Student Funding

The voucher is worth the lesser amount of state dollars spent on the child in his or her public school or the chosen private school’s tuition and fees. Qualifying students in foster care or other state placements receive scholarships worth the per-pupil state aid plus any applicable weights (such as English-language learners or gifted students). The State Department of Education determines this calculation for each student.

The maximum scholarship a qualifying student with disabilities can be granted will be the amount calculated by the State Department of Education according to the student’s grade level and disability category or the amount of tuition and fees for the chosen private school, whichever is less. The State Department of Education retains two and a half percent (2.5%) of the scholarship amount for administrative services.

(Last updated December 18, 2023)

Student Eligibility

Any student with an active Individualized Education Plan (IEP) or Individualized Service Plan (ISP) who attended an Oklahoma public school the prior year is eligible. Eligibility also extends to students served by an IEP with a parent in the U.S. Armed Forces who transfer to Oklahoma from out-of-state or from a foreign country. Students in state custody, or formerly in state custody, supported with Individualized Service Plans (ISP) developed by Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS) also qualify. These students are also exempt from the prior public schooling requirement and include students in out-of-home placement through foster care, students adopted from state custody or the foster care system, and students in other out-of-home placement situations. Students served by the SoonerStart program, and identified as qualifying for school services, are not required to have previous public schooling with their Individual Family Service Plan.

After receiving an initial voucher, the student will continue to qualify for the scholarship with the submission of a renewal application each year. Eligibility continues until a student returns to public school, graduates from high school, or reaches the age of 22.

(Last updated December 18, 2023)

EdChoice Expert Feedback

Oklahoma’s voucher for students with disabilities provides thousands of families access to schooling choices that better provide support for the needs of their students, but expanded educational opportunities are needed for more families.

Eligibility for the scholarship is narrowly limited to students with special education needs with a learning plan, and in some cases requires previous enrollment in public school. Less than twenty percent of Oklahoma students are eligible to receive a scholarship under the program.

The average voucher is roughly $8,000, which is about 80 percent of the average expenditure per student at Oklahoma’s district schools. Statewide less than one percent of students identified by the State Department of Education as having special education needs participate in the program.

To expand access to educational choice, Oklahoma policymakers should remove any prior enrollment requirements, increase scholarship funding and expand eligibility to more 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.

Oklahoma’s voucher program generally avoids unnecessary and counterproductive regulations.

(Last updated December 18, 2023)

Rules and Regulations

• Income Limit: None
• Prior Year Public School Requirement: Yes, with exceptions
• Geographic Limit: Statewide
• Enrollment Cap: None
• Voucher Cap: Lesser of state calculated spending or tuition cost
• Testing Mandates: None

School Requirements:

• Be accredited by the state board of education or approved accrediting association
• Comply with federal nondiscrimination provisions and state health and safety requirements
• Provide services and/or accommodation for students with disabilities
• Have been in operation for one school year prior to participation in the program
• Provide a statement by a certified public accountant that confirms the private school is insured and the owners have sufficient capital or credit to operate or provide record of a surety bond or credit for the amount equal to the scholarship funds for any quarter
• Teachers must have a bachelor’s degree or at least three years of teaching experience in public or private schools or have special skills, knowledge or expertise that qualifies them to provide instruction in the subjects taught
• Not use voucher funds to recoup the general costs of providing general education services

(Last updated December 18, 2023)

Governing Statutes

Okla. Stat. tit. 70 § 13-101.2

(Last updated December 18, 2023)

Legal History

On November 20, 2012, the Supreme Court of Oklahoma in Ind. Sch. Dist. No. 5 of Tulsa Co. v. Spry dismissed on procedural grounds the Jenks Public Schools system’s lawsuit against parents residing in their district using Lindsey Nicole Henry Scholarships for their children with special needs to access private schools that meet their unique needs, stating the school districts do not have standing as Oklahoma taxpayers to sue under the state’s constitution and that parents were the wrong parties to sue. Ind. Sch. Dist. No. 5 of Tulsa Co. v. Spry, 2012 OK 98, 292 P.3d 19 (2012).

On February 16, 2016, the Oklahoma Supreme Court in Oliver v. Hofmeister ruled that the state’s voucher program is constitutional, in a 9-0 decision with one concurring opinion. Several factors were key to the court’s decision: 1) participation in the voucher program is voluntary; 2) a parent’s choice of school is strictly independent; 3) education funding flows from the state to the parent; 4) the program itself is neutral regarding religion; 5) any benefit to a private school is derived from the parent’s choice, not the state; 6) there is no adverse impact on the ability of religious schools to act independently of state control; 7) there is a substantial benefit to the state when a child uses a voucher—it is not a gift. Citing the landmark Zelman v. Simmons-Harris case (see Ohio | Cleveland Scholarship Program), the court said, “When the parents and not the government are the ones determining which private school offers the best learning environment for their child, the circuit between government and religion is broken.” Oliver v. Hofmeister, 368 P.3d 1270 (Okla. 2016).

Oliver v. Hofmeister began in October 2013, when twelve plaintiffs renewed the 2012 legal challenge, this time with proper litigants. The Oklahoma County District Court ruled that the Lindsey Nicole Henry Scholarship for Students with Disabilities program violated Article 2, Section 5—the Oklahoma Constitution’s Blaine amendment—only insofar as the program allowed public funds to be used to pay tuition at private “sectarian” schools, described by the court to be like “Notre Dame . . . a Catholic institution through and through” where “religion influences every aspect.” Paying tuition at private “religious-affiliated” schools like “Southern Methodist University . . . Methodist in name only” was deemed permissible by this narrow ruling. Oliver v. Barresi, No. CV-2013-2072 (September 10, 2014).

(Last updated December 18, 2023)