Controlled open enrollment, the Florida Corporate Income Tax Credit Scholarship Program and the John M. McKay Scholarship Program are three school choice programs unique to Florida. In addition, as in other states, school districts in Florida offer magnet schools, schools-within-schools, year-round schools, alternative schools, dual enrollment and charter schools.

What is controlled open enrollment?
In 1996 the Florida Legislature mandated that school districts design a controlled open enrollment plan, allowing for school choice within each district and leaving it up to districts to design their own plans. Districts are not obligated to implement their plans, however, which means that not all districts actually offer school choice.

In a controlled open enrollment district, your child can go to a school in another neighborhood or to a school that offers a specialized program or curriculum, provided there is space and that federal desegregation requirements are met.

What are Florida Corporate Income Tax Credit Scholarships?
This program allows businesses to claim income tax credits for directing a portion of their taxes to nonprofit scholarship funding organizations that provide school vouchers. The vouchers, in the amount of $3,500 per year or the cost of tuition (whichever is less), are given strictly based on need to low-income students who qualify for free or reduced-price lunches. They can use the money to attend a private school or to pay for transportation to another public school.

To qualify, students must be entering kindergarten or must have attended a Florida public school for at least a year. They must continue to qualify for free or reduced-price lunches in order to receive the scholarship from year to year. Students already enrolled in private schools cannot receive scholarships.

For information on nonprofit scholarship funding organizations, refer to the Office of Independent Education and Parental Choice at the Florida Department of Education under corporate contributions/tax credits, or check with FloridaChild, an organization devoted to providing information about school choice and scholarship programs. FloridaChild also sponsors two of its own scholarship programs, FloridaChild Scholarships and the FloridaChild Grants Drawing.

What are John M. McKay Scholarships for Students with Disabilities?
These are scholarships that the state gives to students with learning disabilities whose parents are not satisfied with their children’s progress at their designated school. With this scholarship, the student can attend a private school or he can attend another public school.

The scholarship to a private school is equal to the amount of state-generated funding the student would have received or the cost of the private school’s tuition and fees, whichever is less. The amount of each scholarship ranges from $5,000 to $17,000.

Other rules:

• The student must have attended a Florida public school for at least one year to be eligible to transfer.
• The parent must pay the difference if the school charges more than what the state provides.
• If the student chooses another public school, it must be a school that received a grade of C or better, is not a magnet school and is not overcrowded.

What about charter schools?
Florida has one of the strongest charter school programs in the country. Florida passed its charter school law in 1996, and today there are about 222 charter schools operating in the state. Charter schools are by definition independent public schools that receive state funding but are freed from much of the red tape regulating regular schools. They are generally designed by groups of educators and/or community leaders and are held to high standards of accountability. Students attend by choice. If the school has limited space, entrance is decided by lottery. Check out this article for more information about charter schools: Charter Schools Offer An Array of Choices.

What are some other choice options within my school district?
Florida is known for its variety in creative school choice options. In addition to charter schools, here are some types of schools in the state:

• Magnet schools are schools with a particular academic focus such as science, technology or the arts.
• Schools-within-schools are small schools that physically exist inside another school. They provide a small school environment within a large campus.
• Alternative schools are typically schools with philosophies different from a traditional school, such as a school with a curriculum based on hands-on activities.
• Dual enrollment is a program that allows high school students to simultaneously enroll in a community college to take courses and receive college credit while still in high school.
• Year-round schools are schools that operate throughout the year, replacing the traditional three-month summer vacation with several shorter vacations, as a way of avoiding the long academic interruption of summer. Some schools follow a staggered year-round calendar, in which a proportion of students are on vacation throughout the year, in order to have enough space for all students.

Not all districts have these options available. Check with your local district to find out what is available and what the policy is on transferring to a school that has a program suited to your child’s needs.

Updated October 2006