Private Schools

One provision of a sweeping state education law allows for a library, community service organization, museum, performing arts venue, theater, cinema or church to house a school.

Under a new Florida law, private schools can build new campuses at houses of worship and other public spaces including old movie theaters.

More than 386,000 applications for the upcoming school year have been submitted, surpassing the number of vouchers awarded last school year.

At a House subcommittee meeting, state leaders and voucher distributors discussed how to make future voucher payments more seamless.

Since a major expansion of the program, Florida's private school voucher system has experienced delays in getting money to families and schools.

Six weeks into the school year, families of special needs students still have not received school vouchers following a major expansion of the program.

Voucher awards in Hillsborough County increased from almost 11,000 to nearly 19,000. The uptick mirrors state trends and is concerning some public school officials who believe that state funds should stay within the public school system.

Critics have raised concerns about the potential for 300,000 students to take advantage of the funding, while the schools they choose have no accountability to provide a quality education.

Opponents of Florida's universal choice plan worry resegregation in public schools will only accelerate.

It is also also is designed to allow home-schooled students to create “education savings accounts” that can be used for purchases beyond private-school tuition.

The proposal was approved by a House subcommittee along almost-straight party lines.

Florida House Speaker Paul Renner's plan would move the state closer to what's called "vouchers for all." The path toward universal school choice has been laid out during the past 25 years.