CLINTON, Iowa — In Jan. 2024, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds signed the Students First Act into law, giving families financial assistance to send their child to private schools.
Since then, the impact has been felt at Prince of Peace in Clinton, Iowa. Joseph Brown, the school's principal says 130 of his students qualified for the program.
"This program gives parents a choice," Brown said. "They can decide public, private, or if they want to homeschool their child. Giving those families a choice is what this program is all about."
This year, the school has an enrollment of 212 students. 30 of those students have switched over from public to private schooling. In July, the state received more than 29,000 applications for the program, and 17,000 of those applications were accepted.
"If you come from a public school to a private school, you automatically qualify," Brown said. "Anyone that wants to come in automatically gets the $7,500."
One of the parents who was accepted was Miranda Englund. She currently has her son, Graysin, enrolled at Prince of Peace. Last year, he attended a Clinton School District school, but his mother decided it was time for a change.
"When he was in middle school, he had some issues with other students," Englund said. "This year, we had decided that we wanted to try something a little bit different to see if that would benefit him some more. So far, he's had a great experience. He's happier here and we don't have any issues with him getting up for school."
Miranda added the decision to switch her son to a private school wasn't due to financial reasons. She says it was always an option to switch Graysin to a private school, and she wanted what was best for him.
"It helps having the financial aspect taken care of," Englund said. "Nobody is going to regret the decision that is based off where their child goes. If the funding or financial for any family plays a factor, this program definitely helps."
To see if your child qualifies for the program, click here. Beginning in 2025, all K-12 students in Iowa will qualify for the program, regardless of income.
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