What Tampa families can buy with a Florida scholarship
Florida's scholarships are not just tuition. Unique Abilities and PEP accounts — and leftover Private School Scholarship funds — pay for tutoring, therapies, curriculum, internet, music, sports, field trips, testing and college credit. Every category below shows the rule for each program, what is prohibited, and how Hillsborough families actually use it. Awards: $8,429 K-3 · $7,837 4-8 · $7,644 9-12.
Academic support
Tutoring
Part-time tutoring is one of the most-used categories in Hillsborough scholarship accounts — and the one with the strictest credential rules.
Rules →Academic supportReading intervention & dyslexia programs
Structured-literacy programs (Orton-Gillingham, Wilson, Barton, Lindamood-Bell style) are purchasable as tutoring, curriculum or specialized services depending on who delivers them.
Rules →Academic supportTesting, evaluations & assessments
Norm-referenced tests, AP exams, industry certifications, career assessments and initial or re-evaluation assessments.
Rules →Therapies (FES-UA)
Speech-language therapy
Speech-language pathology is one of the five specialized services named in Florida statute for Unique Abilities students.
Rules →Therapies (FES-UA)Occupational & physical therapy
OT and PT are specialized services under FES-UA when delivered by Florida-licensed therapists or a Florida hospital.
Rules →Therapies (FES-UA)ABA therapy (autism)
Applied Behavior Analysis is explicitly named in Florida's FES-UA statute and is the largest single therapy spend in the program.
Rules →Therapies (FES-UA)Sensory materials & assistive technology
Sensory swings, balance balls, fidgets, hearing aids, prescription glasses and other assistive devices.
Rules →Learning materials
Curriculum & curriculum materials
Full curricula, individual courses and self-paced online programs are eligible across all three programs, with one rule to watch: publicly available vs. custom.
Rules →Learning materialsOnline courses & virtual school
Florida distinguishes between self-paced courses (curriculum), live instruction from an FLDOE-approved online provider, and full-time virtual school.
Rules →Learning materialsAt-home classroom furnishings & school supplies
Desks, chairs, bookshelves, whiteboards, televisions up to 55 inches, calculators, backpacks and everyday supplies.
Rules →Technology
Laptops, tablets & digital devices
This is the category that changed most for 2026-27: devices are now prohibited on PEP, while FES-UA still allows them.
Rules →TechnologyHome internet
Florida is one of only a few states where scholarship funds pay the family's home internet bill.
Rules →TechnologyEducational software & subscriptions
Learning apps, graphics/photo editing software, streaming educational content and subscription kits.
Rules →Electives & enrichment
Music lessons & instruments
Private music lessons, instruments, rentals, repairs and tuning are all eligible electives.
Rules →Electives & enrichmentArt, drama, foreign-language & other electives
Cooking, drama, foreign language, photography/videography, sewing, woodworking and art lessons — plus their supplies and equipment.
Rules →Electives & enrichmentCoding, STEM & robotics
Programming classes, digital-production supplies, lab fees, drones and STEM kits are eligible under electives, lab fees or educational subscription kits.
Rules →Electives & enrichmentSports lessons, P.E. & equipment
Florida treats physical education generously: lessons, team fees, gym memberships for the student, sport-specific footwear and home exercise equipment.
Rules →Experiences
Field trips, museums & Florida theme parks
Student admission to museums, zoos, aquariums, state and national parks, ticketed performances — and once a year, a Florida theme park.
Rules →ExperiencesSummer & after-school programs
Specialized summer and after-school education programs are eligible; general camps need documentation.
Rules →High school & career
Dual enrollment & college credit
Tuition and fees at eligible Florida postsecondary institutions, dual enrollment and approved pre-apprenticeship programs.
Rules →High school & careerIndustry certifications & career training
Certification exam fees, pre-apprenticeship tuition and career-interest assessments are all authorized.
Rules →At a private school
Not covered
Transportation
Florida's scholarships do not pay for getting to school — a frequent question from families in the outer parts of Hillsborough.
Rules →Not coveredFood, lodging & child care
Lunch programs, aftercare and camp lodging are the most common rejected reimbursements.
Rules →How purchases actually happen
MyScholarShop
Step Up's catalog. Anything in it is pre-approved; orders ship to the Florida address on the application. If you find the identical item cheaper elsewhere, the SFO must reimburse the lower price.
Find Providers / direct pay
Tutors, therapists and enrichment providers approved in EMA are paid directly from the account — no cash outlay.
Reimbursement
Pay, keep the itemized receipt showing a Florida ship-to address, and submit. Cash payments to private sellers are never reimbursed. Pre-authorization requests for 2026-27 close May 28, 2027.
Want a spending plan for your child's account?
An advisor maps your award to the categories that apply and the Tampa providers who take direct pay.