Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities

To be awarded an ESA, students must be between the ages of three and 22 and not yet graduated from the 12th grade. Students must have an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) or have been diagnosed by a physician or psychologist with one of the following: autism spectrum disorder; cerebral palsy; Down syndrome; an intellectual disability; a speech impairment; a language impairment; muscular dystrophy; Phelan-McDermid syndrome; Prader-Willi syndrome; spina bifida; Williams syndrome; anaphylaxis; dual sensory impairment; rare diseases which affect patient populations of fewer than 200,000 Americans; specific learning disabilities; and other health impairments as defined by law. Students are also eligible if (1) they are identified as hearing impaired or visually impaired; (2) they have had a traumatic brain injury; (3) they are hospitalized or homebound with a medically diagnosed physical or psychiatric condition for more than six months; or (4) they are students aged 3, 4, or 5 who are considered “high-risk” due to developmental delay. _(Last updated July 15, 2024)_

Parents can use the funds to pay for a variety of educational services, including private school tuition and fees; instructional materials and devices; specialized services by an approved provider or hospital; tutoring; online education; home education; curriculum; therapies and behavior analysis; services from a speech pathologist; fees for nationally norm-referenced testing; AP exams and industry certifications; unbundled courses and services at a public school; tuition or fees from a choice navigator; postsecondary educational institutions in Florida and other defined educational services. _(Last updated July 15, 2024)_

Florida’s Family Empowerment Scholarship Program (ESA) is funded through the Florida Education Finance Plan. The per-pupil amount varies according to grade, county of residence, and public school spending for students with disabilities. A matrix of services is utilized to calculate award value with the maximum equating to either 100% of the basic exception student program or the cost of the services, plus the per-pupil amount for certain state categorical programs. ESAs are prorated based on the academic quarter in which the student is deemed eligible for the ESA by a Scholarship Funding Organization. There is no limit on the number of students with disabilities who can participate. _(Last updated July 15, 2024)_

On January 4, 2019, the Florida Supreme Court in _Citizens for Strong Schools v. Florida State Board of Education_ rejected a claim that the state did not adequately fund education, marking the end of a 10-year litigation effort. The high court also preserved Florida’s school choice programs due to plaintiffs’ failure to adequately preserve their arguments throughout the litigation. The high court affirmed two lower court rulings (_Citizens for Strong Schools, Inc. v. Florida State Board of Education_ , No. CA-4534 (Fla. 2d. Jud. Cir. May 24, 2016); and _Citizens for Strong Schools v. Florida State Board of Education_ , No. 1D16-2862 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. Dec. 13, 2017)) holding that plaintiffs had no standing to sue regarding the tax-credit scholarship program, and that Florida’s school choice programs did not divert state funding or have any detrimental effect on Florida’s system of public schools. Notwithstanding the Florida Supreme Court’s prior ruling against vouchers (_Bush v. Holmes_ , 886 So. 2d 340 (Fla. 1st DCA 2004), aff’d on other grounds, 919 So. 2d 392 (Fla. 2006)), the Court also held that the McKay voucher program was beneficial and constitutional. _Citizens for Strong Schools v. Florida State Board of Education_ , case No. SC18-67 (FL. Jan 4, 2019). _(Last updated July 15, 2024)_