Florida School Choice
Florida school choice options offer families a range of educational options to support personalized learning for their children. Florida has one of the nation’s largest school choice ecosystems, serving over 1.3 million students across multiple programs. The state offers universal Education Savings Accounts (ESAs) providing $8,000–$10,000 annually for private school tuition and educational expenses, specialized programs for students with disabilities, tax-credit scholarships, and 732 charter schools serving over 406,000 students. Most scholarship programs are open to all K-12 students regardless of income.
Florida Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options
Florida Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options (FES-EO) empowers families to make personalized education decisions for their children. This school choice program provides funding for K-12 students to cover private school tuition, fees, approved educational materials, and services. Recent enhancements have expanded eligibility criteria, removed financial restrictions, and increased flexibility in fund usage.
Florida Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities
Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities (FES-UA) empowers families of children with disabilities to access additional education options. The Florida school choice program allows parents to use Education Savings Accounts (ESAs) for various educational expenses. These expenses include private school tuition, homeschooling options, therapies, and tutoring.
The Opportunity Scholarship
The Opportunity Scholarship Program is a school choice program which offers students who attended or who were assigned to attend failing public schools the option to choose a higher performing public school.
Florida Tax Credit Scholarship
Florida’s Tax Credit Scholarships provides scholarships to low-income students to attend private schools or receive transportation to public schools outside their district. This program relies on business donations incentivized by tax credits, rather than automatic public funding.
Personalized Education Program
Florida students who are not full-time private or public school students can access the Personalized Education Program (PEP) through the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program. This scholarship provides an education savings account (ESA) to fund the educational needs of eligible students.
The Hope Scholarship
The Hope Scholarship is for Florida public school students in grades K-12 who are bullied or are a victim of violence. The scholarship allows the student to transfer to another public school with capacity. Alternatively, it allows the student to receive a scholarship to enroll in an approved private school by applying for a Family Empowerment or Florida Tax Credit Scholarship. Families are encouraged to apply to these programs after reporting the incident through their student’s public school.
Choosing the Right Program for Your Famil
Florida’s extensive school choice ecosystem offers options for nearly every family situation:
Families Seeking Private School Tuition Assistance
Best Options: FTC (tax-credit funded ESA) or FES-EO (state-funded ESA). Both offer universal eligibility with average support of $8,000–$8,100 per year. FTC may fund more flexible expenses through an ESA format. Priority given to lower-income families but all families eligible.
Families with a Child Who Has a Documented Disability
Best Option: FES-UA (Family Empowerment Scholarship for Unique Abilities). Covers students ages 3–22 with qualifying disabilities. Provides higher average awards (~$10,000) and broad flexibility including therapies, private school, online programs, or customized services. Can fund postsecondary education at eligible Florida institutions.
Families Transitioning from Public School (Bullying or Safety Concerns)
Best Option: Hope Scholarship or FES-EO. Hope Scholarship is designed specifically for students who experienced bullying, harassment, or violence. Offers rapid access once the incident is reported and documented by the school (must apply within 15 days of reporting).
Families Interested in Homeschooling with Financial Support
Best Option: Personalized Education Program (PEP) via FTC. PEP is an ESA designed for families directing their own education. Parents choose curriculum and learning pathway; must submit annual learning plan and assessment results. Supports curriculum purchases, tutoring, part-time school enrollment, and online programs (~$8,100 annually).
Families Seeking Free Public Alternatives
Best Options: Charter schools (732 schools statewide, diverse academic models, 77% rated A or B) or district magnet/choice programs. Tuition-free with no application fees. Offer diverse academic and vocational pathways.
K–5 Students Struggling with Reading or Math
Best Option: New Worlds Reading Scholarship Accounts. Specifically designed for early intervention. $1,200 per year for tutoring, summer programs, and instructional materials for students with substantial reading/math deficiencies or dyslexia/dyscalculia characteristics.
Students from Lowest-Performing Public Schools
Best Option: Opportunity Scholarship Program. Offers transfer to higher-performing public schools or private school vouchers for students from “failing” schools.