ORLANDO, Fla. – Feb. 10, 2016 – Continuing the Lions’ tradition of fostering young talent, Orlando City SC welcomes Seminole State College of Florida as the Official and Exclusive College and University Education Partner of Orlando City SC and Orlando City Youth Soccer.

The multifaceted partnership further demonstrates Orlando City’s commitment to Seminole County, as both organizations will collaborate on marketing engagements, scholarship programs for students and players, community relations and education opportunities for non-English speaking players within the Club.

“This is a great partnership that aligns with our core business model and further demonstrates our long-term commitment in Seminole County,” said Rob Parker, Orlando City’s vice president of corporate partnerships. “Seminole State College has opened many opportunities for our Club to engage with young fans and players, and we are looking forward to working on providing them with additional benefits and services to support their endeavors.”

Parker continued, “Establishing this partnership with Seminole State College, along with the recently announced training home at Sylvan Lake for the Orlando Pride beginning in 2017, further assures our Club’s major footprint in Seminole County for the foreseeable future.”

“Seminole State College is excited to partner with the Lions. Through this collaboration, Seminole State will have unique opportunities to connect with prospective and current students and families in Central Florida,” said Vice President of Marketing and Strategic Communications Kate Henry. “The Club has energized the city and specifically Seminole County. With Orlando City’s youth program in our backyard, we feel the integration between both organizations is a natural fit.”

The Sanford/Lake Mary-based college will collaborate with the Club on a scholarship award promotion for a deserving student applicant and one Orlando City player per year will also study at Seminole State College. The Club’s non-English speaking players may also participate in language programs offered by Seminole State's English Language Institute. This unique partnership between the Club and college, which has a 25 percent Hispanic enrollment rate, continues to further connect Seminole State to a community who passionately supports professional soccer.

Students within the college will be able to directly connect with Orlando City on internship opportunities across all departments to learn from the Club’s many young and veteran professionals.

Aside from collaborations on the competition and education side, the Foundation for Seminole State College will support select Orlando City Community Relations marquee fundraising programs throughout the season as an Associate Partner — ranging from the Annual Awards Gala to the Celebrity Golf Tournament. The community arms for both organizations will also organize and support a school supply drive and partner on volunteer opportunities, such as food drives, summer camps, reading programs, and coaching and mentoring with Orlando City.

“We look forward to starting this fun partnership, where we will integrate our players and team mascot, Kingston, on campus with our Team City Kickin’ Cruiser throughout the year,” added Parker.

The Kickin’ Cruiser and Kingston’s first engagements will be at Seminole State’s Decision Day for High School seniors this month and again at the re-enrollment fair for current students in June.