About the Webinar:
The closing session celebrated the collaboration and achievements of educators, students, and leaders who make Florida’s school choice movement thrive. The event opened with a performance from the Ivy Hawn Charter School of the Arts choir and included recognitions for student tech teams, the program review committee, and Florida Department of Education staff for their contributions to a successful conference. The session then transitioned to a comprehensive Florida Department of Education (DOE) update, led by Adam Emerson, Executive Director of the Office of School Choice, and colleagues from the DOE’s charter and scholarship offices.
The DOE team provided a detailed legislative and operational update, highlighting recent bills affecting charter and private schools, including new provisions for enrollment flexibility, standard monitoring tools, zoning changes, and workforce development opportunities. They also discussed the state’s rapid growth in charter and scholarship participation—with over 400,000 charter school students and nearly 600,000 scholarship recipients—underscoring Florida’s leadership in educational choice. The update concluded with guidance on the new statewide Clearinghouse system for background screenings and an open Q&A session addressing topics such as student mobility, scholarship cross-checks, and volunteer screening. The closing remarks emphasized collaboration, transparency, and continued innovation as key drivers of Florida’s educational success.