Florida Prepaid open enrollment period begins

Period begins with near-record low rates available for parents

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – For families around Florida, the time to start saving for college could be today. The Florida Prepaid open enrollment period has begun, with near-record low rates available for parents planning for their children's future.

Florida State sophomore Hannah Padykula said her life as a student was made much easier thanks to the Florida Prepaid program.

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"It's made a world of a difference," Padykula said. "I don't have the stress anxiety that I see from students out of state or have that responsibility on my shoulders to pay for college."

Florida Prepaid allows families to start saving for university or college tuition as early as when a child is born.

"We know that college savings makes a huge difference in terms of whether you go to college and also whether you finish, because they're not dealing with the debt and having to work and, of course, there's the debt you have afterwards to pay off student loans," Florida Prepaid spokeswoman Shannon Colavecchio said.

Because 2016 is a leap year, families get one extra day to sign up. Open enrollment runs until Feb. 29.

Rates for the college savings program skyrocketed during the recession. Numbers were down to only 12,000 families investing.

But a tuition cap law slashed prices, and the number of families who started new programs last year grew to more than 40,000. Rates have gone up only slightly this year.

"The four-year university plan two open enrollments ago was like $350 a month for a newborn. You're still looking at that vs. $185. It's still really good," Colavecchio said.

If a student decides to go to a non-Florida school, the money saved can be put toward out-of-state tuition.

Florida Prepaid is also giving away 10 two-year state college scholarships. For more information on all the plans, click here.