West Virginia’s Hope Scholarship Program A Story of the Nation’s First Universal Educational Choice Program
In 2021, West Virginia started charting a new path for students in America. With the passage of the Hope Scholarship Program, West Virginia became the first state in the country to create access to a universal educational choice program for all West Virginia students. Since the passage of the Hope Scholarship Program, eleven additional states have followed West Virginia’s lead and passed universal choice programs.
There Is Hope for Students in West Virginia
The Hope Scholarship is a rising tide that will lift all ships in West Virginia when it comes to education.
–Americans for Prosperity – West Virginia State Director, Jason Huffman
The Hope Scholarship Is Changing Lives for Students in the Mountain State
Read more about how the Hope Scholarship is changing lives of families in the Mountain State:
https://americansforprosperity.org/blog/what-the-west-virginia-hope-scholarship-means-for-families/
More than 3,000 Hope Scholarship awards were given for the 2022-23 school year. More than 5,000 students were Hope Scholarship recipients in the 2023-24 school year.
“That tells me West Virginia families have a strong desire for school choice and educational freedom options for their children.” –West Virginia State Treasurer Riley Moore
In West Virginia, parents don’t have to settle for ‘old school’ anymore.
“We want [our children] to be lifelong learners. I don’t think that you have to be in any one setting [to do that]. If something’s not working, you have the ability to change that. We get to do that as adults all the time . . . why can’t [students] do that in school?” -Kim Dully, Parent of Hope Scholarship students
Does my student qualify for the Hope Scholarship Program?
To qualify for the Hope Scholarship, a student must be a West Virginia resident and be either:
Eligible to be enrolled in kindergarten for the year for which they are applying for the Hope Scholarship
Enrolled full-time in a West Virginia public elementary or secondary school for the entire instructional term of the academic year preceding the academic year for which the student is applying to participate in the Hope Scholarship Program.
Enrolled full-time and attending a public elementary or secondary school in West Virginia for at least 45 consecutive calendar days during the current instructional term at the time of application. The student must remain enrolled and attending the public-school program until a decision is reached on the Hope Scholarship application.
Apply for the Hope Scholarship Program here.