TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday touted a proposal to spend an additional $18.8 million next year on a program that provides voucher-like scholarships to students with disabilities, saying he trusts “parents to make the best decision” for the education of their children.
DeSantis appeared at schools in Jacksonville and Longwood to discuss his budget proposal, which would provide enough money to eliminate an 1,800-student waiting list in the Gardiner Scholarship Program. At the Pace Brantley School in Longwood, the governor was joined by former Senate President Andy Gardiner, who spearheaded creation of the program.
“We will be fighting for this money,” said DeSantis, who also appeared at the North Florida School of Special Education near the Regency Square Mall in Jacksonville. “I think we’re going to get it because I think most people realize it’s money well-spent.”
DeSantis, who took office Jan. 8, is a supporter of school-choice programs, which have been among the most-controversial issues in the state’s education system for the past two decades. Supporters say voucher-type programs and charter schools give more opportunities to parents and students, while critics argue they strip money from traditional public schools and lack accountability.
But the Gardiner Scholarship Program has drawn relatively little controversy compared to other school-choice programs. As of October, it served nearly 12,000 students, with an average scholarship of $10,418, according to information posted on the state Department of Education website.
Families can use the money for a variety of purposes, including educational materials and therapy services, but 68 percent use it for tuition and fees at private schools, the Department of Education website said. The largest group of students in the program, 66 percent, are diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, while others have disabilities such as cerebral palsy or Down syndrome.
FLORIDA K-12 SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAMS
Gardiner Scholarship | McKay Scholarship
Gardiner, whose son, Andrew, has Down syndrome, served as Senate president from 2014 and 2016 and made a priority of issues involving people with disabilities --- or “unique abilities” as he calls them. He said he began creating the program in 2014.
“What’s special about this scholarship is it allows for a parent to decide what is in the best interest of their child,” Gardiner, an Orlando Republican, said. “Maybe it’s more speech therapy, maybe it’s more occupational therapy. Maybe it’s tuition.”
The Gardiner Scholarship money was included in a $91.3 billion budget proposal that DeSantis released Friday for the 2019-2020 fiscal year. Lawmakers will use the proposal as a starting point as they negotiate a final spending plan during the legislative session that starts March 5.
If his Gardiner Scholarship proposal is approved, funding for the program would increase to $147.1 million during the coming year, according to budget information from DeSantis’ office.
DeSantis has quickly focused on education issues since taking office, releasing a series of initiatives. And while he backs school choice, he also indicated Monday he is working with Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran on a proposal to increase accountability for charter-school operators.
“For the charter operators, if they’re coming in and doing these fly-by-night charters, where they open up, make some money and leave, we’re going to create a … list to where you’re blacklisted in Florida from being able to get these contracts in the future,” DeSantis said. “If you’re a bad actor, you’re going on the list, and we’re not going to let you move around to different communities, make money and then not serve the interests of students and parents.”
Last week, DeSantis made five announcements connected to education, including $26 billion earmarked for education in his $91.3 billion budget proposal.
In addition to proposing to double per-student funding to $224, last week, DeSantis:
- Issued an executive order eliminating Common Core and directing Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran to undertake a process that will lead to new standards.
- Signed an executive order to revisit the state's career- and technical-education programs to ensure students are trained to meet market demands.
- Proposed to overhaul the state's "Best and Brightest" teacher-bonus program, which is currently tied to SAT or ACT scores.
- Proposed using $57 million that's gone unspent to get more districts to participate in the state's new school "guardian" program.
DeSantis' budget proposal also includes:
- No tuition or fee increases for students at state universities and state colleges and $582.8 million for the Bright Futures scholarship program.
- $625 million for Everglades restoration and water-quality efforts to address issues such as red tide and toxic algae.
- $50 million for beach-restoration projects and $100 million for the Florida Forever land-conservation program.
- $85 million to continue the Florida Job Growth Grant Fund, an economic-development program, and $76 million for the Visit Florida tourism-marketing agency.
- Making permanent a $98 million cut in the Medicaid program through eliminating a longstanding policy about paying health-care bills that accumulate while people prepare to apply for coverage -- a concept known as “retroactivity.”
- Elimination of the Agency for State Technology, with its responsibilities, shifted to the Department of Management Services.
- No across-the-board pay raises for state employees.
- $335 million in tax savings, with $289.7 million in the “required local effort,” which are property taxes that go to schools, and $45.3 million in sales-tax holidays for back-to-school shoppers and purchases of disaster-preparedness supplies.
The proposed budget, which outlines potential spending for the fiscal year that starts July 1, would be an increase from the current year’s $89.3 billion budget.
For more on the budget proposal, go to http://boldvisionforabrighterfuture.com/HomeFY20.htm.