Student Funding

Use of Funds 

Qualifying expenses include tuition and fees. 

Funding Amount and Source 

For students who began participating in the program in the 2015–2016 school year or later, this program receives funding both from the appropriations for state aid to public schools and from general purpose revenue. The state pays the voucher amount in part using funds that it withholds from the state aid payment to the school district, but it is in process of transitioning the funding to general purpose revenue. The full voucher amount will be paid solely from general purpose revenue starting in 2025–2026. Voucher amounts are calculated so that the state pays the equivalent of a portion of the state and local per-pupil funding under the state’s funding formula. As a result, maximum voucher payments increase as general school aid to Wisconsin public schools increases. For students who began participating in the program before the 2015–16 school year, a separate appropriation pays for the voucher amounts. Any qualifying Milwaukee K–12 student that wishes to participate may receive funding. In 2023, Wisconsin policymakers took the positive step of increasing the voucher amounts to be closer to per-pupil spending at district schools. Voucher students will now receive approximately 72% of per-pupil funding at the public schools. In 2024–2025, the maximum voucher amount is $10,237 for grades K–8 and $12,731 for grades 9–12. Parents of students in grades 9–12 that have an income greater than greater than 220% of the Federal Poverty Level ($68,640 for a family of four in 2024–2025) may be charged additional tuition exceeding the voucher amount.  

(Last updated July 18, 2024) 

Student Eligibility

Milwaukee families that earn up to 300% of the Federal Poverty Level qualify to receive vouchers. Once a student receives a voucher, that student is able to keep it, regardless of his or her family’s future income. Voucher students are allowed to attend any in-state private school participating in the program. 

(Last updated July 18, 2024) 

EdChoice Expert Feedback

Wisconsin’s voucher for low-income students in Milwaukee helps tens of thousands 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 from families in Milwaukee earning up to 300 percent of the federal poverty level ($90,000 for a family of four in 2023–24). More than four in five Milwaukee students are income-eligible to receive a scholarship. Statewide, less than 5 percent of students participate in one of Wisconsin’s private educational choice options (including the Racine Parental Choice Program, the Statewide Parental Choice Program the Special Needs Scholarship Program, and the K-12 Private School Tuition Deduction). This is the third highest EdChoice share in the nation.   The average scholarship size is about $10,500, which is about three-quarters of the average expenditure per student at Wisconsin’s district schools. In 2023, Wisconsin policymakers took the positive step of increasing the voucher amounts to be closer to per-pupil spending at district schools. Voucher students will now receive approximately 76% of per pupil funding at the public schools. Policymakers should also 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. The Milwaukee voucher program has some unnecessary and counterproductive regulations. For example, the program requires voucher students in certain grades to take the state’s standardized test. Instead of mandating a single test, policymakers should allow parents and schools to choose from a variety of nationally norm-referenced tests. Policymakers should also amend the program so that it no longer interferes with schools’ admissions standards. (Last updated December 14, 2023) 

Rules and Regulations

Program Guidelines

• Income Limit: 300% x FPL
• Prior Year Public School Requirement: None
• Enrollment Cap: None
• Voucher Cap: $10,237 (K⁠–⁠8) / $12,731 (9⁠–⁠12) (2024⁠–⁠25)
• Testing Mandates: State
• Special Needs Pathway: None

Participant and Families Guidelines

• Click Here for the Program Administrator’s Parent Handbook
• Education Requirements: N/A
• Parent Supplemented Funds/Scholarship: Conditional

Education Provider Guidelines

• Accreditation/Approval:
  • State or regional
  • If not already accredited, receive accreditation by December 31 of the third year of participating in the program
• Employment Standards:
  • School administrators must undergo financial training and have at least a bachelor’s degree from a USDOE- accredited institution of higher education (unless they administer a school for rabbinical studies)
  • Teachers must have a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution of higher education (unless they teach only rabbinical studies), and teacher aides must have received a high school diploma or been granted a GED or HSED
• A background check must be administered for all employees
• Nondiscrimination: State and federal
• Calendar/Curriculum: State approval
• Financial:
  • Submit to the state an annual financial audit conducted by a CPA
  • Provide evidence of sound fiscal practices and financial viability to the state
• Miscellaneous:
  • Meet all state health and safety codes that apply to public schools
  • Allow students to opt out of religious programs
  • Accept participating students on a random basis if at seat capacity, with preference given to siblings of students and students who participated in the program at a different private school
  • Administer state testing to voucher recipients in third, fourth, eighth, ninth, 10th and 11th grade
  • Must provide at least 1,050 hours of direct pupil instruction in grades 1-6 and at least 1,137 hours of direct pupil instruction in grades 7⁠–⁠12
  • Must provide the state with information about the academic program at the participating school and student test score data

(Last updated September 27, 2024)

Governing Statutes

Wis. Stat. §§ 119.23 and 235, 121.08(4)(b) 

(Last updated September 27, 2024) 

Legal History

On March 3, 1992, the Wisconsin Supreme Court in Davis v. Grover held that the Milwaukee voucher program was constitutional. The court held that the voucher legislation was not an impermissible private or local bill, and the program does not disturb the uniformity of public school districts or violate the public purpose doctrine. Justice Ceci, in a concurring opinion said, “Let’s give choice a chance!” Davis v. Grover, 166 Wis.2d 501, 480 N.W.2d 460 (Wis. 1992).

On June 10, 1998, the Wisconsin Supreme Court held in Jackson v. Benson that the Milwaukee voucher program does not violate either the state’s Compelled Support Clause or Blaine Amendment. The court also affirmed the conclusions of Davis v. Grover (above), an earlier unsuccessful challenge to the school choice program. Jackson v. Benson, 218 Wis. 2d 835, 578 N.W.2d 602 (1998), cert. denied, 525 U.S. 967 (1998).

On December 23, 2015, the U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division of the Educational Opportunities Section (US DoJ) responded to an ACLU complaint, filed with the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division in June 2011, alleging that the Milwaukee voucher program violated federal laws prohibiting discrimination against students with disabilities. The US DOJ issued a letter to Wisconsin’s state superintendent of public instruction, informing the superintendent that after a rigorous evaluation, the Department of Justice had determined that no further action was warranted, and their investigation was closed. There were no findings of wrongdoing related to the voucher program.

(Last updated September 27, 2024)