Important Message For Our Families
Hi Step Up families,
Click the name of your student’s scholarship program for reminders and updates to be aware of.
Information varies by scholarship program. If you have children benefiting from different scholarship programs, please check each appropriate section.
Application Updates
Applications for the 2025-26 school year for renewal and new students are now available.
RENEWAL STUDENTS: To ensure a renewal student receives priority, the application must be submitted by Wednesday, April 30, 2025. After this date, all students will be processed as "new students" due to legislative changes for this year.
Click here to view 2025-26 Scholarship Application Deadline Dates chart.
Scholarship Acceptance Deadlines (NEW PROCESS FOR 2025-26)
Beginning with the 2025-26 school year, once a student is found eligible for a scholarship, the parent/guardian will need to “Accept” or “Decline” the scholarship. Families will receive an email when a student is found eligible asking them to log in to EMA to complete this process.
Click here for a helpful video about this process.
DEADLINES:
- For renewal students, the deadline to accept or decline an eligible student’s 2025-26 Unique Abilities Scholarship is May 31, 2025 .
- For new students, the deadline to accept or decline an eligible student’s 2025-26 Unique Abilities Scholarship is December 15, 2025 .
Click here to view 2025-26 Scholarship Acceptance Deadline Dates chart.
Enrollment Information (For students enrolled in private school)
If your student attends (or plans to attend) an eligible, participating private school and you would like to use your Unique Abilities Scholarship toward tuition and fees, there are steps that should be taken for the school to receive payment directly from your student’s scholarship account. Note: To complete this process, you must first accept your student’s 2025-26 Unique Abilities Scholarship.
Click here for a helpful video with next steps. You may also review them below.
- You must provide your student’s 2025-26 Award ID to your chosen school. Your student’s Award ID is found on your EMA Dashboard. Award IDs change each year so please make sure you provide them with the one for 2025-26. To find a school, click here.
- The school will complete and submit your student's School Enrollment Form within their account in EMA.
- You must review/approve your student's enrollment on your dashboard in EMA to complete your student's enrollment. (You will be alerted by email when it is time to complete this step.)
Reimbursements and Pre-Authorization Requests
Funds for the 2024-25 school year can be used for any approved items or services purchased on or after July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2025.
Families will be able to use 2025-26 funds for any approved items or services purchased on or after July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2026.
Reimbursement and pre-authorization requests for ALL Unique Abilities students are submitted through EMA.
Note for Unique Abilities Legacy Students (those funded through the Unique Abilities program since the 2022-23 year and before):
- When submitting a reimbursement in EMA for a pre-authorization that was approved in the Legacy System, please provide the Legacy Pre-Authorization ID in the “Educational Benefit Field.” Please state that it is your Legacy Pre-Authorization ID (i.e., Legacy Pre-Authorization ID: xxxxxxxxx). Your Legacy Pre-Authorization ID can be found by logging in to the Legacy System, clicking on “Account Activity,” selecting the current school year and then clicking on the “Pre-Authorization Request” tab.
Purchasing Guide
The 2024-25 Unique Abilities Purchasing Guide from the University of Central Florida is available here. For a helpful one-pager highlighting some of the changes within the guide, please click here.
Handbook
The most current version of the 2024-25 Unique Abilities Handbook, as well as a list of any recent changes, can be found here.
Application Updates
Applications for the 2025-26 school year for renewal and new students are now available!
The deadline to submit an application for renewing and new students is Wednesday, April 30. Due to legislative changes for this year, no PEP applications will be accepted after this deadline.
Scholarship Acceptance Deadlines (NEW PROCESS FOR 2025-26)
Beginning with the 2025-26 school year, once a student is found eligible for a scholarship, the parent/guardian will need to “Accept” or “Decline” the scholarship. Families will receive an email when a student is found eligible asking them to log in to EMA to complete this process.
Click here for a helpful video about this process.
DEADLINES:
- For renewal and new students, the deadline to accept or decline an eligible student’s 2025-26 PEP Scholarship is May 31, 2025.
Awarded Student Requirements
For the 2024-25 school year:
- To be eligible to receive 100% of their 2024-25 scholarship award, a student's 2024-25 Student Learning Plan (SLP) must have been submitted in EMA by Friday, October 25, 2024.
- Additionally, those who utilized the PEP scholarship for the 2023-24 school year must have submitted their student's 2023-24 end-of-year norm-referenced test or statewide assessment results in EMA by Friday, October 25, 2024, to have been eligible to receive 100% of the scholarship award.
Please check back for dates for the 2025-26 school year.
Handbook and Purchasing Guide
The most current version of the 2024-25 PEP Family Handbook, as well as a list of any recent changes, can be found here.
You may also view the 2024-25 PEP Purchasing Guide here. For a helpful one-pager highlighting some of the changes within the new guide, please click here.
Application Updates
Applications for the 2025-26 school year for renewal and new students are now available!
RENEWAL STUDENTS: To ensure a renewal student receives priority, the application must be submitted by Wednesday, April 30, 2025. After this date, all students will be processed as "new students" due to legislative changes for this year.
Scholarship Acceptance Deadlines (NEW PROCESS FOR 2025-26)
Beginning with the 2025-26 school year, once a student is found eligible for a scholarship, the parent/guardian will need to “Accept” or “Decline” the scholarship. Families will receive an email when a student is found eligible asking them to log in to EMA to complete this process.
Click here for a helpful video about this process.
DEADLINES:
- For renewal students, the deadline to accept or decline an eligible student’s 2025-26 Private School Scholarship is May 31, 2025.
- For new students, the deadline to accept or decline an eligible student’s 2025-26 Private School Scholarship is December 15, 2025.
Click here to view 2025-26 Scholarship Acceptance Deadline Dates chart.
Enrollment Information
Students awarded a Private School Scholarship must be “Enrolled” in EMA to receive funding.
For the 2024-25 school year:
- The enrollment deadline to have been available for review for 2024-25 funding was January 15, 2025. Students enrolled for the first time after this deadline will NOT be funded for the 2024-25 school year.
- Students who were enrolled in EMA between October 26, 2024, and January 15, 2025, will be reviewed for a prorated scholarship award.
For the 2025-26 school year, enrollment in EMA has begun for awarded students.
If you have accepted your student’s Private School Scholarship, please click here for a helpful video with next steps. You may also review them below.
- You must provide your student’s 2025-26 Award ID to your chosen school. Your student’s Award ID is found on your EMA Dashboard. Award IDs change each year so please make sure you provide them with the one for 2025-26. To find a school, click here.
- The school will complete and submit your student's School Enrollment Form within their account in EMA.
- You must review/approve your student's enrollment on your dashboard in EMA to complete your student's enrollment. (You will be alerted by email when it is time to complete this step.)
Note: To complete this process, you must first accept your student’s 2025-26 Private School Scholarship.
Handbook and Purchasing Guide
The most current version of the 2024-25 Private School Family Handbook, as well as a list of any recent changes, can be found here.
You may also view the 2024-25 Private School Purchasing Guide here. For a helpful one-pager highlighting some of the changes within the new guide, please click here.
Application Updates
We are no longer accepting applications for the 2024-25 school year.
To be among the first to be notified when 2025-26 applications become available, please sign up here.
Handbook
The 2024-25 New Worlds Scholarship Accounts Handbook is available here.
Application Updates
Families may apply now for a 2024-25 Transportation Stipend. To learn more about this opportunity and to apply, please click here.
To be among the first to be notified when 2025-26 applications become available, please sign up here.
Handbook and Purchasing Guide
The most current version of the 2024-25 Transportation Stipend Handbook, as well as a list of any recent changes, can be found here.
