Families that applied for Alabama’s school choice program received their education savings account funds last week, and most will stay in their current school type.
Almost 37,000 students applied for the Choose Act, funded by the state’s Education Trust Fund, which funds public schools, for the 2025-26 school year. Most of the applicants came from students already enrolled in private schools, according to data released in April. Those intending to use the fund for public and private school received a $7,000 tax credit and those intending to use the funds for homeschooling received $2,000.
Of the 37,000 applicants, about 24,000 (64%) were awarded education savings accounts, according to data from the Alabama Department of Revenue. Nearly 14,000 (60%) of those who received Choose Act money plan to enroll in private school for the 2025-26 school year. Of those 14,000, about 10,000 (71%) were already attending a private school.
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Only 26 of the students in private school intend to use the funding for public school, according to the state data.