villagrana (Mexico).