Apply for Bright Futures funds while in high school

Florida Bright Futures Scholarships reward students for their academic achievements during high school by providing funding for college.

Initial eligibility is determined by the Florida Department of Education. Students must meet certain academic requirements while in high school and submit the Florida Financial Aid Application on the Florida Department of Education's Office of Student Financial Assistance website by the established deadline to be considered for the scholarship.

Important Notice for NEW and TRANSFER students
In order to receive Bright Futures funds at SPC, you must list St. Petersburg College as the institution you plan to attend on your Bright Futures state account. You must use the User ID and password issued by the Florida Department of Education to login.  Retrieve the User ID and password on the website or call 1-888-827-2004.

State Notifications
Florida Bright Futures Scholarship recipients need to check for notifications that pertain to his/her award on the Florida Department of Education's Office of Student Financial Assistance website. Use your state User ID and Password to login. This Password is different from your FAFSA FSA ID.

Bright Futures eligibility at SPC

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is not a requirement to receive Bright Futures; however, SPC Financial Assistance Services recommends you submit the FAFSA. 

Verification and Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) do not affect Bright Futures eligibility. However, if you are selected for verification or are not meeting SAP, you are encouraged to complete these items by submitting the necessary documents.

SPC PROGRAMS ELIGIBLE FOR BRIGHT FUTURES SCHOLARSHIPS

Florida Academic Scholars/Florida Medallion Scholars

Florida Gold Seal Vocational Scholars

Florida Gold Seal CAPE Scholars 

Bright Futures Amounts

The award amounts are as follows:

Florida Academic Scholars (Summer Funding available)
Lower Division & Financial Aid Eligible Certificate - 100% of tuition and applicable fees *
Upper Division - 100% of tuition and applicable fees *

Florida Medallion Scholars (Summer Funding available)
Financial Aid Eligible Certificate - 75% of tuition and applicable fees *
Lower Division - 100% of tuition and applicable fees *
Upper Division - 75% of tuition and applicable fees *

Florida Gold Seal Vocational Scholars**
Financial Aid Eligible Applied Technology Diploma - $39 per credit hour enrolled
Financial Aid Eligible Certificate - $39 per credit hour enrolled
Lower Division (Associate in Science ONLY) - $48 per credit hour enrolled

Florida Gold Seal CAPE Scholars***
Financial Aid Eligible Applied Technology Diploma - $39 per credit hour enrolled
Financial Aid Eligible Certificate - $39 per credit hour enrolled
Lower Division (Associate in Science ONLY) - $48 per credit hour enrolled
Upper Division - $48 per credit hour enrolled

NOTES:
Lower Division represents students enrolled in Associate Degree programs of 2 years.
Upper Division represents students enrolled in Baccalaureate Degree programs of 4 years.

*Fees that are not covered include lab fees, online course lab fees, access fees, application fee & transcript fee. Bookstore charges are also not covered.

**The Florida Gold Seal Vocational Scholars program will not fund AA or Baccalaureate programs.

***The Florida Gold Seal CAPE Scholars program will not fund an AA degree. Upper division funding requires the completion of an Associate in Science that articulates to a Bachelor of Science OR Bachelor of Applied Science.
 

Bright Futures Renewal

Florida Bright Futures renewal eligibility is determined by the Florida Department of Educations's Office of Student Financial Assistance during the summer months. Florida Bright Futures awards have specific completion renewal requirements that are different from the minimum Satisfactory Academic Progress requirements:

Completion Requirements (based on the number of credit hours funded per term)

  • Full-time enrolled (24 credit hours for the year) students must complete 12 credit hours per term. 
  • Three-quarter time enrolled (18 credit hours for the year) students must complete 9 credit hours per term. 
  • Half-time enrolled (12 credit hours for the year) students must complete 6 credit hours per term. 

Dropped or withdrawn credit hours do not count towards the completion requirement.

