Curated news items and announcements published on October 1, 2026. Every entry links out to the original source.
This hub points to official and named news sources. Read each story at the source.
Roughly a dozen new state laws from the 2026 Florida Legislative Session took effect on October 1, per Fox 13 Tampa Bay and WUSF News. Core statutory protections for home education under Florida Statute § 1002.41 remain intact and unchanged; related public-school safety, facility-access, and traffic-zone rules may still apply when homeschool students visit public campuses for FHSAA Craig Dickinson Act sports, state testing, or dual enrollment.
Step Up For Students’ Quarter 2 window (October 1 – December 31) opened for Florida school choice scholarship payment schedules. For Personalized Education Program (PEP) and Family Empowerment Scholarship for Unique Abilities (FES-UA) families, Q2 begins processing of second-quarter ESA deposits; parents use the EMA portal for tutoring, therapy invoices, and curriculum materials as that portal currently allows. The PEP program page is a supporting reference — confirm exact deadlines and next steps in the live payment schedule.
The Florida Department of Education’s statewide virtual public listening session on the new B.E.S.T. Science Standards has concluded. The next public forum is scheduled for Monday, October 5, 2026, at Walton High School in DeFuniak Springs (Walton County), 5:00–7:00 p.m. CT.
