FTC FES-EO Purchasing Guide 2023-24
FTC FES-EO Purchasing Guide 2023-24
FTC FES-EO Purchasing Guide 2023-24
Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................................ 2
PURCHASING POLICIES ............................................................................................................................. 2
GENERAL PURCHASING PROVISIONS....................................................................................................... 2
ELIGIBLE EXPENSE CATEGORIES ................................................................................................................... 3
INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS ................................................................................................................... 3
Digital Materials ................................................................................................................................... 3
Stand-Alone Online Class ..................................................................................................................... 3
Internet Resources ............................................................................................................................... 3
Physical Education ................................................................................................................................ 3
Books .................................................................................................................................................... 4
Musical Instruments & Equipment ...................................................................................................... 4
Electives ................................................................................................................................................ 4
Field Trips.............................................................................................................................................. 5
At Home Classroom Furnishings .......................................................................................................... 6
School Supplies ..................................................................................................................................... 6
Learning Manipulatives/Creative Play Items ...................................................................................... 7
Educational Subscription Kits .............................................................................................................. 7
Educational Software/Subscriptions ................................................................................................... 7
CURRICULUM ............................................................................................................................................ 8
TUITION AND FEES ................................................................................................................................... 8
Tuition and Fees at an Eligible Private School ..................................................................................... 8
Tuition and Fees for Home Education Instructional Programs for Personalized Education Program
(PEP) Students ...................................................................................................................................... 9
Tuition and Fees at an Eligible Postsecondary Institution .................................................................. 9
Tuition and Fees for an Approved Preapprenticeship Program ....................................................... 10
Tuition and Fees for a Private Tutoring Program .............................................................................. 10
Tuition and Fees at an Approved Online or Virtual Provider ........................................................... 11
Tuition and Fees as a Private-Pay Student for Florida Virtual School .............................................. 11
STANDARDIZED TESTING FEES ............................................................................................................... 12
CONTRACTED SERVICES PROVIDED BY A PUBLIC SCHOOL OR SCHOOL DISTRICT ............................... 12
PART-TIME TUTORING AND CHOICE NAVIGATOR SERVICES ................................................................ 12
REVIEW ................................................................................................................................................... 13
Florida Tax Credit Scholarship/Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options Purchasing
Guide
INTRODUCTION
Florida state law now requires Scholarship Funding Organizations (SFOs) to prepare a purchasing guide
for scholarship students’ guardians and update this guide at least annually.
PURCHASING POLICIES
As per Florida Statutes ss. 1002.394 & 1002.395 Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options
(FES-EO) and Florida Tax Credit (FTC) Scholarship (including Personalized Education Program (PEP)) funds
must be used to meet the educational needs of an eligible student. Using a student’s scholarship funds
for other purposes is a crime. For example, purchasing a product with scholarship funds, returning that
product, and then spending the returned funds on items that do not meet the educational needs of the
scholarship student is illegal. Please contact your Scholarship Funding Organization (SFO) if you have
questions about the legality of a financial transaction using scholarship funds prior to engaging in this
transaction.
SFOs may require guardians to use an online platform for purchases provided their choice of curriculum
or academic programs is not limited. SFOs may also reimburse guardians for their purchase of eligible
products or services that meet their student’s educational needs. Please verify with your SFO that a
purchase is eligible for reimbursement before making the purchase. If a guardian purchases a product
identical to one offered by an SFO's online platform for a lower price, the SFO is required by law to
reimburse the guardian for the cost of the purchase.
Per Florida Statute s. 1000.21(5), “Parent” means either or both parents of a student, any guardian of a
student, any person in a parental relationship to a student, or any person exercising supervisory authority
over a student in place of the parent. For the purposes of the Purchasing Guide, the term “Guardian” will
be used to include all eligible parents and guardians above who manage an ESA account for an eligible
FTC, PEP, or FES-EO student.
Pre-Authorizations:
• The Pre-Authorization process may be used to determine the eligibility of a purchase prior to
spending funds.
• In some categories, Pre-Authorization is required.
INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS
Eligible instructional materials include:
Digital Materials
Scholarship funds may be used to purchase digital material such as CDs, DVDs, and digital
documents.
Internet Resources
Guardians may use scholarship funds to pay for in-home internet services at the Florida
residential address associated with their student’s scholarship application. Modem or router
rental from the internet service provider and billed with a monthly internet service is also
eligible.
