The Florida State Senate’s CS/HB 837: Education Programs for Individuals with Disabilities provides for changes to the McKay Scholarship Program. Foster children will be exempt from the public school attendance requirement. McKay Scholarship program schools can offer a Transition-to-Work program for 17-22 who will not attend college. The deductions from the McKay scholarships for students taking FLVS classes have been discontinued. McKay students can take 2 courses form FLVS each years without impact to their scholarships.

HB 837 also included language to make some incremental progress toward restoring free dual enrollment access to private school students. (This was a priority for last year.) It does not fix the problem, but it is a move towards restoring dual enrollment. It allows the FLDOE to gather data about articulation agreements. Dual enrollment will operate this year much like it did last year. Some public universities may require the private school to reimburse the cost of the standard tuition rate. Do schools know anyone who has been hurt by the current policy who could testify to the Legislature?

FTC scholarship amount increased to $5886 per student.

Under Omnibus HB 7029-FHSAA, schools must establish their own transfer policies.