Florida’s brightest students can get more Bright Futures money for college now, but it’s harder to reach that top level.
The Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Program was created in 1997 to entice the state’s top students to stay in Florida for college. Back then it offered to pay 100 percent tuition and fees. In 2011, as the state economy struggled, legislators made it tougher to earn the scholarships and reduced the amount of the awards. The funding dwindled to providing the top award winners with about half the cost of tuition at some of Florida’s public universities.
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However, the Florida Legislature voted to bring it back to 100 percent for the 2017-18 school year. That means some students saw their awards jump from about $3,000 a year to $6,000 if they attend a state university. Students can also receive $300 a semester for books and other expenses. The new rules also added in scholarship money for the summer semester, which had never been included in the past. This increase is for this school year only, and future amounts are to be determined.
“Over the years, the Legislature chipped away at it,” says Chris Smith, Collier County coordinator for school counseling grades 9-12. “But now Bright Futures once again is covering 100 percent for the top tier students. “
That is very enticing for Florida’s brightest students.
Amy Sherman’s son, Tanner, graduated from Estero High School in 2016 and is now a sophomore at Florida Gulf Coast University.
“It was extremely important,” Amy says about Bright Futures. “We would have had to take out a huge amount in loans without it. And now that he has figured out that if he lives at home, he basically gets paid to go to school, we’ll never get him to leave.
“He will be able to get his degree without a boatload of college debt.”
Devon Zimmermann, who was home-schooled in North Naples and is now a sophomore at the University of Florida, liked seeing the increase in Bright Futures money this year. Her mother, Sarah Zimmermann, wishes the 100 percent was guaranteed every year.
“I know it was one of the deciding factors,” Sarah says about her daughter choosing a school in Florida. “That it paid 100 percent based on her high eligibility made it the right choice.”
There are three tiers of Bright Futures. The Florida Academic Scholars Award is $103 per credit hour. The Florida Medallion Scholars Award is $77 per credit hour. The Academic Top Scholars Award is $44 per credit hour.
Smith says getting full tuition paid for makes it very alluring now for students to stay in the state.
“With other schools that had the ability to offer scholarships, it didn’t pay to stay in Florida. Now it pays to stay in Florida,” he explains. “If you have a student that meets 100 percent award, they are staying in state.”
For those top students who want an Ivy League or big name school degree, Smith suggests they do that for graduate school instead.
“For the vast majority of our students, you don’t mortgage an undergraduate degree,” Smith says.
The summer Bright Futures money is also a great help.
“Most students have to spend at least a summer if they are to graduate,” he says.
Bright Futures is based solely on academic performance with no criteria for financial need. It is funded by money from the Florida Lottery. At its height five years ago, some 179,000 students received the scholarship. In 2016-17 that number decreased to a little more than 100,000.
While students are receiving more money this year, it is harder to get the scholarship than it was in the past. New rules went into effect in 2014 raising the minimum SAT score from 1280 to 1290 and the ACT score from 28 to 29. Medallion winners need an 1170 SAT score or a 26 on the ACT.
“Over the years, the Legislature chipped away at it. But now Bright Futures once again is covering 100 percent for the top tier students." — Chris Smith, Collier County coordinator for school counseling grades 9-12