AAA administers two state-approved Florida scholarship programs for children with no eligible disabilities: (1) the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship (“FTC”) and (2) the Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options (“FES-EO”). The same application is used to apply for both scholarships.
2023-24 School Year – Applications
*** We have paused accepting any new scholarship applications at this time. Please check back here for updates. ***
Already submitted your scholarship application? Check the status of your submitted Florida 2023-24 FTC/FES-EO scholarship application here.
¿Ya envió su solicitud para el año escolar 2023-24? Verifique el estado de su solicitud de beca basada en ingresos Florida 2023-24 enviada*
*Cómo configurar la solicitud de beca en línea de AAA para que se muestre en español
2023-24 School Year – FAQs
What are the three funding statuses and what do they mean?
Priority funding status #1: This status is for households with documented household incomes of up to 185% of the Federal Poverty Level (“FPL”). Students found eligible for priority funding status #1 will be funded with contributions from AAA’s FTC program first.
Priority funding status #2: This status is for households with documented household incomes between 186 and 400% of FPL. Students found eligible for priority funding status #2 will be funded after priority status #1.
Non-priority funding status: This status is for households with documented household incomes of over 400% of FPL or those who are unable to document their household incomes. The non-priority funding students will be funded after priority funding status #1 & 2 students.
If insufficient FTC contributions are available at any stage, non-FTC funded student information will be submitted quarterly to the Florida Department of Education to request funding from state tax dollars (“FES-EO”).
What is the difference between FTC and FES-EO?
The difference between the FTC and FES-EO programs is how they are funded. FTC scholarships are privately funded by corporate contributions made to the SFO that serves the scholarship student. FES-EO scholarships are government funded and the payments come from the State to the SFO serving the scholarship student each quarter.
What if I apply for a priority funding status but am unable to document my income?
If you apply for priority funding status #1 or 2 but are unable to document your income, you will be awarded non-priority funding status.
I’m a renewal family. How does this affect me?
All households (including renewals, members of the military and law enforcement officers) will need to select their preferred priority funding status when applying. Renewing households in every priority funding status will be awarded before any initial applicants are awarded.
Do I have to use my student’s scholarship to enroll them into a private school full-time?
No, but please note that if you do NOT intend to use your student’s scholarship to primarily enroll them full-time into a private school, the law limits the number of these “Personalized Education Program” or “PEP” students to 20,000 annually for the entire state. Once that limit is reached, no additional PEP students may be funded. Please consider that before deciding how you intend to use your student’s scholarship.
What are the authorized uses of my student’s scholarship funds?
Scholarship funds may be used to help pay for private school, curriculum, instructional materials, internet resources, assessments, tutoring, and more. Click here for a full list and for more important information.
What are the three categories of FTC/FES-EO scholarships?
1) Full-Time Private School Scholarships – for students enrolled full-time at an eligible private school. Scholarship funds must be committed for payment of the tuition and fees of the private school before any may be used for additional authorized purposes.
2) Transportation Scholarships – for students enrolled full-time at a public school that is different from the school to which the student was assigned or a lab school as defined in s. 1002.32 F.S.. Scholarship funding is limited to $750 per school year and may only be used to reimburse the parent/guardian for the cost to transport the student to the school.
3) Personalized Education Program (“PEP”) Scholarships – for students not primarily enrolled full-time in public or private school. Scholarship funds must be used by the parent/guardian to procure the services necessary to educate their student. The parent/guardian must annually submit a sworn compliance statement affirming that funds will be used only for authorized purposes serving the student’s educational needs and that they are responsible for all excess expenses, they must submit an annual student learning plan to the SFO, and they must require the student to take a nationally norm-referenced test and provide the results to the SFO.
If you have any questions or would like more information, please go to the Contact Us page and let us know or leave us a message at 888-707-2465.
Scholarship Management Platform (“SMP”)
After your eligibility has been determined, we will email you an award letter and invitation to create an account on our new Scholarship Management Platform.
SMP makes it SiMPle and convenient to manage your child’s scholarship with AAA. Below are helpful tutorials to get you started:
1. Understanding your SMP email invitation – Part 1
2. Understanding your SMP email invitation – Part 2
3. Final step of the SMP email invitation process – Verification Code
More Helpful Information:
Here is everything you need to know about applying for an income-based scholarship.
FTC and FES-EO Funding Priority Income Guidelines for 2023-2024
FTC – Maximum Scholarship Award Values for 2023-2024 – scroll to bottom of page for more information
FES-EO – Maximum Scholarship Award Values for 2023-2024 – scroll to bottom of page for more information
Florida Scholarship Handbook for 2022-2023
Collection and Use of Social Security Numbers
Still have questions? Email fldocs@aaascholarships.org
Visit IRS Get Transcript Website for copies of Income Tax Returns or W-2 Information
Video Tutorials for AAA Scholarship applicants
Need help locating a school near you? Try out our new School Finder Map, visit GreatSchools.org, or our new Private School Navigator may be able to help
FL Department of Education Private School Directory
File a complaint with the FL Department of Education about a school