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Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Thousands of Arkansans apply to school voucher program as universal access offered for first time
The majority of private schools that participated in the inaugural year of Arkansas' voucher program have reapplied for the second year. They're joined by more than two dozen new applicants. () Nearly 37,000 students have been approved to participate in the state's school voucher program during the 2025-2026 academic year, the first time it's open to all Arkansans. Created by the LEARNS Act, a 2023 law that made sweeping changes to the state's K-12 education system, the Education Freedom Account program provides state funds for allowable education expenses such as private school tuition. The program was phased in over three years with expanding eligibility. As of Monday, the Arkansas Department of Education had received 42,624 applications — 27,752 from private school students, 14,866 from homeschool students and six incomplete applications. Applications could be considered incomplete for a variety of reasons such as someone not entering a school in the application, ADE spokesperson Kimberly Mundell said. ADE had approved 36,855 applicants as of Monday — 25,569 private school students and 11,286 homeschool students. In the first two years of the EFA program, participation was capped at 1.5% and 3% of the total public school enrollment, roughly 7,100 and 14,000 students, respectively. ADE is projecting approximately 40,000 participants for the 2025-2026 academic year, Mundell said. With no cap in year three, participation will be limited by available funding, which is worrisome to Courtnei Jackson, principal and teacher at Shiloh Excel Christian School in Little Rock. 'It is a concern to know that there's a possibility of funds running out and we still don't have families that have renewed or applied yet,' she said. Shiloh Excel had 13 students last year, the majority of whom participated in the EFA program. Jackson expects around 20 students to enroll for the 2025-2026 academic year. EFA students are eligible to receive up to $6,994 per student next year. Students who previously qualified for the Succeed Scholarship Program, which was absorbed into the EFA program, will receive up to $7,771. For the 2025-2026 academic year, $277 million in state funds have been approved for the EFA program, Mundell said. Asked if applications are expected to exceed available funding and if per-student funding would be reduced if that happens, Mundell said funding hasn't yet been exceeded and 'there is no plan to reduce the amount of funding per pupil at this time.' To manage the large influx of applications, ADE is evaluating and approving applications based on funding priority categories within designated application priority windows, instead of a first-come, first-served basis, according to the education department's EFA website. Three-week priority windows began in early March. The application portal was closed from May 26 to June 1, before reopening for the fifth application window on Monday. Once a priority window closes, all submitted applications are reviewed together, with priority given to students in higher funding categories. The students with highest priority are returning EFA participants, followed by students with specialized needs. The program will continue processing applications in three-week windows until Jan. 31, 2026. If the number of applications exceeds available funding, applicants in the highest priority groups will be awarded first until all funds have been allocated, according to ADE's website. Any remaining eligible students will be placed on a rolling waitlist and considered for funding as openings occur. Private schools that have participated in every year of the EFA program say they're grateful the funds have helped cover families' tuition costs and increase their enrollment. But they also say technological issues persist and worry how the program might change. Smaller class sizes are key to providing an effective education at Shiloh Excel, but the school may soon expand from 20 students to 100 because of the EFA program, Jackson said. 'We have been [considering expanding] over the years, but we're really considering it now, especially since we have the vouchers that are available…so it's possible that we could really increase quickly, and we want to be able to accommodate that,' she said. Joshua Academy in Van Buren opened in 2023 with 37 students. Enrollment grew to 47 by the end of the Christian school's first year and to 121 during the 2024-2025 academic year when 97 students participated in the EFA program. Enrollment is expected to be around 160 this fall and the EFA program has been 'a huge part of it,' Head of School Kara Witzke said. Joshua Academy serves 'a fairly underserved population' in a rural county with about a quarter of students qualifying for free or reduced lunch and more than 70 ACE scholarships expected next year, Witzke said. Founded in 2000 by a group of people that included Walmart heir John Walton, ACE Scholarships are designed for families that make up to 350% above the poverty level ($112,525 for a family of four in 2025). 'The fact that everybody's getting it, the families are so relieved, those especially that have been paying full price for our school or relying on outside scholarships to do so,' Witzke said. 