Scholarship Students Reported
as Public School
Please note that Step Up does not oversee the public school survey crosscheck process. This is done by the Florida Department of Education (FLDOE). This page is provided to share information and updates with our families.
Full-time Equivalent Crosscheck – What Is It and What Happens Next?
To ensure that a student does not receive duplication of funding, Florida Statute requires the Florida Department of Education (FLDOE) to confirm that scholarship students are not simultaneously enrolled in public school before scholarship payments are issued.
This is done through the public school FTE (full-time equivalent) crosscheck in October and February. An additional crosscheck is completed prior to each scholarship funding distribution.
For 2024-25 and 2025-26 school year cross check updates, please click here.
What is the public school FTE crosscheck?
Full-time equivalent (FTE) enrollment in Florida public schools is calculated based on the number of days a student is in attendance and is used for funding and accountability purposes.
The crosscheck process verifies that scholarship students are not included in FTE enrollment.
What types of schooling are included in FTE enrollment?
Florida public school or its equivalent
Florida Virtual School, unless the family pays the tuition themselves
Florida charter school
A student awarded an FES-UA or FES-EO Scholarship may not enroll full-time in any public school, including:
- A charter school
- A developmental research school
- Any other Florida public school
- Florida Virtual School or any other online public school as a non private-pay student
- The College-Preparatory Boarding Academy
- The Florida Scholars Academy
- The Florida School for Competitive Academics
- The Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind
- Voluntary Prekindergarten Education’s Specialized Instructional Services (VPK-SIS)
What happens if your scholarship student is identified as a public school student in the FTE crosscheck process?
Following the FTE crosscheck process, the FLDOE will notify Step Up For Students of any scholarship students identified as public school students.
At that time, Step Up is required to temporarily suspend access to any remaining funds for that school year for the student and will immediately notify families by email of the next steps they need to take.
If your student was identified in the FTE Crosscheck, you will receive communication to your email registered in EMA with next steps.
School Year Updates
📌 Who needs to submit documentation?
Scholarship students reported in public school will need to submit documentation demonstrating that their student is not enrolled in public school before scholarship funds can be released.
Additionally, the FLDOE is requesting that certain students who have not yet been presented for funding for the 2025-26 school year submit documentation demonstrating that their student is not enrolled in public school before their scholarship funds can be released.
IMPORTANT: No action is needed by any families at this time. We will notify families if documentation is needed for their student.
Note: If you were previously asked to submit documentation for your student for the 2025-26 school year and submitted that documentation through our intake form, you will not need to resubmit it at this time.
✅ What documentation is acceptable?
At this time, the FLDOE mandates that ONLY the following documents will be accepted. Only one document is needed per student.
- Option 1: “Standard Withdrawal Form for Students Entering K-12 Scholarship Programs” Click here to view the form.
- The form must be fully completed. This includes a parent/guardian signature, as well as completion and signature by the school district.
- Option 2: Letter or email from the student's assigned school district stating that the student is not enrolled in public school.
- Option 3: Letter or email from the student's assigned public school or selected charter school stating that the student is not enrolled in public school.
📝 What steps do I take to submit this documentation?
We are excited to announce that, as of October 1, 2025, a new feature in EMA makes it easier for families to submit documentation validating that their student is not in public school.
Step One: Contact your school district, assigned public school, or selected charter school to request the appropriate document listed above.
Step Two: Upload the document to your Student Profile in EMA. Click here for helpful instructions on where to submit the form in EMA.
When did the FTE crosscheck happen?
The FTE crosscheck process occurs twice a year – once in October and once in February.
For the 2024-25 school year, the FTE crosscheck occurred the week of October 7, 2024, and the week of February 3, 2025.
What is the latest FTE crosscheck update?
On July 24, 2025, the following update was sent to impacted families:
We are committed to providing you with updates on the account status for your student(s) whose name(s) appeared on public school surveys in the 2024-25 school year.
The timeline for funding review and release of payments is set by the Florida Department of Education (FLDOE). As of today, Step Up For Students has not received a funding update for your student(s). We cannot advise when we will receive an update, nor when funds will arrive.
We are committed to depositing the funds into student accounts as soon as they arrive.
If a student is funded, the 2024-25 reimbursement deadline will be extended for them. Please disregard any general reminders you have received or may receive about the upcoming reimbursement deadline on July 31.
We will share an update, including the extended reimbursement deadline, as soon as possible. Please monitor your email for updates.
Questions?
If you have any questions, our team is here to help. We encourage impacted families to continue to monitor their email for further details or reach out to us for assistance.