Can a Hillsborough family pay for this with scholarship funds?
Part-time tutoring and full-time private tutoring programs are authorized expense categories. Services may be delivered online.
Tutoring is a core PEP use; purchased from pre-approved providers through Find Providers or by reimbursement.
After tuition and required fees are paid to the school, remaining funds may be used for tutoring from a credentialed provider.
Rules that apply
- Part-time tutors must hold one of: a valid Florida educator's certificate (or adjunct / out-of-state professional certificate), a bachelor's or graduate degree in the subject, certification in an approved research-based program such as Orton-Gillingham or the Wilson Reading System, NBPTS or ABCTE certification, or a recent passing FTCE score in the subject.
- Full-time private tutoring (a tutor replacing school) requires a current Florida teaching certificate for the subject or grade, 720 hours per year for K-3 and 900 hours for grades 4-12, an annual W-9 with the SFO, and a cap of 5 students (25 if the facility — a church, library, commercial building or similar — meets the published requirements).
- Cash payments to private sellers are never reimbursable; tutoring is paid through the EMA provider platform or by documented reimbursement.
What is not allowed
- Tutoring by a provider with none of the listed credentials
- Cash payments
- Sessions that duplicate a service another agency already paid for
In Hillsborough
Hillsborough families most often use tutoring for reading and math intervention alongside a regular school day. Ask a tutor whether they are already listed in EMA's Find Providers, which lets the account pay them directly.
How to buy it
Check MyScholarShop first (anything listed is pre-approved), then Find Providers in EMA for direct pay to tutors, therapists and instructors. Otherwise pay with a card, keep the itemized receipt and submit for reimbursement. Anything not listed as eligible needs a pre-authorization request before you buy; 2026-27 requests close May 28, 2027.
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Sources: FES-UA Purchasing Guide (FCSUA / Step Up For Students) with the 2026-27 summary of changes; PEP Purchasing Guide 2026-27; Step Up For Students "Program Handbooks and Purchasing Guides — Summary of Changes," revised September 16, 2026. Summaries, not legal advice; your SFO's handbook controls.