'They're so relieved to have that big burden taken care of.' Tuition will cost $9,000 for elementary school and $9,500 for middle school next year, and with the EFA program covering the majority of that, Witzke said it creates an opportunity for the outdoor-based school to launch its first annual fund. Heads of Arkansas private schools participating in state voucher program cite aid to families Private schools often rely on donors to pay for operational costs not covered by tuition, she said, so an annual fund would allow some families to donate part of what they would have paid in tuition and receive a tax deduction. While tuition increases are common, Jackson said she's cautioned her school's board not to raise tuition too much because it's important for families to have EFA funds for other things like uniforms and supplies. Shiloh Excel's tuition will increase from $4,250 to $5,000 this fall. At Clear Spring School in Eureka Springs, tuition will stay the same next year, ranging from $9,000 to $10,500 for K-12 students. Roughly 85% of the school's students receive scholarships, so the EFA program helps alleviate concerns about how much the independent school needs to raise for tuition assistance, Head of School Jessica FitzPatrick said. Though EFA funds are available, technology can make them difficult to access. Beyond the initial application, families must submit invoices through an online portal for quarterly payments to be disbursed to schools. Joshua Academy families often have phones but not computers, so some use the school's main office computer to access the online EFA portal, Witzke said. With a smaller enrollment of 69 students, FitzPatrick said staff can generally remind families to submit invoices or assist those who aren't 'tech savvy at all.' 'It's not hard, but if you've never done it, it's a challenge and it's usually our lower-income families that it's the biggest challenge for, which is who they're trying to help,' FitzPatrick said. 'But there's a disconnect there between the lowest income and their hurdles to technology.' Beyond technical glitches, some private school leaders have concerns about how the EFA program could change in the future. Opponents of the program have called for private schools receiving state funding to be held to the same standards as public schools. Some lawmakers have proposed laws to require just that. If program requirements change such that the state dictates the direction of Clear Spring, that could be a problem because it goes against its accrediting body's guidelines for independent schools to set their own mission, vision and philosophy, FitzPatrick said. Likewise, Witzke said the EFA program seems like it's often 'under attack' and she's worried about efforts to repeal the program or attach 'strings that would make it impossible for a Christian school, for instance, to maintain their freedom and curriculum choice.' 'I hope that the spirit of the LEARNS Act is maintained and that fidelity is maintained forever, but I am concerned,' she said. 'If it were to go away and we have 200 students at our school that all of a sudden lose 80% of their funding, we would at that point have to rely on donor funding to keep the kids here, and that would be more challenging.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Rep. Weyler, chair of House Finance Committee, calls NH school boards ‘corrupt'
CONCORD — The chair of the House Finance Committee called the state's school boards corrupt at a meeting Wednesday during a debate over expanding the Education Freedom Account program. Rep. Kenneth Weyler, R-Kingston, called the boards corrupt because he claimed they have not done anything to raise student performance levels. 'This education system we have in our state is a failure. It just keeps going up in cost and no increase in testing results,' Weyler said. 'There is no discipline at all on education because the school boards are just corrupt, they do not do anything about the failures.' Rep. David Luneau, D-Hopkinton, and a former Hopkinton school board member, tried to interrupt Weyler saying, 'That is just offensive,' but Weyler continued. 'Some parents are taking action against this by moving their children,' he said. 'It is quite a sacrifice by the parents to do this because they have to provide the transportation and all the other things involved.' The New Hampshire School Boards Association defended their members saying they work hard to address educational needs while the state has continually underfunded its obligations. 'Locally elected school board members across New Hampshire work diligently to address the needs of students, families, educators, taxpayers and local communities,' said the association's Executive Director Barrett Christina. 'Despite decades of the state underfunding its own mandates and downshifting education costs to local school districts, towns and municipalities, our local school boards have consistently supported and developed educational programs that serve diverse student populations and contribute to New Hampshire's standing among the top three public education systems in the nation. 'Recent remarks by Representative Weyler do not reflect the dedication and hard work of our local school board members, nor do we believe they represent the views of the local community members and the taxpayers who elect them,' Christina said. Weyler said all the talk about the expense of the EFA program loses sight of the fact it should save school districts money when kids leave public schools. Very few of the 5,300 students in the EFA program left public schools to join, about 75 percent of the students in the program were in private or religious schools or homeschooled when their parents applied for grants making it largely a subsidy program for parents paying the cost of their children's non-public education. 'There should be savings for every child that leaves if we're spending over $20,000 per student,' Weyler said. 'When that student leaves the local schools, there should be big savings in property taxes. That is never mentioned.' Responding to statements that opponents of the state's voucher plan far outnumber supporters, Weyler blamed educators for skewing the numbers. 'You have thousands of people working for this corrupt system and they are the ones making the phone calls,' Weyler said, 'and I object to it.' Rep. Rosemarie Rung, D-Merrimack, asked Weyler to apologize to the hundreds of school board members across the state as she was at one time along with another member of the committee. 