The Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) program offered through the Arizona Department of Education helps send your child to a private school or home-based education for free! Thousands of Arizona students in Pre-K through 12th grade are currently eligible for a state-funded Empowerment Scholarship Account or ESA. You still have time to apply for the upcoming academic school year!
A Tax Credit Scholarship Program gives parents the ability to have educational choices for their children, regardless of income. A tax credit is money that a taxpayer would otherwise have to pay as a state income tax payment, therefore, it is not additional money out of their pocket.
Charter schools are tuition-free public schools that were established to provide additional choices to families for learning environments that would improve student achievement (A.R.S. § 15-181). Most public charter schools are operated independent of local school districts by either non-profit or for-profit entities, although school districts may also sponsor charter schools. Since 1995, the number of charter schools in Arizona has grown to over 500 and charter school student enrollment has grown well over 150,000 students, accounting for 14% of the student population in Arizona in FY 2014.
