The Numbers Tell the Tell Story

Posted Date: 06/04/2023

When we look at the number of students in Arizona that are eligible for the universal voucher funding, we see this interesting fact. The state has an estimated 60,000 or more students in private schools and an estimated 40,000 or more students who are being homeschooled. Since Arizona does not have standardized reporting systems for these students, I think these numbers may be low. These are students whose decision has already been made to not be part of the traditional K-12 public school system by not enrolling in a school district or charter school. All of these, an estimated 100,000 students are already eligible for the ESA[Voucher]  funding system. Yes, that is 100,000 students. Right now, these students would benefit financially from the ESA program. Since these students would be eligible for both regular and special education funding, the last report from ADE reported the ESA benefit at an average benefit of $10,000 per student, with the minimum benefit being around $7000. The ESA funding program is already funding over 57,000 students and ADE is projecting that for next school year the number will increase to 100,000 students. It is interesting that the number is the same as the estimated 100,000 already in private schools and existing students being homeschooled. Hopefully, ADE will accurately keep track of the  prior education programs for the additional students.