'We have done our best for our communities,' she said. Weyler said perhaps he exaggerated but for the last 20 years he had not seen any improvement in the operations of schools and the accomplishments of the students. 'Perhaps I exaggerated, but it is a failure,' he said Rung asked him to come to Merrimack to a board meeting and see how what he said is not accurate. Weyler said he watched the scandal in his local school board. Rep. Kate Murray, D-New Castle, reminded the committee that New Hampshire public school students rank third in the country overall. The committee voted 14-11 down party lines to recommend Senate Bill 295 expanding the voucher plan be passed by the full House. The vote could come as early as next week. Garry Rayno may be reached at This article first appeared on and is republished here under a Creative Commons license. This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: House Finance Chair Ken Weyler calls NH school boards 'corrupt'
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
New Hampshire House Again Votes to Expand School Voucher Program
This article was originally published in InDepthNH. CONCORD — After voting to cut off debate on the latest Education Freedom Account expansion bill, the House Republican majority approved a bill that would do away with an income cap beginning July 1. Under the bill, there would be a 10,000 student cap on the program that has grown in four years from 1,635 students to about 5,400 students and in cost from $8 million to over $30 million. Currently there is an income cap of 350 percent of the federal poverty level — or $112,525 for a family of four — on the program that would be eliminated next school year under Senate Bill 295, which the House passed Thursday. Get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter House Bill 115, which is now before the Senate, would eliminate the cap beginning with the 2026-2027 school year, and would have a cap of 400 percent next school year, or $128,600 for a family of four. Deputy Majority Leader Joe Sweeney, R-Salem, moved the previous question as the bill came to the floor which cuts off debate on the issue. The House has debated the issue at length this session and in the past, he said. But Rep. Laura Telerski, D-Nashua, opposed the motion saying the issue of school vouchers is extremely important to the public and voters want to hear what their representatives have to say about it, and urged her colleagues to vote against 'the silencing of the debate.' But the House voted 185-155 to cut off debate before it began. Under the bill, if enrollment in the program reaches 90 percent of the student limit, the cap would be increased by 25 percent or to 12,500 the following school year. The bill also sets up a priority system if the cap is reached before the expansion. The priorities would be: 1. Student currently enrolled in the program, 2. Sibling of an enrolled student, 3. Student with disabilities, and 4. Student with family income less than 350 percent of the federal poverty guidelines. Rep. David Luneau, D-Hopkinton, tried to amend the bill to require a performance audit currently being done by the Legislative Budget Assistant's Office, be completed and the organization administering the program have 'a clean bill of health' before there could be any expansion of the program. He noted a sample audit several years ago found that 12 out of 50 applications were approved in error by the Children's Scholarship Fund that administers the program. The amendment would force the company to comply with 'The laws and rules we have passed in this body and to take what we are doing seriously,' Luneau said. But House Education Funding Chair Rep. Rick Ladd, R-Haverhill, called the amendment another trap and delaying tactic to implementing the EFA program, noting no date has been set for the audit's release. And he said most performance audits are 120 pages with many findings that would have to be resolved before the program could be expanded. The amendment was defeated on a 199-165 vote. Rep. Hope Damon, D-Croydon, urged her colleagues to defeat the bill. '(We should not be) expanding the EFA voucher program to a cost of $100 million when we lack adequate revenues to fund essential needs of New Hampshire citizens, such as Medicaid, the state employee retirement system, affordable housing, and corrections safe staffing,' Damon said. 'We should fund our impressive university system that benefits our economy rather than paying stipends to wealthy families. And most importantly the public statewide has overwhelmingly and repeatedly opposed this Free State marketing scheme.' But Ladd said the program is not a voucher program or a voucher scam and not a recruiting tool for people moving into New Hampshire, but for parents justified in wanting alternatives if their child is struggling, or being bullied or not being challenged in a 'one-size-fits-all situation.' The bill was initially approved on a 188-176 vote and was sent to the House Finance Committee for review before coming back for a final vote. House Bill 115 has had a public hearing before the Senate Education Committee but has yet to come before the Senate for a vote. The House also approved Senate Bill 292 which would establish a floor under state aid for special education costs that exceed three-and-a-half times the average per pupil cost the previous year. School districts have been receiving prorated state reimbursement for those costs under what was the catastrophic aid program that have been about 50 percent of their expenditures. The bill would require that school districts receive at least 80 percent of their special education costs that reach the catastrophic level. The bill was referred to House Finance for review before a final vote is taken on the bill. Garry Rayno may be reached at This article first appeared on and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
Boston Globe
