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Olivia Huron-Schaeffer: Bill to expand school choice gives parents more control over their kid’s education
Aug 23 2022
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Questions? Call 1 (877) 735-7837 or email [email protected].
If you had a Private School Scholarship (FTC/FES-EO), Unique Abilities Scholarship (FES-UA), or PEP Scholarship and enrolled in a public school, your scholarship will end and the remaining funds will be returned to the state.
As a public-school student, you may be eligible for a Transportation Stipend.
If your student was found eligible for the Private School Scholarship (FTC/FES-EO) and you would like to switch to a PEP Scholarship (FTCPEP), this can only be done before that year’s PEP Scholarship acceptance deadline. For 2025-26, the acceptance deadline was May 31, 2025. After that deadline, students are not able to switch from the Private School Scholarship to the PEP Scholarship.
If your student was found eligible for PEP, and you would like to switch to a Private School Scholarship (FTC/FES-EO), do not decline their scholarship in EMA. After accepting the scholarship, call us at 1-877-735-7837 to request this switch.
Florida law prohibits a family from applying for more than one scholarship at a time for an individual student. You can apply for a new scholarship once you’ve been denied or have declined, or withdrawn an awarded scholarship.
Yes. If you are an active-duty member of the United States Armed Forces and have been given permanent change of station orders to move to Florida, you will be eligible for the Private School Scholarship (FTC/FES-EO), Unique Abilities Scholarship (FES-UA) and the PEP Scholarship before you make your move. You can apply with your newly assigned base address or new Florida residential address (if you have one) and upload your permanent change of station paperwork with your application.
Yes, as long as Florida residency is legally maintained and can be documented using a Leave and Earnings Statement or the IRS Declaration of Domicile Form 2058. Please note this option is only available to renewal Unique Abilities or PEP students.
Active-duty military with change of station orders out-of-state may apply for, or renew their Unique Abilities or PEP Scholarships, if they can prove maintenance of Florida residency. You will not be eligible to keep the Private School Scholarship (FTC/FES-EO) to attend private schools out of state.
You have 30 days to enroll your student in a new private school. If you have not enrolled your student within 30 days your remaining scholarship funds will be returned to the state.
No. Florida law prohibits applying for more than one FTC or FES scholarship at a time for an individual student. You can apply for a new scholarship once you’ve been denied or have declined an awarded scholarship.
The student’s scholarship account must be closed and any remaining funds will be returned to the state after:
Yes. If you are an active-duty member of the United States Armed Forces and have been given permanent change of station orders to move to Florida, you will be eligible for the Private School Scholarship (FTC/FES-EO), Unique Abilities Scholarship (FES-UA) and the PEP Scholarship before you make your move. You can apply with your newly assigned base address or new Florida residential address (if you have one) and upload your permanent change of station paperwork with your application.
Yes. You can have FES-UA and VPK to pay for preschool tuition and fees.
Yes, you can pay for preschool tuition and fees at an eligible private school.
You can view Unique Abilities Scholarship amounts here.
The 2025-26 award amounts can be found here.
FES-UA scholarships vary by grade, county and severity of need. The average scholarship is about $10,000, though children with matrix scores of 254 or 255 will see between $22,000 and $34,000 on average.
Yes. The legislature approved an increase of more than 20,000 students. The enrollment cap exemptions, such as being enrolled in a public school in the prior year, remain in place.
No. Spent funds will not have to be paid back if you leave the program.
Scholarship funds may be required to be returned to the state in cases where students are found ineligible to receive the scholarship funds.
You should terminate your home education program as soon as your PEP scholarship is funded. Your award letter can serve as documentation that your child is now participating in the scholarship program. For more on what to do once your child is awarded a scholarship, see this video.
You can withdraw from PEP anytime by logging in to EMA and selecting the “Decline” button. If you've already withdrawn from your Home Education Program after receiving the PEP scholarship, you'll need to reestablish it by sending a letter of intent to your district. If you haven't withdrawn from your Home Education Program, declining PEP will end your PEP enrollment while maintaining your Home Education Program enrollment with your district.
Your child could be found truant if you do not complete an evaluation and do not receive a funded PEP scholarship. New PEP students should complete the home education evaluation as a precaution. Please do not withdraw as a home education student in your school district if you have not been funded, or do not wish to use, a PEP scholarship.
Current PEP students who were awarded and funded on the PEP scholarship in the previous school year are required to take a FLDOE approved norm-referenced test, during the year they use PEP, and submit test scores to their SFO. You can submit these scores to your account in EMA; however, a home education evaluation is not required for new or renewal PEP applications.
By law, home education and PEP are two distinct education options in Florida, so a home education evaluation is not required for new or renewal PEP applications. Scholarship availability is first come, first served. Once funded a PEP scholarship you will need to notify your school district of your intent to use the PEP scholarship and withdraw from home education in the district.
Yes. All PEP students, grades K-12, must take a state-approved norm-referenced test annually, and submit the results to the SFO.
Student Learning Plan (SLP) is a customized learning plan developed by parents or guardians and revised, at least annually, to guide instruction for their students and to address the services needed to fulfill their academic needs. PEP parents and guardians must complete a Student Learning Plan for each student prior to funding.
Yes, an SLP is required for all PEP students, whether they attend a physical school or not.
The Florida Department of Education (FLDOE) approves private schools to participate in serving PEP students. Be sure to confirm your school has emailed [email protected] indicating they wish to participate. It could be that the school was not approved by FL-DOE.
If the school employs a teacher that the student meets with at the school’s physical location at least twice a week and the family has a Student Learning Plan that outlines all other instructional days, then yes, you may use your PEP scholarship to pay tuition at the school.
The scholarship is worth $1,200 per student for 2024-25. Scholarships for the 2023-24 school year, which will continue to be awarded through September will remain at $500.
Your student’s eligibility will be determined by the recent Progress monitoring report or on their most recent English Language Arts (ELA) scores, or if it has been determined that their student has characteristics of dyslexia or dyscalculia.
If your student is attending a private preschool or private day care through the Florida Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten (VPK) program, then you are eligible to apply for a New Worlds Scholarship Account if you meet the other requirements. You cannot get a New Worlds scholarship if you are using any other scholarship to pay for pre-K.
Yes, so long as your student is attending a public school other than the school they are assigned, you may be eligible for one K-8 Transportation Stipend for your household.
No. The state legislature has specified that the Transportation Stipend is not considered income.
No. Students attending a virtual school are not eligible for a Transportation Stipend.
No, stipends are limited to one $750 stipend per household.
A one-time payment of $750 per household.
No, you cannot apply for another scholarship program for the same student who is on your Transportation Stipend application.
