Florida school voucher group under fire over student repayments

Tampa Bay Times | By Jeffrey Solochek | January 16, 2025

The big story: The State Board of Education has a long history of supporting school vouchers in Florida.

As part of that program, it routinely has authorized two outside scholarship funding organizations to manage the money. The decision was, as State Board chairperson Ben Gibson put it, “a no-brainer.”

This time around, though, the board stood ready to cancel the contract of AAA, the state’s smaller scholarship group. Its main concern: AAA officials said they weren’t willing to approve all the expenses authorized in the state purchasing guide for students with special needs.

CEO Kim Dyson told the board that her group did not feel comfortable authorizing reimbursement for items such as desks and chairs that were being categorized as instructional materials. That wasn’t what state lawmakers intended, Dyson said.

Her unwavering stance frustrated board members, who pointed out that lawmakers mandated the purchasing guide, developed by experts at the University of Central Florida, as a way to create consistency for parents. Questions have swirled about what expenses should be eligible since mid-2023.

“I cannot vote to approve you, because I have no assurance that you are going to follow the law,” Gibson told Dyson.

Education commissioner Manny Diaz Jr., who as a state senator helped write the voucher laws, was particularly incensed.

“I want to break the news,” he told Dyson. “If the parent is OK with (Florida Virtual School’s course cost) and that is the service they choose, it is your job to pay it. It is not your job to question the board of Florida Virtual.”

The State Board tabled the renewal, suggesting AAA might be able to resolve the issue before the next board meeting. The board next quickly approved the contract for Step Up for Students, which manages the bulk of Florida’s vouchers. Many parents have complained about Step Up’s services, which officials said they are working to improve.

In other business … The State Board gave Pasco County’s Cox Elementary an extra year to improve its student performance before requiring outside intervention. • Bay County’s Cedar Grove Elementary received a similar reprieve, WMBB reports. • Escambia County’s Warrington Middle School also won an extension of its turnaround plan working with a charter operator, WEAR reports.