Dr. Cynthia Smith Built a Tuition-Free STEM School on the Block That Raised Her

The Jacksonville educator rose from district clerk to founder of a fully accredited K-12 academy, and she is building a pipeline that runs from preschool to paycheck.

Dr. Cynthia Smith grew up on the East Side of Jacksonville, Florida, and today she runs a tuition-free STEM school for the children growing up there now. As founder and CEO of Minds of the Future Academy, the veteran educator has spent a decade turning a single preschool into a fully accredited Pre-K through 12th grade private school where science, technology, engineering and math begin at the very start of a child’s education.

The academy became fully accredited on July 17, 2026, weeks after the school marked its 10-year anniversary with community events across the city. For Smith, the address has always carried as much weight as the curriculum.

“It was a big deal for me to open my school, my vision, in an area in which I grew up because I knew that I would be fully supported,” Smith told AfroTech. “It was a big deal for me because growing up, schools were available to African American children if your parents could afford to send you to a private school.”

From the Clerk’s Desk to the Head of School

Smith built her credibility inside the system she now works alongside. A graduate of Andrew Jackson High School, she spent 16 years with Duval County Public Schools, working her way up as a clerk, bookkeeper, teacher and administrator while earning her degrees. She holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s degree in counselor education from the University of North Florida, along with a doctorate in educational leadership from Nova Southeastern University. She also taught at Florida State College at Jacksonville, helping adult students earn their GED.

Years in elementary and secondary classrooms convinced her that students needed a much earlier starting line. She left the district and in 2016 opened Minds of the Future Academy as a for-profit preschool. In 2019, she expanded that vision into a tuition-free K-12 private STEM school operating under her nonprofit, the Minds of the Future Foundation. According to the Jacksonville Daily Record, the school began with about 45 students in kindergarten through second grade in a building facing her alma mater, then grew grade by grade until it enrolled its first class of high school seniors.

City leadership noticed quickly. Within months of the 2019 opening, local leaders recognized the school as one of a kind for the community, and in 2023 then-Mayor Lenny Curry proclaimed Minds of the Future Day in Jacksonville, citing the academy as the first STEM school on the city’s Eastside.

“I want to see students in this neighborhood have access to resources and things I didn’t have growing up as a child,” Smith told First Coast News as she prepared for that first day of school.

The Math Behind Free Tuition

A tuition-free private school only works with a financial model that holds together, and Smith has built hers from several sources. The academy receives about $8,000 per student through Step Up For Students, the Florida nonprofit that administers the state’s education choice scholarships. In 2024, Smith told the Jacksonville Daily Record that educating each student costs about $15,000, with the difference covered by corporate partnerships, sponsorships and the academy’s annual Black-Tie Gala.

Families contribute in a different currency. In place of tuition, parents or guardians commit 30 community service hours each school year, supporting classroom activities, campus beautification, fundraising and mentoring. The requirement turns every household into a partner and helps keep the model sustainable.

The school’s biggest investment came in October 2025, when Smith purchased a 28,000-square-foot facility that brought all of the academy’s operations under one roof. VyStar Credit Union has shared that its commercial lending team helped the academy work toward its new home. Inside, students have access to a computer lab, a STEM lab, a podcasting and media production space, and a makerspace where they design clothing. According to AfroTech, jean jackets made by students over the summer were sold in the on-site merchandise store, with proceeds going back into school activities. The campus also hosts the Wynter Mitchell and Friends Garden, where students grow watermelon, corn, peppers and white potatoes, and families can take home free produce on Fridays.

Certifications Before Caps and Gowns

Early exposure sits at the center of Smith’s approach. Students in kindergarten through fifth grade take daily coding, robotics and visual arts electives. Middle and high school students reach those same offerings on Fridays through a workforce development program that covers artificial intelligence, entrepreneurship and startup development, digital marketing and social media management, financial literacy, carpentry, graphic design, cosmetology, photography, podcasting and broadcasting, CPR and first aid, and mental health.

“We’re giving students an additional eight certification opportunities for them to be able to walk out of our doors and work immediately upon graduation,” Smith told AfroTech.

Juniors and seniors can also take on external internships for college and career readiness, while after-school programming ranges from jazz and violin to drumline, ballet, tap and majorette dance. The arts have been part of the plan for years. “I find it very dear to me to be able to bring a non-traditional STEM education to students,” Smith told Action News Jax in 2023.

Money lessons arrive in creative formats as well. An upcoming themed Monopoly Night brings in bankers and realtors to teach students about the value of homeownership. “They’re gonna learn that you have to have money in order to buy a house on different sides of town,” Smith said.

A Staff That Stays and Grows

According to AfroTech, the academy holds a 90% student retention rate and a 97% staff retention rate, and its team grew from eight to 30 members ahead of the current school year. Smith points to professional development as the reason people stay.

“Over the years, we’ve provided that opportunity for teachers and staff to be professionally developed so that they can expand in [their] current positions and grow in the current positions that they’re already in,” she said.

Support continues after the final bell. Through the Minds of the Future Foundation, Smith’s team mentors middle and high school students, provides academic tutoring and awards scholarships to graduating seniors, creating a path that follows students from their earliest classroom years into college and careers.

The Educated Entrepreneur Behind the Academy

Across Jacksonville, Smith is known as “the educated entrepreneur,” a name that has grown into a brand of its own. She is a keynote speaker on entrepreneurship and education, the author of three books including The Educated Entrepreneur and Black Boys II Black Men, and the subject of a documentary that shares her journey. Her business portfolio extends beyond the classroom to include Studio 3903, an event venue in Jacksonville that accommodates up to 250 guests, and Jax Premium Transportation, a transportation and concierge logistics company.

Her next chapter is already on the calendar. On September 28, 2026, the academy will host a VIP Leadership Experience at its demonstration school, an event designed for donors, sponsors, executives, policymakers, community leaders and media. With accreditation secured and a permanent campus in place, Smith is seeking additional funding to expand the academy’s programs and create more educational and career opportunities for students in the neighborhood that raised her.