3E Academic Foundation Walter & Janet Sickles Scholarship

The 3E Academic Foundation Walter & Janet Sickles Scholarship is an endowed scholarship fund.  It provides need-based scholarships to graduates of Sickles High School in Tampa pursuing a career in teaching. It is named in honor of two Unisen residents and lifelong educators, Dr. Walter Sickles, former Hillsborough County Schools Superintendent, and his wife, Janet, classroom teacher.

The 3E Academic Foundation was a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2004 by Mel Billings, a resident of University Village (which later became Unisen Senior Living). Managed and directed by residents, it was established to Enrich, Empower, and Educate (3E’s)  University Village employees and their dependents through scholarship grants.  It later expanded its mission to also provide support to charitable educational organizations and fund scholarships vetted by the University Area Community Development Corporation (UACDC) and scholarships for graduates of Sickles High School.

Following Unisen Senior Living’s bankruptcy and closure in 2024, the 3E Academic Foundation was dissolved. Its assets were transferred to the Community Foundation Tampa Bay (CFTB) to continue its mission of 3E’s. All existing student scholarships were secured and fully funded for administration by CFTB. The remaining assets were used to establish two endowed scholarship funds at CFTB to sustain the 3E Academic Foundation’s mission of Enriching, Empowering, and Educating.

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