What are School Vouchers?
What are School Vouchers?
School vouchers give parents the freedom to choose a private school for their children, using all or part of the public funding set aside for their children’s education. Under such a program, funds typically spent by a school district would be allocated to a participating family in the form of a voucher to pay partial or full tuition for their child’s private school, including both religious and non-religious options.
Watch the short, animated video below to see how school vouchers work for families.
Fifteen states and Washington, D.C., have school voucher programs.
Check out the list below for quick links to those program details, which include family eligibility tests, participation numbers, funding amounts and more.
Arkansas (AR)
Arkansas – Succeed Scholarship Program for Students with Disabilities
Washington, D.C. (DC)
District of Columbia – Opportunity Scholarship Program
Florida (FL)
Florida – John M. McKay Scholarships for Students with Disabilities Program
Georgia (GA)
Georgia Special Needs Scholarship Program
Indiana (IN)
Indiana – Choice Scholarship Program
Louisiana (LA)
Louisiana – School Choice Program for Certain Students with Exceptionalities
Maryland (MD)
Maryland – Broadening Options and Opportunities for Students Today (BOOST) Program
Maine (ME)
Maine – Town Tuitioning Program
Mississippi (MS)
Mississippi Dyslexia Therapy Scholarship for Students with Dyslexia Program
Mississippi – Nate Rogers Scholarship for Students with Disabilities Program
North Carolina (NC)
North Carolina – Special Education Scholarship Grants for Children with Disabilities
North Carolina – Opportunity Scholarships
New Hampshire (NH)
New Hampshire – Town Tuitioning Program
Ohio (OH)
Ohio – Cleveland Scholarship Program
Ohio – Autism Scholarship Program
Ohio – Educational Choice Scholarship Program
Ohio – Jon Peterson Special Needs Scholarship Program
Ohio – Income-Based Scholarship Program
Oklahoma (OK)
Oklahoma – Lindsey Nicole Henry Scholarships for Students with Disabilities
Utah (UT)
Utah – Carson Smith Special Needs Scholarship Program
Vermont (VT)
Vermont – Town Tuitioning Program
Wisconsin (WI)
Wisconsin – Milwaukee Parental Choice Program
Wisconsin – Parental Private School Choice Program (Racine)
Wisconsin – Parental Choice Program (Statewide)
Wisconsin – Special Needs Scholarship Program
School Voucher Fast Facts
Do you know which of America’s school voucher programs is the biggest? Which school voucher program was ruled constitutional by the Supreme Court of the United States? For more little-known truths about America’s school voucher programs, visit our school voucher fast facts.
Do school voucher programs improve student learning?
School voucher programs—if well designed—improve students’ academic performance. In fact, the competition created by school voucher programs actually drives improvement for public school students, as well. Beyond that, school voucher programs foster more racial and socio-economic integration and better civic values in students. The proof is in the empirical evidence.
Are school voucher programs a sound financial policy for taxpayers?
School vouchers save states and taxpayers money while educating more kids than our current system can alone. Read this study to learn more.