Meet Tatiana, a Florida Mom Fighting for Her Daughters’ ESAs 

Tatiana Cox Lopez is a mother of two who just wants the best for her kids. 

Last month, Tatiana teamed up with EdChoice Legal Advocates (EdLA) to defend Florida’s school choice programs against an attack by teachers’ unions and other opponents. EdLA has filed a motion to intervene in the lawsuit, representing Tatiana and three other Florida families. 

Tatiana relies on Florida’s education savings accounts (ESA) to homeschool her two daughters, who both learn and thrive better outside a traditional classroom setting.  

Her older daughter, Analisse, who is 13 and going into seventh grade, is diagnosed with ADHD and dyslexia and previously fell behind at Catholic school. 

In 2024 when Analisse was in fourth grade, she received Florida’s Family Empowerment Scholarship ESA through Step Up for Students. Her parents switched her to homeschooling, and since then her academic progress and confidence have improved dramatically. 

The ESA has “changed our daughter’s life,” Tatiana said. “Our experience has shown us that every child learns differently.” 

The mom explained that, “in a traditional classroom setting, my oldest daughter Analisse struggled academically and emotionally because the pace and structure simply did not match the way she learns best. As parents, it was heartbreaking watching her lose confidence in herself. Once we transitioned to homeschooling and more individualized instruction, we began to see a completely different child emerge. She is now capable, confident, and excited to learn again.”  

When they first began homeschooling, Tatiana said she encouraged Analisse’s interests over a strict curriculum, allowing her to explore things like hands-on activities, outdoor experiences, reading together, and everyday life skills. This gave Analisse time to rebuild her confidence and helped her mother understand how she learned best. She repeated fourth grade math, and then as Analisse moved into fifth and sixth grades, they gradually added more structure into her homeschool day. 

Tatiana shared that thanks to the scholarship, Analisse has been able to receive one-on-one instruction in math, reading, and writing as well as use a customized curriculum and take advantage of other educational opportunities at her level and pace. 

“The ESA scholarship has completely transformed our daughters’ education,” she said. “Analisse went from struggling in subjects like math, reading, and writing to actually looking forward to learning and meeting with her teacher every week. This scholarship has restored her confidence, reduced stress around learning, and allowed our family to focus on helping her thrive instead of simply trying to keep up.” 

The family’s younger daughter is six years old and going into first grade in the fall. She has a similar learning style to her older sister, and her parents were able to recognize earlier that she thrives better in a homeschool environment as well. 

Tatiana runs a kayak fishing and environmental conservation nonprofit with her husband in the Tampa area. 

Losing the scholarships would be a major financial burden for the family, and they would have to consider placing the girls back in educational environments that would harm their progress.  

“If the ESA program went away, our family would face very difficult decisions,” Tatiana said. “Financially, it would be extremely challenging to continue providing the individualized education and resources our daughter currently receives. The emotional and academic setbacks that could come from losing these opportunities would be devastating, especially for children who have finally found confidence and success through personalized education.” 

She is not alone. 

Florida’s Family Empowerment Scholarship and related educational choice programs serve hundreds of thousands of students across the state and have become among the nation’s most expansive and widely used educational freedom options. 

Tatiana said she would like opponents of Florida’s school choice programs to “remember that education is not one-size-fits-all.” 

“These scholarships give parents the ability to choose the learning environment that best supports their child’s needs, whether that is private school, homeschooling, specialized therapies, tutoring, or hybrid education. For families like us, these programs are life-changing,” the mom said. 

“Taking away programs like this would have devastating impacts on children like my daughter, forcing many back into environments where they will not succeed,” she said. “Every child deserves the chance to learn in a way that helps them reach their full potential and that’s exactly what this scholarship has done for her.” 

EdLA looks forward to a win in the Florida case.