Navajo Families Get More Access to Education Options, Thanks to Lawmakers

Arizona

Navajo children can continue to use an Arizona Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) to attend a school that fits their learning needs thanks to Arizona lawmakers. Supporting educational opportunities for all students, lawmakers passed Senate Bill 1224, allowing students participating in the ESA to attend school in an adjoining state if that school is within two miles of the boundary of the reservation where that student lives. Arizona’s ESA is the first program of its kind and serves 8,000 children.

“This decision ends a year-long limbo for Navajo ESA families trying to send their children to a school that was meeting their needs but happened to be on their reservation across the state line. Thanks to the leadership of Governor Doug Ducey, Senator Sylvia Allen and the Arizona Legislature, these students will be able to continue to learn in an environment that they know and were succeeding in.

“ExcelinEd in Action would like to thank our partners including the American Federation for Children, Goldwater Institute, EdChoice and ESA families for standing up for these students and giving them a voice to advocate for the education that works best for them.”

Brad Galbraith, Regional Legislative Director, ExcelinEd in Action

Senate Bill 1224 now goes to Governor Ducey’s desk for his signature.

For more on transformative power of educational opportunities, please visit the ExcelinEd policy library.

Solution Areas:

Private Education Choice

Topics:

Education Scholarship Accounts