Physical Education
Authorized P.E. expenses include sports lessons, fees, or equipment (subject to manufacturer’s
age recommendations), including:
Home Playsets/Swing sets (including rubber mulch or safety materials)
Exercise Equipment (including stationary bikes, treadmills/walking pads, weight benches)
Ping Pong Tables/Table Sports (Ping Pong, Basketball Shooting Games, Foosball Tables, Air
Hockey)
Sports lessons (including individual training or group trainings)
Sports Equipment (balls, basketball goals, racquets, etc.)
Team fees (including registration, equipment rental, and competition fees)
Stand-Alone Athletic Event Fees (including foot or bike race registrations, endurance events,
Special Olympics Registrations)
Gym/fitness memberships or “Class Passes” (for the student only), including on demand
fitness classes.
Effective 07/01/2023 Step Up For Students 3
Florida Tax Credit Scholarship/Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options
Purchasing Guide 2023-24
Individual trampolines
Swim goggles, snorkels, masks, fins
Skateboards
Kayaks, Canoes, Surfboards, Boogieboards, Skim boards, Stand-Up Paddleboards
Annual P.E. Equipment or Fees Categorical Spending Cap: $3,000 (piece of equipment will be
reimbursed up to $1,000). There is no annual spending cap on Sports Lessons.
Frequency of Purchase: 2 years (for equipment only)
Prohibited Items:
Motorized equipment (treadmills or walking pads are eligible)
Trampolines (individual exercise trampolines are eligible)
Motorized Boats
Motorized scooters or ride-ons (including golf carts)
In-Ground or Above Ground Swimming Pools
Single-admission leisure events (including equipment rental)
Activities occurring outside of the state of Florida that are not Pre-Authorization
Pool Tables
Books
Books with content that may pose a threat to the student or others or promote violence or
criminal behavior are ineligible for purchase.
Eligible books are neither capped in annual spending nor subject to frequency of purchase.
However, requests for multiple copies of the same book will be denied.
Electives
Lessons, equipment, or consumables generally associated with elective or enrichment (non-core
academic subjects), may be purchased, including:
Music Lessons
Art Lessons
Art Supplies (including subscription kits)
Club Fees (such as Boy/Girl Scouts, and 4H/FFA Clubs)
Cooking Lessons
Cooking Supplies (including subscription kits)
Drama Lessons
Foreign Language Lessons
Sewing Lessons
Sewing Supplies
Animal Husbandry Lessons or Training Programs
Animal Husbandry Supplies
Woodworking/Building Lessons or Training Programs
Woodworking/Building Supplies (tools must satisfy manufacturer age recommendations)
Mechanical Lessons or Training Programs
Gardening or Horticultural Lessons or Training Programs
Garden Supplies (tools must satisfy manufacturer age recommendations)
Safety items (including protective gloves and goggles)
Programming/Digital Production Lessons
Enrichment Classes/Courses
Eligible providers for enrichment or elective subjects should have one of the following:
A valid or expired Florida educator’s certificate.
At least 3 years of experience in the relevant subject area as demonstrated by employment
records.
Currently enrolled in a postsecondary educational institution as a student of the relevant
subject area.
A degree from a postsecondary educational institution in the relevant subject area.
A certification or national accreditation in the relevant subject area.
Prohibited Items:
Commercial-Grade Tools/Equipment
Field Trips
The following items are eligible for student admission only. Family admissions reimbursements
will be prorated to cover only the student’s cost. A student’s ticket price must be age appropriate.
Tickets or admission must be purchased directly from the venue/vendor. Secondary market or
resale tickets are not reimbursable.
Museum Admission
Programs or Events at Museums
Museum or Library Memberships
Ticketed Events (including plays, musicals, or orchestral performances)
Admission to Cultural Programming Events or Facilities
Admission to a Florida theme park
Prohibited Items:
Multiples of an item type
School Supplies
School supplies generally found or required in classrooms may be purchased, including:
Writing Utensils
Crayons/Colored Pencils/Markers
Math tools (Abacus/Compasses/Protractors/Rulers)
Tape/Paperclips/Staplers
Calculators
Paper
Notebooks/Folders/Binders
Planners/Organizers
Bookbags (Backpacks, Tote Bag, Messenger Bags)
Lunchboxes
Games or puzzles with content that may pose a threat to the student or others or that
promote violence or criminal behavior are ineligible for purchase.
