Van Duzer awarded for Read to Succeed
Local business owner Scott Van Duzer was recently recognized for his community service and dedication to the children of St. Lucie County. Van Duzer, the owner of Big Apple Pizza in Fort Pierce, was one of three businesses selected from across the state of Florida to receive the Commissioner’s Business Recognition Award (CBRA).
The Commissioner’s Business Recognition Award (CBRA) recognizes outstanding business education partnerships that have demonstrated commitment to student success and academic achievement. St. Lucie Public Schools Chief Communications Officer Lydia Martin said, “St. Lucie County School District nominated Big Apple because of the Read to Succeed initiative. Schools held Pizza Nights at Big Apple Pizza (Ft. Pierce and PSL Bayshore) and received ten percent back from the sales that night.” The program, created by Van Duzer after learning about flagging reading scores in children, particularly after the pandemic, was designed to help encourage reading and literacy among students at an early age and proved to be wildly successful.
Martin said the program not only encouraged reading in students and families, it also put books into their hands. “Students who attended got a free book to take home,” she explained. “Once they read the book, they completed a summary of the book and took the summary back to Big Apple, where they got a free piece of pizza and a drink.”
But that wasn’t the only incentive for the children and their schools. “At the end of the year,” Martin said, “the school with the highest participation won a school-wide pizza party and $10,000.” In 2023-2024, the debut year of the Read to Succeed program, the winning school was Fairlawn Elementary, which achieved one hundred percent participation.
Van Duzer, long known for his creative projects, hands-on community service, and commitment to supporting the community in a wide variety of ways, was honored to receive the recognition of the statewide award. Several hundred nominations were made throughout the state, but only three businesses were selected to receive the honor, which was presented to Van Duzer, wife Dawn, and daughter, Brooke, at a recent St. Lucie School Board meeting. The 2024-2025 Read to Succeed program is already gearing up with new books, new ideas, and an increase in incentives for area schools and children, thanks to what Van Duzer terms as, “incredibly supportive local businesses and individuals.”
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