Changes Coming to Bright Futures Scholarships?
Clearwater residents counting on this state program to help fund college dreams might find the rules of the game changing soon.
Florida high school students who have been hitting the books in hopes of getting a full four-year ride to college courtesy of the state may soon discover they need to do more to qualify for a Bright Futures Scholarship. The state’s lottery-funded tuition program is entering troubled financial waters and some say it’s time to change the rules of the game. “There’s more money going out than going in,” explained Sen. John Legg, R-Lutz. Legg chairs his chamber’s education committee and sits on the education appropriations subcommittee. “Lottery revenues are increasing by about 4 percent a year,” said Legg. The problem is the money going out to Bright Futures awardees is increasing at a rate of about 13 to 14 percent a year, he added. “It’s not…
