14. Ohio-Cleveland Scholarship and Tutoring Program

Program type: Vouchers (and tutorial grants) for students in Cleveland

Description: The Cleveland Scholarship and Tutoring Program provide scholarships to students in the Cleveland Municipal School District (CMSD). The scholarships are for attendance at a qualified private school within the district or at a public school in any district surrounding Cleveland.⁷ Students in grades K-8 are eligible to apply for scholarships. Scholarship recipients may retain their scholarships through grade 12. If the number of new scholarships in any year is less than the number of eligible applicants, selection of recipients follows a lottery method. Students from low-income families have priority in receiving new scholarships.

Participating private schools may not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, or ethnic background, and may not promote unlawful behavior or teach hatred.

Amount of assistance: To attend a participating private school, the annual scholarship amount is based on the tuition of the school and the family income level of the recipient. Currently, the scholarship amount may not exceed the approved private school's tuition or $3,450 for students in grades K-12; whichever is less.

For recipients whose family income level is below 200 percent of the federal poverty level, the actual scholarship award is 90 percent of (up to) the maximum amount (i.e., a student from such a family and currently in grade 8 may receive a scholarship award of at most $3,105). For recipients whose family income is at or above 200 percent of the poverty level, the scholarship is 75 percent of (up to) the maximum amount. Remaining tuition costs are to be covered by parents; however, for recipients in grades K-8 whose family income level is below 200 percent of poverty, participating schools must not charge any tuition in excess of the remaining 10 percent of the amount, whatever that amount may be.

Number of participants: In the 2006-07 school year, 5,921 students received scholarships to attend 45 participating private schools.

Authorizing statutes: ORC Ann. 3313.97.4 - ORC Ann. 3313.99

Legislative history: The program was enacted in 1995 and first implemented in the 1996-97 school year. On July 1, 2003, the state legislature amended the program to allow recipients to retain their scholarships through grade 10 as of the 2004-05 academic year, and also raised the maximum scholarship amount from $2,500 to $3,000. In June of 2005, the legislature expanded the grade range of students to whom new scholarships are available from grades K-3 to K-8, it also allowed scholarship recipients to retain their scholarships through grade 12 during the 2006-07 year and raised the maximum scholarship amount available to all recipients, regardless of grade, to $3,450 for the 2006-07 and subsequent years.

Judicial history: In May 1999, the Ohio Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the Cleveland program, but also found that it had been improperly passed by the Ohio legislature, in Simmons-Harris v. Goff. In June 1999, the legislature amended and expanded the program. In a separate lawsuit in December 1999, a U.S. district court found the program to violate the First Amendment (Zelman v. Simmons-Harris). In December 2000, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit affirmed the district court decision. On June 27, 2002, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the appellate court decision, thereby affirming the program's constitutionality.

For more information, see:
http://www.ode.state.oh.us/GD/Templates/Pages/ODE/
ODEDetail.aspx?page=3&TopicRelationID=93&ContentID
=5638&Content=26480.

15. Ohio-Autism Scholarship Program

Program type: Vouchers for autistic students

Description: Students who have been identified as autistic through their assigned school district are eligible for scholarships to receive special education from registered providers, including private schools, or alternative public providers, including schools in another district and other public entities. To be eligible, students must have been enrolled in, or be eligible to enroll in, a school in their assigned district, and must have an individual education program (IEP) developed by the district. Registered private providers must, among other requirements, implement students' IEPs as written.

Amount of assistance: The scholarships are capped at $20,000 per student. The scholarship may cover transportation costs if transportation is listed on the student's IEP as a related service. For the 2006-07 school year the average scholarship was $17,500.

Number of participants: As of May 1, 2007 (for the 2006-07 school year), 570 students took advantage of this scholarship and received benefits from 177 private providers, including 27 private schools. The state currently has no cap on the amount of students who may participate in this program.

Authorizing statute: ORC Ann. 3310.41

Legislative history: In 2003 the Ohio legislature passed the autism scholarship program as part of a larger bill.

Judicial history: No legal suits have been filed regarding the program.

For more information, see: http://www.ode.state.oh.us/GD/Templates/Pages/ODE/
ODEDetail.aspx?Page=3&TopicRelationID=967&Content=25073.

16. Ohio-Educational Choice Scholarship Pilot Program (Ed Choice)

Program type: Vouchers for students who attend low-performing schools

Description: Students who attend or will be entering Ohio public schools that have been designated by the state as "Academic Watch" or "Academic Emergency" for two of the last three years are eligible to receive scholarships to attend the participating private school of their choice. Students currently enrolled in charter schools but who would otherwise be assigned to schools in these categories are also eligible. Students in the Cleveland Municipal School District are not eligible to participate, as the state offers a separate scholarship program for these students (see above). Scholarships are not available to students currently enrolled in a private non-public school or who are home-schooled.

Eligible students must first be accepted at a participating private school for next school year before applying for an EdChoice scholarship. There is a statewide cap of 14,000 EdChoice scholarships; if in any year there are more than 14,000 applications priority is first given to students renewing their scholarship and students, and then to students whose household income is at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty level.

Amount of assistance: The EdChoice scholarship amount is currently set at $4,250 for elementary school students (grades K-8) and $5,000 for high school students or the private school's tuition amount, whichever is lower. The scholarship amount will increase slightly each year.

Number of participants: In the 2006-07 school year 2,785 students received scholarships to attend 207 private schools throughout the state.

Authorizing statute: Ohio Revised Statues. Sections 3310.01-3310.17

Legislative history: On June 30, 2005, the Educational Choice Scholarship Pilot Program was signed into law as part of an omnibus education bill. On March 30, 2006, a new omnibus education bill was passed that expanded eligibility for scholarships under the program to students in schools in "academic emergency" or "academic watch" for the three previous years; the previous law limited eligibility to students only in schools in "academic emergency", the lowest category in the school rating system. On March 30, 2007, eligibility for scholarships was further extended to students in schools in these categories for two of the previous three years.

Judicial history: No legal suits have been filed regarding the program.

For more information, see:
http://www.ode.state.oh.us/GD/Templates/Pages/ODE/
ODEDetail.aspx?page=3&TopicRelationID=92&ContentID
=9341&Content=26688.

7 The Cleveland Scholarship and Tutoring Program also allows students in CMSD public schools to obtain grants for tutoring services by approved providers. The number of grants for tutoring services issued in any year is intended to equal the number of scholarships for attendance at private schools also issued in that year.