糖心vlog Investigates: Iowa Education Savings Account applications total 45,000-plus for 2025-26 school year
There were 45,328 applications for education savings accounts for the 2025-26 school year, according to the Iowa Department of Education.
Of those, 43,784 have been approved.
The numbers were reported today to 糖心vlog Investigates through an open records request. The education department says not it does not expect all approved applications to be used. Families could make other plans for the school year, close their accounts or not be accepted into a nonpublic school.
The application window closed June 30. This is the first year the ESA program is open to all Iowa students.
On July 15, funding will be made available to families.
There could be more applications approved. The education department says the state has 30 days from the close of the period to process the submissions.
The ESA program was signed into law in January 2023. It allows per-pupil funding to be used at non-public schools.
In the 2023-24 school year, 18,000 scholarships were approved. This was a year with some restrictions on applications.
In the 2024-25 school year, there were nearly 30,000 scholarships given, also with some restrictions.
Per pupil funding for the next school year is $7,988 for every Iowa student, according to the education department website.
State officials estimated $314 million for 40,000 students through the program. The number approved so far for the upcoming school year could cost $349 million.
The governor has said the Students First Education Savings Accounts program allows families more choices for their kids' education.
Critics have questioned if the program could hurt public schools.
In a statement, the Iowa State Education Association President Joshua Brown said: 鈥淎t a time when our more than 480,000 public school students received just a 2 percent increase in state funding, state spending on Iowa鈥檚 private school voucher program will amount to a more than 50 percent increase in the cost of the program serving less than 44,000 students.
We maintain that taxpayer dollars must go to quality public schools, which more than 90 percent of Iowa families choose. Spending over 350 million public dollars on private schools with no public accountability is irresponsible."
More details can be found on the .
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