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Opportunity Scholarship Program Info Brief
Choice Promotes Equity
Florida’s A+ Education Plan thrust Florida into the spotlight as a national leader in providing parents with a wide array of school choice options for their children. The only program of its kind in the nation, the Opportunity Scholarship Program reflects the state’s commitment to higher educational standards for all students. Opportunity Scholarships provide hope for parents and students who otherwise lack meaningful educational choices.
The program launched Florida’s scholarship movement by allowing parents with a student enrolled in, or assigned to attend, a failing public school to choose a higher performing public school or an eligible private school. Opportunity Scholarships become available to students at a public school when that school has received two “F” grades within four consecutive school years.
The number of families and students taking advantage of Opportunity Scholarships has steadily increased each school year since the program began in 1999. Of the 763 Opportunity Scholarship students currently enrolled in private schools, most of whom come from low-income families, 61% are African American and 34% are Hispanic. Opportunity Scholarships give these students educational choices rather than trapping them in low-performing public schools.
Choice Inspires Public School Improvement
Not only has the Opportunity Scholarship Program provided real choice to students receiving scholarships, but studies have demonstrated that the program option drives greater student achievement in low-performing public schools. A study of Florida’s school choice programs released by the Manhattan Institute in 2003 reported that between 2001-2002, “voucher-eligible schools” (schools with students eligible for Opportunity Scholarships) improved more than other public schools. Additionally, 34% of failing public schools have improved their grade ranking after receiving a second “F” grade.
Since 1999, the percentage of 4th grade African-American students reading at grade level has increased from 23% to 56%. In terms of the impact on individual students, today over 50,000 minority students can read on grade level or higher, who otherwise would not have been able to read based on the 1999 achievement levels.
“…the more in danger a school is of having to compete with vouchers, the greater score gains they make on the FCAT…” Jay P. Greene, Manhattan Institute