Utah

School Choice Programs

Utah offers K–12 students and their families several types of school choice, including three private school choice programs, charter schools, magnet schools, home schooling and inter-district and intra-district public school choice via open enrollment.

3 Programs

Available School Choice Programs

Voucher(1 program)

Carson Smith Opportunity Scholarship Program (Legacy)

The Carson Smith Opportunity Scholarship Program provides eligible families of students with special needs with scholarships for qualifying expenses, including but not limited to tuition and fees. The 2024 Utah State legislature passed S.B. 44 merging the Special Needs Opportunity Scholarship, a tax credit scholarship, with the Carson Smith Scholarship program, a state-funded scholarship. The newly coined Carson Smith Opportunity Scholarship Program gives Scholarship Granting Organizations (SGOs) continued authority over all tax-credit scholarships and additional authority over all new state-funded scholarships. The legacy Carson Smith program is not allowed to enroll new students, although existing enrollees are allowed to continue their current participation or opt-in for participation in the newly created program, for which they are automatically approved for the 2024–2025 school year. The tax-credit scholarship, known as the Special Needs Opportunity Scholarship, is absorbed into the new program. Students previously enrolled and receiving a scholarship under the legacy Special Needs Program will be funded under the new program in the 2024–2025 school year, but they must update their eligibility information, including financial and disability verification.

Avg: $1,891

Since 2005

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Tax-Credit ESA(1 program)

Carson Smith Opportunity Scholarship

Learn about this school choice program and how it can benefit your family.

Avg: $1,891

Since 2020

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Education Savings Account(1 program)

Utah Fits All Scholarship Program

The Utah Fits All Scholarship Program is an education savings account (ESA) through which students receive a portion of their assigned state education funding for wide use, including private school tuition or other educational expenses.

10,000 students

Since 2023

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Private School Choice

Utah has three private school choice programs: a voucher, a tax-credit education savings account (TCESA), and an education savings account . These programs help families send their children to participating private schools. The ESA program provides families extra flexibility by allowing them to use program funds on more than tuition, including education therapies and more. * Utah Education Savings Account [Learn More](https://www.edchoice.org/school-choice/programs/utah-fits-all-scholarship-program/) * Utah Tax-Credit ESA [Learn More](https://www.edchoice.org/school-choice/programs/utah-special-needs-opportunity-scholarship-program/) * Utah Voucher [Learn More](https://www.edchoice.org/school-choice/programs/utah-carson-smith-special-needs-scholarship-program/)

Public School Choice

Utah has inter-district and intra-district open enrollment policies, which allow some students to transfer to traditional public schools outside their zoned school. Utah also has magnet schools.

Charter School Choice

Utah has some charter schools. Charter schools are publicly funded schools that are free of many of the regulations that restrict traditional public schools.

Home School Choice

Parents have to follow certain laws in Utah when homeschooling their children.

State Statistics

Total Programs

Program Types

10,000

Total Students Participating

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