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MACON, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – The Georgia Promise Scholarship Act will allow students attending underperforming schools in Middle Georgia scholarship money to leave their school and enroll in a private school like St. Joseph’s Catholic School in Macon. Principal Russell Sills says this could be the answer families are looking for.
“It’s a popular option across the country,” he said. “Georgia is the 10th or 11th state, I don’t know exactly, I know the number of states that have implemented similar programs, and I think it’s an attempt to empower parents, particularly those parents who live in underperforming districts, to give their children a different opinion.”
Lisa Morgan, a second grade teacher and the President of Georgia Association of Educators, says student departures could mean cuts in public school classrooms. She says if students leave, the money to support them in public schools will go wherever they go. Morgan gives an example using the number 23. She said schools in rural communities need to have 23 students in a class in order to receive funding.
“We have high school students want to take calculus, they need 23 enrolled to receive funding for that calculus class,” she said. “If one student leaves and there’s now 22 students in that calculus class, the district has to make a choice, because they are no longer going to receive funding for that class.”
The Associated Press reports that the Georgia Promise Scholarship program, which will begin for the 2025-2026 school year, will offer up to $6,500 annually to eligible families to pay for private school tuition or home-schooling expenses. The program will serve students zoned for public schools in the bottom 25% for academic achievement and is expected to provide more than 21,000 scholarships.
The state is launching a website, mygeorgiapromise.org, to facilitate the program. Parents will be able to use the site to apply for scholarships, pay tuition and purchase educational goods and services. Lawmakers will finalize funding for the program next year, but spending is capped at 1% of the state’s K-12 funding formula, or $141 million.
If the number of applicants exceeds available vouchers, students from households earning less than four times the federal poverty level (about $100,000 for a family of three) will get priority. Any remaining spots will be decided through a random drawing.
Private schools participating in the program must be accredited or seeking accreditation and must administer approved standardized tests.
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