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
New Hampshire still ranks last in state-level share of K-12 education funding
The state's current education funding model Get N.H. Morning Report A weekday newsletter delivering the N.H. news you need to know right to your inbox. Enter Email Sign Up Megan Tuttle, president of NEA New Hampshire, said some state lawmakers 'keep failing to adequately fund public education,' and the state's overreliance on local property taxes means students receive differing opportunities based on their ZIP codes. Advertisement 'For example, students in property poor and lower-income communities often don't get to take AP courses or join extra curricular activities,' she said. 'Differences in funding levels across the state also impact educator salaries, leading to serious recruitment and retention issues that directly harm student learning.' Advertisement Whether the current model should be replaced with a system that requires the state to contribute more funding and distribute SWEPT revenues more equally is the subject of a pair of disputes While the state's share of K-12 public school spending is relatively slim, the overall amount that New Hampshire schools spend per student is higher than most other states. New Hampshire ranked seventh in the US last school year, spending $22,252 per pupil, according to the NEA data. That was slightly more than Maine schools spent per pupil and a few thousands dollars less than Massachusetts schools spent per pupil. Republican state lawmakers have advocated for caps to limit the growth of school spending at the local level. They have also proposed universal eligibility for the Education Freedom Account program, which would allow all families to take the state's share of education funding and use it for private school or other education expenses. Democrats have advocated for their own legislative proposals to increase education funding at the state level and distribute SWEPT revenues more evenly. A wide variety of factors, including In terms of Advertisement This article first appeared in Globe NH | Morning Report, our free newsletter focused on the news you need to know about New Hampshire, including great coverage from the Boston Globe and links to interesting articles from other places. If you'd like to receive it via e-mail Monday through Friday, Steven Porter can be reached at
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Competing EFA bills face final hearing
Opponents outnumbered supporters during the final public hearing Tuesday on competing House- and Senate-passed bills that would lift the income cap for any parents to receive a taxpayer-financed Education Freedom Account grant. What remains to be seen is just how House and Senate Republican leaders intend to reach a compromise on changes that go far beyond what Gov. Kelly Ayotte has proposed for the program. The EFA program provides payment to offset some of the parents' costs to send a child to a private, alternative public or home school program. The Senate Education Committee took testimony on the House bill (HB 115) from Rep. Valerie McDonnell, R-Salem, that would raise the income eligibility ceiling in the 2025-26 school year from 350% to 400% of the federal poverty level. For families of four, that would raise the threshold from $112,525 to $128,600 annually. Under the bill, the income cap would be eliminated for the 2026-27 school year. Last week, the Senate Education Funding Committee held the final hearing on the Senate's bill (SB 295) from Sen. Victoria Sullivan, R-Manchester, that eliminates an income cap but places a limit of 10,000 EFAs granted in a single year. Currently, just over 5,000 families have EFAs, with an average grant of $5,400. In her budget address in February, Ayotte endorsed eliminating EFA income limits for parents whose children are enrolled in public schools. Studies have shown that as many as 80% of parents who received EFAs already had their children enrolled in non-public schools. McDonnell said the House plan is more defensible. 'Ours is a truly universal program beginning in Fiscal Year 2027,' McDonnell said. 'I look forward to the day when no child is turned away from an educational option that best meets their needs.' Sullivan said many EFA opponents fail to understand parents don't get a check from the state. Instead, they apply for reimbursement from the program administrator — the New Hampshire Scholarship Program — that then pays the grant to the school program. 'This sets it apart from a voucher program you have seen in other states,' McDonnell said. The Josiah Bartlett Center for Public Policy and Ed Choice, both supporters of the EFAs, issued a report which said many wealthier families that send children to private schools won't seek reimbursement. 'No state has ever experienced a 100% takeout rate,' said Ed Tarnowski, policy and advocacy director with Ed Choice. Janet Ward, vice president of the League of Women Voters, called EFAs 'taxation without representation' for those paying property taxes to support both private and private school systems. 'There are families who get these EFAs who can clearly afford the tuition that they pay,' Ward said. Rep. David Luneau, D-Hopkinton, pointed out voters in towns across the state voted in support of resolutions calling for more public accountability in the EFA program. House and Senate GOP leaders could decide not to risk sending an EFA bill to the governor that goes beyond what she has requested. As a fallback position, the House-approved budget trailer bill (HB 2) also includes EFA legislation contained in the separate House bill. +++ What's Next: The House and Senate will vote in the coming weeks on legislation that came from the other branch. Prospects: The best hope for EFA expansion is to make it part of a grand bargain on the two-year state budget. Under this scenario, the changes would take effect unless Ayotte decided to veto the entire budget. klandrigan@
