Scholarship funds don't arrive in a steady, even trickle throughout the year, they land in family accounts on a fixed quarterly schedule set by Step Up. Knowing that schedule helps you understand when scholarship families are most likely to have fresh funds available to spend with your business.
The short answer: Step Up deposits scholarship funds into family accounts four times a year, in August/September, November, February, and April, within two weeks of receiving funds from the state. Here's the exact schedule, straight from Step Up's own family handbooks.
As of this writing (July 2026), this reflects the 2026-27 schedule published in Step Up's Family Handbooks. Confirm current dates at stepupforstudents.org each school year, since disbursement dates are set annually and can shift.
The official quarterly schedule
According to Step Up's Family Handbooks, funds are received by Step Up from the State of Florida on this schedule, then deposited into family scholarship accounts within two weeks:
| Quarter | Student Type | Step Up Receives Funds |
|---|---|---|
| Quarter 1 | Renewal students | August 1 |
| Quarter 1 | New students | September 1 |
| Quarter 2 | All students | November 1 |
| Quarter 3 | All students | February 1 |
| Quarter 4 | All students | April 1 |
Step Up's handbook notes there are two separate funding dates for Quarter 1 specifically, one for renewal students and a later one for new students, so "back to school" funding doesn't all land on the same day even within the same quarter.
(Source: Step Up For Students Family Handbooks, current as of July 3, 2026)
The school-year quarters, for reference
Separately from the funding dates above, Step Up's official school-year quarters run:
| Quarter | Dates |
|---|---|
| Quarter 1 | July 1 – September 30 |
| Quarter 2 | October 1 – December 31 |
| Quarter 3 | January 1 – March 31 |
| Quarter 4 | April 1 – June 30 |
(Source: Step Up For Students Family Handbooks, current as of July 3, 2026)
What this means for how you plan
A few practical implications worth knowing, drawn directly from the schedule above rather than assumption:
- New families and renewal families fund at different times in Q1. If you work with a mix of both, don't expect every family's funds to be available on the same date at the start of the school year.
- If a scheduled deposit is delayed, Step Up's handbook states supplemental funding may be provided at a later date, so a late Q1 or Q2 deposit for a specific family doesn't necessarily mean anything has gone wrong, it may simply be a supplemental deposit still in process.
- Funding amounts are locked in at Quarter 1 based on the student's grade level and county of residence at that time; changes made after Quarter 1 funding don't affect that year's award amount, according to Step Up's handbook.
- Reimbursement processing is separate from this deposit schedule. A family having funds in their account doesn't mean a reimbursement request will process instantly, Step Up's stated reimbursement window is up to 60 days.
The bottom line
Step Up's quarterly deposit dates are public and predictable: August/September, November, February, and April. Building your own outreach or promotional timing around when families are most likely to have fresh scholarship funds available is a straightforward, data-backed way to plan, no guesswork required.
Make sure you're visible when funds land. List your business free on Florida Education Vendors so scholarship families researching where to spend their quarterly deposit can find you.
Sources cited in this article: Step Up For Students Family Handbooks, current as of July 3, 2026.