Tuition Assistance

ECA and the State of Arizona care about your child’s education.

There are two ways to garner tuition assistance from the State:

In 2022 Arizona passed the first school choice initiative and it is called the general Empowerment Scholarship Account Program or ESA. State revenue allocated for educating your child now follows the child.
In 1997 Arizona’s Governor signed the first private school tax credit into law permitting tax payers to make voluntary donations to a School Tuition Organization (STO) that are then turned into scholarship funds for children attending private schools.

Empowerment Scholarship Account Program (General ESA)

- Arizona is the first state in the nation to pass an education bill allowing parents to have access to up to 90% of the states allocated education funds for their children. This allows parents to choose the learning environment best suited to their child’s needs. Bill H.B. 2853 was passed in September and by clicking on the link above you can find further information and how to apply for ESA funds. ESA provides the funds to the parent who then will pay the school through a Class Wallet account. The application is simple and requires a birth certificate or proof of guardianship and proof of residency in Arizona. (click here to go to ESA website)

School Tuition Organizations (STO)

- Tuition assistance through School Tuition Organizations (STOs) is available for families to help reduce the cost of tuition, especially if your private school tuition is more than ESA funds allow. The school recommends completion of a minimum of three STO applications, ECA Finance Department can provide details. Even if an application for an STO has been submitted, parents/guardians are responsible for the monthly or annual tuition amount until the funds have been released by the STO and applied to the student’s tuition balance. STO’s receive the funds and allocate them to the school.

You cannot use ESA and STO’s at the same time, but you can have each of your children on a different program within the same family. One child can be on ESA and the other on an STO depending on the tuition needs for each child.

Below is a list of the School Tuition Organizations and links to their websites. Scroll down to see ESA information.