The last twenty-four hours since the South Carolina Supreme Court released its decision in Eidson et al. v. SC Department of Education et al. have been a whirlwind of uncertainty and confusion. Our team has received a number of emails and phone calls from ESTF recipient families and from education service providers wondering what the decision means for them this school year.
In line with guidance released by the Department of Education, here is what we know right now.
- • The court decision only struck part of the ESTF law, the line allowing funds to be spent on tuition at private schools. This means that the remaining educational expenses – things like educational therapies, tutoring, transportation, curriculum, and public school transfer fees – are still allowable expenses under the program. Families using ESTF funds for those purposes should not worry; they will still be able to use the remainder of their $6,000 scholarship, with the remaining three installments going out on a quarterly basis. A full list of approved expenses can be found here.
- • As required by the ruling and effective immediately, all payments directed toward tuition and fees at private schools will be denied. But again, other uses of the ESTF are still being processed and approved like normal.
- • The first $1,500 was loaded into parents’ ClassWallet accounts on July 31. If parents have already spent that money at a private school, they will not be required to give it back. The Department of Education confirmed this in an email to ESTF families yesterday, in which they said, “No parent will be expected to repay any funds spent prior to today’s ruling.” The second round of $1,500 will be deposited to accounts by October 31.
- • Families depending on ESTF funds to attend a private school should speak with their school administrators about losing their remaining scholarship funds and see if the school is able to provide additional scholarships to cover those expenses. We understand that this may not be possible for many small independent schools. If a family finds itself in a situation where they are not able to afford the rest of the year’s tuition due to the loss of their scholarship, our team would like to speak with them. Please email us at info@scschoolchoice.com.
- • If a family that was using the ESTF for private school tuition wishes to continue using the scholarship money on other allowable expenses, please note that to do so, the student must not be enrolled in their zoned public school and must not be registered as a homeschooler under one of the three homeschool options.
- • We want to share your stories on how this court ruling is impacting your family and your school. If you are willing to speak with our team and share your story, please reach out to us at info@scschoolchoice.com.
- • We know this is an uncertain and terrifying time for many families. We want you to know that we, and state leaders in South Carolina, are on your team and want to do everything in our power to make sure your child can finish the school year at their new school. This is a developing situation, and we are hopeful that, armed with the stories of families impacted by this court decision, we can motivate emergency legislative action.
For more information, read Palmetto Promise Institute’s statement on the court decision. If you have questions, please reach out to us at info@scschoolchoice.com or (833) 469-3726.
The SC School Choice website and South Carolina School Choice Alliance are not affiliated with the South Carolina Department of Education, ClassWallet or FACTS. Our general information resources are not official state government assets and are provided as a public service.
