Bill > H5011

This bill establishes the Florida Best and Brightest Teacher Scholarship Program, administered by the Department of Education (DOE), to recognize and reward teachers with high academic achievement. The program's legislative intent is to acknowledge teachers who, like parents, play a crucial role in student success and whose own academic performance is linked to student outcomes. To be eligible for a scholarship, teachers must have scored at or above the 80th percentile on either the SAT or ACT, based on the percentile ranks in effect when they took the test. Additionally, teachers must be evaluated as "highly effective" by their school district, though first-year teachers who haven't yet received an evaluation are exempt from this requirement if they meet the SAT/ACT score criteria. Teachers must submit proof of their scores to their school district by October 1st, and once deemed eligible, they remain so as long as they are employed by the school district and maintain a "highly effective" evaluation. School districts are required to report the number of eligible teachers to the DOE by December 1st, and the DOE will then disburse scholarship funds to the districts by February 1st, with the amount determined annually by the Legislature. School districts, which for the purposes of this act also include the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind and charter school governing boards, will then pay the scholarship to eligible teachers by April 1st.