Educational Software/Subscriptions
The following items are eligible for single use/student pricing only. Reimbursements for multi-
user access subscriptions will be prorated to only cover the student’s cost.
Eligible Expenses
Software Subscriptions (Word Processing, Microsoft Office, Adobe, Video or Music Editing
Software, LexisNexis, QuickBooks)
Magazine Subscription
Newspaper subscription
Prohibited Expenses
Video/TV/Online Streaming Services
Musical Streaming Services
In-Game Purchases or Credits
Live Television
Social Media (except LinkedIn Learning for Students)
CURRICULUM
State policy defines curriculum as a complete course of study for a particular content area or grade level,
including any required supplemental materials, teachers’ manuals, and associated online instruction.
For the purposes of this section, a complete course of study may include postsecondary programs aimed
at career readiness or trade certification.
Guardians may choose to submit a Pre-Authorization to determine expense eligibility prior to purchasing
a curriculum.
Curricula must be publicly available for SFOs to determine eligibility. Curricula that poses a safety threat
to the student or others will not be approved.
Not all private schools are eligible to participate. Schools must meet state eligibility criteria and elect to
participate in the FTC/FES-EO program with the Florida Department of Education (FLDOE). A list of schools
eligible to serve scholarship students can be found at the Florida Private Schools Directory.
The agreed upon amount of tuition and fees for each student is a contractual agreement between the
guardian and their eligible private school. We recommend guardians communicate with their preferred
private school about what is required before enrolling their student. For students utilizing the private
school option for these scholarships, the SFO is obligated to commit funds on behalf of the student for
tuition and fees for which the parent is responsible for payment at the private school before using
scholarship funds for additional uses.
Eligible Fees:
Application Fees (payable in the Fiscal Year preceding the academic year)
Registration Fees (payable in the Fiscal Year preceding the academic year)
Uniform Fees (basic uniform pieces purchased from a school-required vendor; shoes and
accessories are not eligible).
Book Fees
Technology Fees
Test Fees
Athletics and Club Fees
Graduation Fees
Prohibited Fees:
Fundraising Fees/Donation Fees/Volunteer Waiver Fees
Annual Funds
Giving Funds
Therapies or services as fees (Credentialed Services including tutoring and therapies should be
billed in their categories)
Costs associated with scholarship management
Optional Fees
NOTE: Field Trip Fees at an Eligible Private School are reimbursable to the guardian under the Instructional
Materials – Field Trip expense category.
Tuition and Fees for Home Education Instructional Programs for Personalized Education Program (PEP)
Students
A “Personalized Education Program” means the sequentially progressive instruction of a student directed
by his or her parent in order to satisfy the attendance requirements of ss. 1003.01(13), and 1003.21(1)
while registered with an eligible nonprofit scholarship funding-organization pursuant to s. 1002.395.
FTC-PEP scholarship funds may be used to pay tuition and fees for programs, courses, or classes offered
to PEP students. These services must be part of the student’s sequential instruction per the definition of
a PEP student.
“Parent” is either or both parents of a student, any guardian of a student, any person in a parental
relationship to a student, or any person exercising supervisory authority over a student in place of the
parent (s. 1000.21(5)).
The following considerations apply when determining whether a program is an eligible home education
instructional program tuition & fee expense. Eligible programs must:
• Be a program selected by the parent as a part of their PEP student’s parent-directed instruction.
(Programs may not be full-time or full-time equivalent). Private schools, virtual schools, and public
or charter schools are not considered home education program.
• Provide courses and/or activities for PEP students that enhance or enrich the child’s learning
opportunities.
• Have publicly available/reviewable program descriptions of courses and/or activities.
• Have a published tuition & fee schedule.
• Be in a non-residential physical location (cannot be in a home) and
• Be a business organization (tuition and fees may not be payable to an individual).
Full-time education is not eligible for payment under a Home Education Instructional Program and must
be considered under the Eligible Private School or the group Full-Time tutoring.
Tuition and fee schedules must be published and made publicly available.
Tuition and fee schedules must be published and made publicly available.
