Iowa parents have until Friday to apply for state money to pay for their children’s private school tuition.The governor’s office originally estimated 14,068 applications in the program’s first year. As of noon on Thursday, the Department of Education said it had received 24,842 applications. The application window closes at 11:59 p.m. on June 30.The Education Savings Account program is part of Gov. Kim Reynold’s “school choice” bill that was signed into law earlier this year. Under the ESA program, parents and guardians can receive $7,600 to help pay for their children’s private school tuition.The amount of money is what the state would normally give to public schools per student. If a student decides to go to a private school, the public school district where the student resides would still receive $1,200, according to the governor. Once fully phased in by its fourth year, the ESA program is expected to cost about $340 million annually.The state says they will continue to give scholarships until Iowa private schools run out of spots.KCCI reached out to nearly every private school in the Hawkeye State to see how many spots each institution has left for the 2023-2024 school year. A total of 4,600 spots remain open at the more than 40 schools that responded. This means there are even more open spots at the dozens of other schools that didn’t respond to KCCI’s questions.Xavier High School is a private Catholic high school in Cedar Rapids. It currently has 592 students but has a maximum capacity of 800. Chris McCarville, president of the school, believes the program will improve education for all Iowa students.”Iowa needs great schools, whether they’re private schools, whether they’re public schools,” McCarville said. “What this new law does is it gives greater control to families to have a say where these dollars go.”The Iowa State Education Association spoke out in opposition to the program, explaining its many concerns. “It’s going to reduce the amount for resources available to provide for a quality education for again that nearly half million students in our public schools,” ISEA Government Relations and Policy Director Melissa Peterson said. Parents can apply through the Odyssey portal located on the Iowa Department of Education website.
Iowa parents have until Friday to apply for state money to pay for their children’s private school tuition.
The governor’s office originally estimated 14,068 applications in the program’s first year. As of noon on Thursday, the Department of Education said it had received 24,842 applications. The application window closes at 11:59 p.m. on June 30.
The Education Savings Account program is part of Gov. Kim Reynold’s “school choice” bill that was signed into law earlier this year. Under the ESA program, parents and guardians can receive $7,600 to help pay for their children’s private school tuition.
The amount of money is what the state would normally give to public schools per student. If a student decides to go to a private school, the public school district where the student resides would still receive $1,200, according to the governor.
Once fully phased in by its fourth year, the ESA program is expected to cost about $340 million annually.
The state says they will continue to give scholarships until Iowa private schools run out of spots.
KCCI reached out to nearly every private school in the Hawkeye State to see how many spots each institution has left for the 2023-2024 school year.
A total of 4,600 spots remain open at the more than 40 schools that responded. This means there are even more open spots at the dozens of other schools that didn’t respond to KCCI’s questions.
Xavier High School is a private Catholic high school in Cedar Rapids. It currently has 592 students but has a maximum capacity of 800. Chris McCarville, president of the school, believes the program will improve education for all Iowa students.
“Iowa needs great schools, whether they’re private schools, whether they’re public schools,” McCarville said. “What this new law does is it gives greater control to families to have a say where these dollars go.”
The Iowa State Education Association spoke out in opposition to the program, explaining its many concerns.
“It’s going to reduce the amount for resources available to provide for a quality education for again that nearly half million students in our public schools,” ISEA Government Relations and Policy Director Melissa Peterson said.
Parents can apply through the Odyssey portal located on the Iowa Department of Education website.