General Information:  The parent of a public school student with a disability who is dissatisfied with the student’s progress, may request and receive from the State of Florida, a John M. McKay Scholarship for the child to enroll in and attend a private school or attend a public school other than the one to which assigned, in accordance with the rules of the State Board of Education and with the School Board of Brevard County’s choice plan. 

 Eligibility Requirements:  To be considered for the scholarship, the student must have an Individual Educational Plan (IEP), must be entering grades K-12, must apply for the McKay Scholarship while the student is enrolled in public school, and must have spent the prior school year in attendance at a Florida public school in accordance with requirements and definitions established by Florida SB 256.  Only students that were counted in the October and February FTE Surveys at a public school site during the prior school year are eligible for initial eligibility.   Students with disabilities include students in grades K-12 who are documented as having a mental handicap, a speech impairment, a language impairment, a hearing impairment, a visual impairment, a dual sensory impairment, a physical impairment, an emotional/behavioral disability, a specific learning disability, a traumatic brain injury, or autism. 

 How to Apply:  Parents may find more information regarding the John M. McKay Scholarship program by calling the Office of Independent Education and Parental Choice at 1-800-447-1636 or by visiting the their website at www.floridaschoolchoice.org.   To apply for a John M. McKay Scholarship to a private or a public school, the parent must apply online at this website.

Private School Requests:  For assistance with a private school request, parents may call the Florida Office of Independent Education and Parental Choice Office at 1-800-447-1636. Parents are responsible for transporting their child to a chosen McKay Scholarship private school.

 Public School Requests:  After submitting the online request at the website above, the parent will be contacted by a representative of the School Board of Brevard County.  The School Board representative will work with the parent to review the parent’s school choices. Parents are responsible for transporting their child to the chosen and approved McKay Scholarship public school if the school is more than four miles or less than two miles from the student’s residence.  Students residing between two and four miles of their chosen and approved McKay Scholarship public school, are offered District transportation.  Calculation of the distance will be made by the District’s transportation office. 

 Deadlines:  The DOE has several published deadlines by which the student must apply for a McKay Scholarship to a private school.  These deadlines are published on the choice website.  Applications to a public McKay Scholarship must be before the beginning of a grading period for elementary students and before the beginning of a semester for secondary students.   The District’s choice plan allows public school McKay Scholarship students to begin attending the chosen elementary  public school only at the beginning of a new grading period.  The District’s choice plan allows public school McKay Scholarship students to begin attending the chosen secondary public school only at the beginning of a new semester.

Statewide Assessments:  Students enrolled in private school on a McKay Scholarship have the option to take statewide assessments at their neighborhood school at no cost to the parent.  Parents are responsible for transportation to and from the test site. 

Military Families:  Students, who are dependents of a member of the United States Armed Forces, whose permanent station orders have been transferred to Florida from out of state or from a foreign country, are eligible to participate in the McKay Scholarship program if the student has a current IEP.  Students from military families do not need to meet the prior school year in attendance in a Florida public school requirement and do not need to be enrolled in a Florida public school in order to apply.

 Forfeiture of the McKay Scholarship:  A McKay Scholarship student will lose his/her eligibility for the scholarship to a private school if he/she returns to a public school by enrolling and attending a public school, including a Charter School.  A student, who attends a public school after participating in the McKay Scholarship program at a private school, forfeits his/her scholarship eligibility to the private school.  This forfeiture also applies to McKay Scholarship students who enroll in a public school during the summer months or prior to the beginning of their attendance at the private school.  Students forfeit their McKay Scholarship eligibility when they participate in a home education (home school) program. 

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