Civil Society Series: Grand Reforms in the Grand Canyon State: Education Savings Accounts Bring Civil Society to Life in Arizona

Arizona has experienced some of the most robust education improvements in the country over the past decade, correlating with the state’s open education choice environment.

Freeing-up education resources and providing public education funds directly to families through education savings accounts has catalyzed civil society in education through new private school start-ups and campus expansions, which are now meeting the needs of Arizona students.

Current caps on ESA eligibility, which limit student participation, dampen what could be a much more robust supply-side response, as restricting eligibility to small, discrete classes of students—when those students are spread across the state—limits provider response, since demand is dispersed across a large geographic area.