As we have reported previously, Florida Bright Futures requires Home Education and PEP students to report volunteer service and/or work hours for Bright Futures eligibility. These students must also be certified as being enrolled in these programs to be eligible for Florida Bright Futures.
Over the last several years, there has been some confusion over how, and by whom, PEP students would be certified for enrollment in a PEP program, and to whom they should submit the volunteer/work hours for Bright Futures.
We shared in these concerns. Our organization, the Florida Homeschool Association, alongside our statewide lobbyists, have been working to clarify these issues for the past 2 years.
Today, we are pleased to report that the Director of State Scholarship and Grant Programs, under the Florida Department of Education, has issued clarification to districts as to home education students and PEP students requiring certification for Florida Bright Futures.
Today's clarification reaffirms what we already knew about certification and submitting volunteer and work hours for home education students, and added additional language about certification and submitting hours for PEP students, as well.
Going forward, districts will certify and input service hours for both students enrolled in home education (1002.41 notice of intent) and for students in PEP programs (under Step Up or AAA). All students in home education programs and all students in PEP programs will request certification from their districts, and will submit service hours to their districts.
To be clear, even though PEP students do not report to districts, PEP students will still request program certification and submit service hours to district home education departments -- for the purposes of Bright Futures eligibility.
NEW: PEP students who apply for Bright Futures will request certification and submit volunteer service or work hours to district home education offices.
A list of district home education offices, to which certification may be requested, and service hours should be submitted, is found at:
We will continue to provide guidance in these areas, but we advise parents and students of high school age to remain mindful of the requirements for Bright Futures eligibility and the deadlines for application. This information can be found on:
As always, to learn more about these topics, visit our website and subscribe to our email list for updates. Readers are also invited to join our private Facebook community to interact with our experts alongside our community Florida homeschool families.
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