To earn a standard high school diploma in Florida, students must complete a half-credit course in personal financial literacy and money management. The Florida financial literacy graduation requirement applies to every student who entered ninth grade in the 2023-2024 school year or later, which makes the Class of 2027 the first group that cannot graduate without it on their transcript.1Florida Senate. SB 1054 – Financial Literacy Instruction in Public Schools
Who the Requirement Applies To
The rule is tied to when you started ninth grade. Students who entered ninth grade in 2023-2024 or any year after must complete the half-credit course before graduating.2Justia Law. Florida Code Title XLVIII – Section 1003.4282 – Requirements for a Standard High School Diploma Students who started high school before that year follow the earlier rules, where financial literacy was an available elective but not mandatory.
Florida offers several diploma pathways besides the standard 24-credit program, including an 18-credit ACCEL option, a Career and Technical Education pathway, and International Baccalaureate and Advanced International Certificate of Education curricula.3Florida Department of Education. Graduation Requirements The half-credit financial literacy course is written into the standard 24-credit diploma. On the CTE pathway, the statute lists financial literacy as one of the electives a student may substitute for a work-based learning course rather than a standalone mandate.2Justia Law. Florida Code Title XLVIII – Section 1003.4282 – Requirements for a Standard High School Diploma If you’re on an alternative pathway, confirm how the requirement applies with your school counselor.
How It Fits Into the 24 Credits
A standard Florida diploma still totals 24 credits. The financial literacy half-credit sits alongside four credits of English, four of math, three of science, three of social studies, one of fine or performing arts, one of physical education, and electives.2Justia Law. Florida Code Title XLVIII – Section 1003.4282 – Requirements for a Standard High School Diploma
To keep the total the same, the law dropped elective credits from eight to seven and a half. The financial literacy course replaces half a credit that would previously have gone to any elective, so it doesn’t add to the overall workload.1Florida Senate. SB 1054 – Financial Literacy Instruction in Public Schools
What the Course Must Cover
The statute names 14 topic areas the course must include. These are requirements, not suggestions.2Justia Law. Florida Code Title XLVIII – Section 1003.4282 – Requirements for a Standard High School Diploma
Banking, Budgeting, and Credit
- Types of bank accounts, how to open and manage them, and how to evaluate a bank’s services.
- Balancing a checkbook and reconciling a checking account.
- Money management fundamentals, including spending habits, how credit works, what credit scores mean, and handling debt such as credit card balances.
- How to complete a loan application.
- How to dispute an incorrect billing statement.
Insurance, Taxes, and Contracts
- The basics of different personal insurance policies.
- How to compute federal income taxes.
- How local tax assessments, including property assessments, work.
- How to calculate interest using different methods.
- What simple contracts are and how they work.
- What receiving an inheritance involves and its financial implications.
Investing and the Cost of College
- The different types of savings and investment vehicles.
- Relevant state and federal laws that govern personal finance.
- The full cost of postsecondary education, including how to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), available scholarships and grants, and how student loans work.
That last item reaches past traditional money management. Before graduation, students must be taught how to fill out the FAFSA, where to look for scholarships and grants, and what a student loan actually obligates them to pay back.2Justia Law. Florida Code Title XLVIII – Section 1003.4282 – Requirements for a Standard High School Diploma
Taking the Course Online
Florida also requires that at least one of the 24 diploma credits be earned through online learning.2Justia Law. Florida Code Title XLVIII – Section 1003.4282 – Requirements for a Standard High School Diploma Florida Virtual School offers a Personal Finance and Money Management course built to satisfy the graduation requirement, giving students the option to complete the half-credit online rather than in a traditional classroom.4Florida Virtual School. High Personal Finance and Money Management
The Law Behind the Requirement
The requirement comes from Senate Bill 1054, formally titled the Dorothy L. Hukill Financial Literacy Act after the late Florida state senator who championed mandatory personal finance instruction. Governor Ron DeSantis signed it on March 22, 2022, and it took effect July 1, 2022.5Florida Senate. Senate Bill 1054 – Financial Literacy Instruction in Public Schools Before the act, Florida districts had to offer a financial literacy elective, but students could graduate without taking it. The law changed personal finance from an option into a diploma requirement.1Florida Senate. SB 1054 – Financial Literacy Instruction in Public Schools