Arkansas L.E.A.R.N.S.

In 2023, the Arkansas state legislature passed SB 294 and the Arkansas LEARNS Act was signed into law by the Governor in large part because of the grassroots organizing of Americans for Prosperity Arkansas. Now in Arkansas, families can choose one or any combination of education options for their children: residentially assigned public schools, public schools with inter and intra-school district transfers, innovative and tailored charter schools, personalized environments like private schools, emerging micro-schools, or homeschooling.

Let’s embrace the variety and potential of these educational choices, ensuring every Arkansas student has access to an education that vest fits their needs and aspirations.

–Americans for Prosperity-Arkansas State Director, Ryan Norris

L.E.A.R.N.S. Opens Options for Arkansans in Three Primary Ways

Creates more opportunity for open enrollment by eliminating the cap on intra and inter district enrollment. Families have more options to enroll their students in district schools of their choosing, as opposed to being limited by a families’ zip code dictating how and where children will be educated.
Creates more programming options to best meet student’s learning needs by eliminating the cap on public charter schools. More charter schools can open in more places.
Creates an Education Savings Account (ESA) type program, called Education Freedom Accounts (EFAs) to allow parents and families to take a portion of the per pupil funding allotted for their child and use those funds to build a customized education experience for their child.

Governor Sanders says, the Education Freedom Accounts ends the “one-size-fits-all model where students attend schools based on their zip code rather than their individual needs. . . Under Arkansas’ current system, a family’s zip code is often the only thing that determines whether their kids will get the education that they need to succeed. . . With new Education Freedom Accounts, parents will be able to send their kids to whatever school works best, whether it’s private, public, parochial, or home school.”

The L.E.A.R.N.S. Path to Personalization

EFAs will start by serving under resourced Arkansas students in 2023-2024 including students with disabilities, homeless students, students in foster care, current Succeed Scholarship students, students of active-duty military families, and students in D- or F-rated schools. EFAs will serve all Arkansas students universally by the 2025-2026 school year.