EdChoice

The newly approved (July 3, 2023) state budget greatly expands the EdChoice Scholarship, utilizing tax dollars to support your choice of Catholic education for your children. We recognize that this will be a financial help to many families. The EdChoice Scholarship (up to $8,407) will now assist all families, on a prorated scale, based on a family’s percentage of the federal poverty guideline for income. Families whose income is up to 450% of the federal poverty guideline will be eligible for the full scholarship regardless of your assigned public school. Further, regardless of family income or assigned public school, every family will be eligible for at least 10% of the scholarship amount. Additionally, state law still permits a family to receive only one state scholarship, either EdChoice or Jon Peterson.
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While the state has not yet finalized and opened the application process, we will be paying close attention this month and will update you when we are ready to start accepting applications. Given the anticipated volume of applications and the state guidelines, there will be a very specific process that will need to be followed, along with required documentation. We will email the application and directions as soon as everything is available. Please do not send applications at this time.
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Current EdChoice Families

The new budget bill does not require families currently enrolled to reapply. The new scholarship award amount is $8,407 and Jon Peterson scholarship amounts are also expected to increase with final numbers still pending from the state of Ohio.

 

New Applications: what to send to edchoice@bwhs.org

If you would like to apply for the expanded EdChoice program, please submit the following items to edchoice@bwhs.org by August 31, 2023. A separate application must be completed for each child. Bishop Watterson will not accept late applications.

The following items are due to Bishop Watterson by August 31. Hard copies are not accepted. Due to the anticipated volume of applications, items mailed or dropped off at the school office will be discarded. The following items should be completed and emailed to edchoice@bwhs.org :

  1. Completed EdChoice scholarship request found by clicking here.
  2. Copy of utility bill showing proof of address AND service address (utility bill must be within 90 days and show both addresses)
  3. Copy of child’s birth certificate

Upon receiving the above items, we will upload the scholarship request for state approval. Bishop Watterson has until October to submit all applications. With a limited number of staff approved for uploading, we anticipate this to take time and we will not be able to provide status updates.

New Applications: what to send directly to state

The following items are to be uploaded by the family directly to the state. Bishop Watterson does not assist with uploading or submitting family financial information. The income verification documents are required to determine the pro-rated scholarship award.

CLICK HERE for a quick guide to using the Income Verification Portal.

  1. Register for an OHiD account by going here
  2. Complete the income verification form.
    CLICK HERE for EdChoice Income Verification Helpful Tips.
  3. Upload your income verification form and supporting documentation to your portal for state review (Directions for uploading are available here)

Next Steps

The state of Ohio will make a final award determination once all items are uploaded.

We know that the expanded eligibility will impact tuition statements and FACTS agreements that have already been sent. We hope that the following provide some clarity as we navigate these changes. Please be patient as we process hundreds of  new EdChoice applications and adjust tuition statements and agreements.

  1. In light of the many changes, we are in the process of restructuring our tuition for the long-term viability of Bishop Watterson. By applying for the state scholarship, no family will see an increase in the balance that was communicated in May.
  2. We will adjust the award amounts for families currently on EdChoice from $7,500 to $8,407.
  3. We will adjust the award amounts for families on Jon Peterson once the new scholarship amounts are finalized.
  4. Families applying for EdChoice for the first time are expected to continue to make tuition payments until scholarships are awarded. Once awarded, we will adjust remaining balances.
  5. Students receiving Bishop Watterson tuition assistance in the form of BWHS endowment awards or Eagle Grants may have those awards adjusted. Families’ anticipated tuition balances will either stay the same, as communicated in May, or be reduced by receiving an EdChoice scholarship.

For more information from the Our Catholic Schools (OCS) office of the Diocese of Columbus, click below.