Bright Futures Credit Hour Renewal Requirement Interactive Tool. Use this tool to ensure that you are on track to meet your credit hour renewal requirement

GPA Requirements

  • Florida Academic Scholars (FAS): 3.0 NOTE: Florida Academic Scholars with a 2.75-2.99 GPA will renew as Florida Medallion Scholars
  • Florida Medallion Scholars (FMS): 2.75
  • Gold Seal Vocational Scholars (GSV): 2.75

Florida Bright Futures Scholarship renewal is based on the cumulative GPA, not the Program GPA that is used for Academic Standing purposes. 

Repayment of Dropped or Withdrawn Credit Hours

Florida Bright Futures recipients are required to repay the Bright Futures funds that were awarded for any course dropped or withdrawn after the Last day to drop with a refund unless an exception is recommended by Financial Assistance Services. An exception will be based on a verifiable illness or emergency beyond a student's control. An exception at SPC would be an approved Bright Futures Eligibility Appeal.

Repayment for the cost of dropped or withdrawn courses is required to renew a Bright Futures award for a subsequent academic year.

Grade of W

You are required by the Florida Department of Education's Office of Student Financial Assistance to repay Bright Futures funds awarded for any course dropped or withdrawn after the last day to drop with a refund. The funds must be repaid by the end of the spring term of the same academic year in order for the withdrawal to not affect the student's scholarship renewal eligibility. You are encouraged to repay the funds owed to SPC as soon as possible so you do not incur a registration hold for upcoming terms. 

If you do not repay Bright Futures funds for a dropped or withdrawn course that Bright Futures has funded, you will not be eligible for scholarship renewal in future academic years at SPC or any other institution until the funds are repaid to SPC. You will be placed on a "Defaulted State Scholarship and Loan Recipient" list which will prevent the student from receiving other types of state issued financial assistance. Once you repay the debt owed, your name can be removed from the state default list. At the end of the spring term each year, SPC is required to notify the Florida Department of Education's Office of Student Financial Assistance if you have not repaid your obligation.

If you experienced a medical illness or emergency (beyond your control) that impacted your academic performance in the fall and/or spring term, please contact Financial Assistance Services for additional information regarding a Bright Futures Eligibility Appeal.

Grade of WF

Just like a final grade of "W", you are required by the Florida Department of Education's Office of Student Financial Assistance to repay Bright Futures funds awarded for any course dropped or withdrawn after the last day to drop with a refund. The funds must be repaid by the end of the spring term of the same academic year in order for the withdrawal to not affect the student's scholarship renewal eligibility. You are encouraged to repay the funds owed to SPC as soon as possible so you do not incur a registration hold for upcoming terms. 

If you do not repay Bright Futures funds for a dropped or withdrawn course that Bright Futures has funded, you will not be eligible for scholarship renewal in future academic years at SPC or any other post-secondary institution in the State of Florida until the funds are repaid to SPC. You will be placed on a "Defaulted State Scholarship and Loan Recipient" list which will prevent you from receiving other types of state issued financial assistance. Once you repay the debt owed, your name can be removed from the state default list. At the end of the spring term each year, SPC is required to notify the Florida Department of Education's Office of Student Financial Assistance if you have not repaid your obligation.

A grade of "WF" calculates into your cumulative GPA just as if it were an "F." A student with a grade of "WF" must maintain the state set GPA requirement by the end of the spring term in order to meet his/her scholarship renewal requirements.

NOTE: You can enroll in summer term courses within the same academic year to raise your GPA to the state requirement only if the student is eligible for a one-time restoration opportunity. The one-time restoration opportunity is based on your high school graduation date. If you are eligible for a one-time restoration opportunity and would like to have your summer term grades sent to the Florida Department of Education, you must submit an SPC Bright Futures Grade & Hour Evaluation Request form to Financial Assistance Services or Registration or by fax to 727-791-2460.If you experience a medical illness or emergency (beyond your control) that impacted your academic performance in the fall and/or spring term, please contact Financial Assistance Services for additional information regarding a Bright Futures Eligibility Appeal.

