Louisiana

School Choice Program for Certain Students with Exceptionalities

  • Voucher
  • Enacted 2010
  • Launched 2011

Louisiana allows students with certain exceptionalities who live in eligible parishes to attend schools of their parents’ choosing that provide educational services specifically addressing their needs. Eligible students are defined generally as those with special needs who have Individualized Education Plans or similar plans.

We do not administer this program.

Eligibility Test Apply

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  • 441

    Participating Students (2023–2024)

  • 10%

    Students Eligible Statewide

  • 21

    Participating Schools (2023–2024)

  • $4,604

    Average Voucher Value (2023–2024)

  • 31%

    Value as a Percentage of Public School Per-Student Spending

Louisiana’s School Choice Program for Certain Students with Exceptionalities Participation

Students Participating
School Year Ending
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Student Funding

Use of Funds 

Families use funds at accredited nonpublic schools for tuition and fees. Participating schools must be approved by the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education. Schools must have provided services to students with exceptionalities for at least two years prior to participation and employ teachers that hold appropriate certification in special education. The program requires operation in a parish with a recent population greater than 190,000. 

Funding Amount and Source 

Funding is appropriated in the executive budget and is based on program participation. The educational certificate (tuition assistance) is worth a maximum of 50% of the state per-student expenditure within the recipient’s district or the cost of private school tuition, whichever is less. Families are responsible for any additional tuition charged by the school. 

(Last updated July 15, 2024) 

Student Eligibility

Students must reside in a parish with a population of more than 190,000 and must meet all of the following requirements to participate: (1) be a resident of Louisiana and age 5 by September 30 of the upcoming year with eligibility to attend a Louisiana public school in grades K–12; (2) be evaluated by a Louisiana public school district and determined to have any of the following exceptionalities: autism; developmental delay; mental disability; other health impairment; specific learning disability; or traumatic brain injury; and (3) has a current Individual Education Plan (IEP), district-provided services plan, or a nonpublic school services plan that addresses the student’s needs. To participate in the program, families must complete an online application annually.

(Last updated July 15, 2024)

EdChoice Expert Feedback

Louisiana’s voucher for students with special needs helps hundreds of students access schools that are the right fit for them, but policymakers could do more to expand educational opportunity.  Eligibility for the scholarships is limited to students with certain special needs who live in parishes with up to 190,000 residents. Slightly more than 10 percent of students in these parishes are eligible to receive a scholarship, but approximately one percent of students participate in one of Louisiana’s private educational choice options (including the Tuition Donation Credit Program and the Louisiana Scholarship Program).  The average scholarship size is about $2,500, which is only about 18 percent of the average expenditure per student at Louisiana’s district schools.  To expand access to educational choice, Louisiana policymakers should increase the voucher amounts to be comparable with the per-pupil spending at district schools and expand eligibility to all students. The program could also be converted into an education savings account to ensure that all students have access to the education that’s the right fit for them, whether private school or a customized course of education.  Louisiana’s voucher program for students with special needs generally avoids unnecessary and counterproductive regulations.   (Last updated December 18, 2023) 

Rules and Regulations

Program Guidelines

  • Income Limit: None
  • Prior Year Public School Requirement: None
  • Enrollment Cap: None
  • Voucher Cap: 50% of state allocation per student in local school district, or actual cost of private school, whichever is less
  • Testing Mandates: None
  • Special Needs Pathway: Exclusively special needs

Participant and Family Guidelines

Education Provider Guidelines

  • Accreditation/Approval: State
  • Employment Standards: Background checks for all employees; special education certified teachers
  • Nondiscrimination: Federal
  • Calendar/Curriculum/Attendance: Maintain a curriculum of quality at least equal to that prescribed for public schools
  • Financial: Have existed and provided educational services to students with special needs for at least two years prior to participating in the program
  • Miscellaneous: Must be approved by the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education as compliant with Brumfield et al. v. Dodd et al., 425 F. Supp. 528 (E.D. La. 1976), which prohibits racial segregation and racial discrimination.

(Last updated July 15, 2024)

Governing Statutes

La. Rev. Stat. § 17:4031

(Last updated July 15, 2024)