Local Private, Parochial Schools Get Voucher Students
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By David [email protected]
The program, enacted in May by the state, provides scholarships to lower-income Indiana families for their children to attend a school of choice. The program provides scholarships to eligible students by using a portion of the state funds allocated for that child to follow them to the non-public school of their choice.
In the first year, there is a cap of 7,500 scholarships. In the second year, there is a 15,000 cap. According to the Associated Press, more than 3,200 students are receiving vouchers to attend private schools this year. Nearly 70 percent of the vouchers approved statewide are for students opting to attend Catholic schools, according to figures provided to the Associated Press.
For a student to be eligible for the program, they must have been in a public school for the two semesters prior to the semester in which they will receive the scholarship. Kindergarten doesn’t count. They also must be in the federal Free and Reduced Lunch program.
Families below the Free and Reduced Lunch income guidelines are eligible to receive a scholarship for 90 percent of state tuition support, based on the funding level in their school district of residence. This income level is approximately $40,000 for a family of four.
Warsaw Community School’s funding level is about $5,500 per student.
Families below 150 percent of the income guidelines are eligible to receive a scholarship for 50 percent of state tuition support. This income level is about $60,000 for a family of four.
The scholarship amount will be the lesser of tuition and fees or the applicable percentage of the state tuition support in the school district of residence. However, the cap for first through eighth grade is tuition or $4,500, whichever is least.
According to an e-mail from Sacred Heart School Principal James L. Faroh Sr., “We have five students taking advantage of the Choice Scholarship Program. Each student receives $4,500 toward their tuition and fees.”
Joy Lavender, Lakeland Christian Academy administrator, reported seven students at LCA are attending the school through the program. Of those seven, two are for younger students of current families, two are from Warsaw and three are from Wawassee.
In an e-mail, Lavender stated, “The voucher program is not about how much tax money LCA receives but it is more about parents being able to use their own tax money to make choices for an education that is suited to their values and learning needs.
“Education at any level is costly and the voucher program is allowing families to choose the quality academic education they have always desired in a setting where their values match the school’s. We have found that the families that are applying for vouchers to attend LCA are families that have always desired that their children attend LCA but were unable to afford it,” she wrote.[[In-content Ad]]
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The program, enacted in May by the state, provides scholarships to lower-income Indiana families for their children to attend a school of choice. The program provides scholarships to eligible students by using a portion of the state funds allocated for that child to follow them to the non-public school of their choice.
In the first year, there is a cap of 7,500 scholarships. In the second year, there is a 15,000 cap. According to the Associated Press, more than 3,200 students are receiving vouchers to attend private schools this year. Nearly 70 percent of the vouchers approved statewide are for students opting to attend Catholic schools, according to figures provided to the Associated Press.
For a student to be eligible for the program, they must have been in a public school for the two semesters prior to the semester in which they will receive the scholarship. Kindergarten doesn’t count. They also must be in the federal Free and Reduced Lunch program.
Families below the Free and Reduced Lunch income guidelines are eligible to receive a scholarship for 90 percent of state tuition support, based on the funding level in their school district of residence. This income level is approximately $40,000 for a family of four.
Warsaw Community School’s funding level is about $5,500 per student.
Families below 150 percent of the income guidelines are eligible to receive a scholarship for 50 percent of state tuition support. This income level is about $60,000 for a family of four.
The scholarship amount will be the lesser of tuition and fees or the applicable percentage of the state tuition support in the school district of residence. However, the cap for first through eighth grade is tuition or $4,500, whichever is least.
According to an e-mail from Sacred Heart School Principal James L. Faroh Sr., “We have five students taking advantage of the Choice Scholarship Program. Each student receives $4,500 toward their tuition and fees.”
Joy Lavender, Lakeland Christian Academy administrator, reported seven students at LCA are attending the school through the program. Of those seven, two are for younger students of current families, two are from Warsaw and three are from Wawassee.
In an e-mail, Lavender stated, “The voucher program is not about how much tax money LCA receives but it is more about parents being able to use their own tax money to make choices for an education that is suited to their values and learning needs.
“Education at any level is costly and the voucher program is allowing families to choose the quality academic education they have always desired in a setting where their values match the school’s. We have found that the families that are applying for vouchers to attend LCA are families that have always desired that their children attend LCA but were unable to afford it,” she wrote.[[In-content Ad]]
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