Grade of F

A final grade of "F" can impact your GPA and earned hours requirements for the year. The earned hours requirement looks at the level of enrollment in which you are funded to determine the minimum number of credit hours that you must complete each term. There are three levels of enrollment:

  • Full-time (12+ credit hours) - requires you to complete a minimum of 12 credit hours per term with passing letter grades (A-D)
  • Three-quarter time (9-11 credit hours) - requires you to complete a minimum of 9 credit hours per term with passing letter grades (A-D)
  • Half-time (6-8 credit hours) - requires you to complete a minimum of 6 credit hours per term with passing letter grades (A-D)

If the grade of "F" occurs in the fall term:  If you fail a course(s) in the fall term and do not maintain the level of enrollment in which you were funded for the term, you will have the opportunity to make up the credit hours in the spring term of the same academic year. Please contact Financial Assistance Services to get further information regarding the number of credit hours you will need to enroll in for the spring term to make up for the failed fall term credit hour(s).

You also have the option to decline a portion (or all) of your Bright Futures award in the spring term to make up for failed hours in the fall term. This requires you to submit a Bright Futures Decline Award form. Please contact Financial Assistance Services to get further information on how much of the spring term award that you will need to decline and to obtain a link to the electronic form.

If the grade of "F" occurs in the spring term:  If you fail a course(s) and do not maintain the level of enrollment in which you were funded for the term, please contact Financial Assistance Services for further assistance.

If you experienced a verifiable medical illness or emergency (beyond your control) that impacted your academic performance in the fall and/or spring term, please contact financial Assistance Services for additional information regarding a Bright Futures Eligibility Appeal.

Grade of I

A final grade of "I" (Incomplete) can impact your earned hours requirement for the year. The earned hours requirement looks at the level of enrollment in which you are funded to determine the minimum number of credit hours that you must complete each term. There are three levels of enrollment: 

  • Full-time (12+ credit hours) - requires you to complete a minimum of 12 credit hours per term  
  • Three-quarter time (9-11 credit hours) - requires you to complete a minimum of 9 credit hours per term  
  • Half-time (6-8 credit hours) - requires you to complete a minimum of 6 credit hours per term 

When you receive a grade of "I" in a course that Bright Futures has funded, it is your responsibility to contact Financial Assistance Services once the grade of "I" is removed from your student record and replaced with a letter grade of  A, B, C, D, or F. In order to prevent your grades and hours earned from being inaccurately reported to the Florida Department of Education's Office of Student Financial Assistance, please contact Financial Assistance Services immediately following the grade change. 

Repayment of Dropped or Withdrawn Credit Hours

Florida Bright Futures recipients are required to repay the Bright Futures funds that were awarded for any course dropped or withdrawn after the Last day to drop with a refund unless an exception is recommended by Financial Assistance Services. An exception will be based on a verifiable illness or emergency beyond a student's control. An exception at SPC would be an approved Bright Futures Eligibility Appeal.

Repayment for the cost of dropped or withdrawn courses is required to renew a Bright Futures award for a subsequent academic year.

Bright Futures recipients will be notified by SPC student email of any repayment obligation that results from a dropped or withdrawn course(s). Repayments must be settled with the SPC Business Office. SPC Financial Assistance Services will automatically report repayments to the Florida Department of Education.

Bright Futures funds may be awarded at your home institution (where you are degree seeking) for transient courses taken at your host institution(s) once the transient financial aid process is complete. Both the home and host institution(s) must be within the state of Florida. You must meet the Bright Futures eligibility requirements at your home institution to receive the scholarship funds. You are responsible for paying your tuition and fees at your host institution by the established due date.

Questions?

Please contact the financial aid office at your home institution. If SPC is your home institution, please contact us online or call 727-791-2485.

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