A full-time private tutor receiving ESA funds may not serve more than 5 students at one time. However, a
full-time private tutor may provide tutoring for up to 25 students if the following facility requirements are
satisfied:
Private tutoring may be provided for up to students in any commercial building with a valid
certificate of occupancy, library, community service, museum, performing arts, theatre, cinema,
or church facility; in any facility or on any land owned by a Florida College System institution or
university; in any similar public institution facility; and in any facility recently used to house a
school or child care facility licensed under s. 402.305 within the preexisting zoning and land use
designations of the facility without obtaining a special exception, rezoning, or a land use change
so long as the provision of such tutoring meets all applicable state and local health, safety, and
welfare laws, codes, and rules, including those pertaining to fire safety and building safety.
Tuition and fee schedules must be published and made publicly available.
The Florida Department of Education (FLDOE) has approval authority for these funding categories. The
FLDOE may publish or maintain a list of approved online or virtual providers pursuant to the above
statutory authority.
Students utilizing Florida Virtual School (FLVS) must be enrolled as a private-pay student. FLVS will submit
reimbursement requests to Step Up For Students, which must be approved by the guardian prior to
payment being released. If a student is enrolled in FLVS and funded as a public-school student, the student
may lose eligibility and funding for FTC/FES-EO scholarship.
Tuition and fee schedules must be published and made publicly available.
A scholarship recipient may take courses, participate in programming (including after school,
extracurricular, supplemental, or summer school programs) or receive services from a public school
(including charter schools and the Florida Virtual School), if the student contracts for classes/services on
a private pay basis.
The guardian can pay for services and request reimbursement, or the school district can choose to be
paid directly as a provider.
There is no requirement for public district or charter schools, or school districts, to contract for services
with a scholarship participant or to set up an account for payment as a provider. Participation is optional
for the public schools and/or districts.
A student who receives contracted services under this paragraph is not considered enrolled in a public
school for scholarship eligibility purposes. However, if the district reports the student for any FTE funding
or other state funding, the student will be ineligible for the Family Empowerment Scholarship.
Part-time tutoring includes tuition and fees for services provided by a person who:
Holds a valid Florida educator's certificate pursuant to s. 1012.56, F.S.;
Holds an adjunct teaching certificate pursuant to s. 1012.57, F.S.;
Has a bachelor's degree or a graduate degree in the subject area in which instruction is given;
Is certified by a nationally or internationally recognized research-based training program as
approved by the department; or
Has demonstrated a mastery of subject area knowledge pursuant to s. 1012.56(5), F.S. by one of
the following ways:
• For a subject requiring only a baccalaureate degree for which a Florida subject area
examination has been developed, achievement of a passing score on the Florida-
developed subject area examination specified in state board rule;
• For a subject for which a Florida subject area examination has not been developed,
achievement of a passing score on a standardized examination specified in state board
rule, including, but not limited to, passing scores on both the oral proficiency and written
proficiency examinations administered by the American Council on the Teaching of
Foreign Languages;
• For a subject for which a Florida subject area examination has not been developed or a
standardized examination has not been specified in state board rule, completion of the
subject area specialization requirements specified in state board rule and verification of
the attainment of the essential subject matter competencies by the district school
superintendent of the employing school district or chief administrative officer of the
employing state-supported or private school;
• For a subject requiring a master's or higher degree, completion of the subject area
specialization requirements specified in state board rule and achievement of a passing
score on the Florida-developed subject area examination or a standardized examination
that is directly related to the subject specified in state board rule;
• Documentation of successful completion of a United States Defense Language Institute
Foreign Language Center program;
• Documentation of a passing score on the Defense Language Proficiency Test (DLPT); or
• For a subject requiring only a baccalaureate degree for which a Florida subject area
examination has been developed, documentation of receipt of a master's or higher
degree from an accredited postsecondary educational institution that the Department of
Education has identified as having a quality program resulting in a baccalaureate degree
or higher in the certificate subject area as identified by state board rule.
Tuition and fee schedules must be published and made publicly available.
A “Choice Navigator” means an individual who meets the credentialing requirements of a Part-Time Tutor
(above) and who provides consultations, at a mutually agreed upon location, on the selection of,
application for, and enrollment in educational options addressing the academic needs of a student;
curriculum selection; and advice on career and postsecondary education opportunities. A Choice
Navigator may not oversee or exercise control over the curricula or academic programs of a student.
REVIEW
Step Up For Students has placed a feedback form on our website where guardians may submit suggestions
for improving this Purchasing Guide. Step Up will periodically review these suggestions and implement
improvements when appropriate.