CEAM leads statewide tax-credit-funded ESA scholarships efforts

The Children’s Education Alliance of Missouri (CEAM) has been at the forefront of high-quality K-12 education reform in the State of Missouri since its founding 13 years ago.  From passing a law that expanded charter school opportunities throughout the state in 2012, to passing the state’s first virtual education law in 2019, to the landmark passing into law of Missouri’s first private school choice program through the Missouri Empowerment Scholarship Accounts, CEAM’s statewide efforts with families and educators has led to full school choice options being available throughout the state. Our national and state partners in this effort have credited CEAM as Missouri’s education reform leader, without which, school choice in Missouri would be decades behind other states.

Missouri’s new private school choice Empowerment Scholarship Accounts (ESA) Program is one of the most robust programs in the country. Funded through an innovative funding mechanism, the law allows donors to receive a 100% tax credit, up to 50% of their Missouri state income tax liability for the year. Donations are distributed to qualifying families, maxing out at $6,375 per child, per year. In thousands of cases, these scholarships will mean the difference between a child attending a school that has failed to provide a quality education and that child attending a school where they are safe and thrive.

Ensuring that qualifying families and hundreds of schools throughout the state understand the law is our next, most critical step. With the invaluable assistance of CEAM’s longtime national partner, The American Federation for Children, CEAM has already begun our communications with schools and families through the CEAM/AFC ESA Implementation Plan, a rigorous and comprehensive plan that ensures the success of the program.

Missouri’s new and innovative ESA program will give Missouri’s most disadvantaged and low-income students the power to escape the state’s worst-performing schools. It also empowers students who have special learning needs to gain access to the therapeutic and academic support that they need to live successful lives.

Our ESA Implementation Plan is focused on making sure that parents of eligible children are aware of, and can easily apply to the new program; schools in eligible areas are ready and willing to accept students with ESA scholarships; donors are ready to contribute in return for tax credits; and nonprofits and other community organizations are sharing information about how ESAs can help the communities they serve.

CEAM will achieve these goals through:

• an extensive, targeted, multi-channel marketing campaign that will raise awareness of the program and help families understand how to apply for scholarships;
• statewide in-person and virtual outreach efforts that will bring information about ESAs into eligible communities and help students apply for scholarships and find a school that meets their specific needs;
• private and charter school recruitment led by a new statewide director  to ensure every school is aware of the new program, ready to accept students with ESA scholarships, and promote the program to eligible families;
• helping to identify, advise and convene education assistance organizations (EAO);
• outreach to wealth managers across the state to raise awareness of the 100% tax credit to ensure the $25 million tax credit distribution cap is raised in the first year;
• in-person and virtual meetings with nonprofits across the state to ensure that every eligible family is learning about the potential of ESAs for their families;
• and, supporting and advising the Missouri Treasurer’s Office during the rulemaking process.

Pulling together all of the potential stakeholders (families, schools, donors, and policymakers) in such a comprehensive way will ensure a successful rollout of Missouri’s new Empowerment Scholarship Account Program and make it possible for us to expand the program to help even more students in future years.

The success of this program will require significant funding, which is why we need your help to make it a reality.

For more information and to learn how YOU can help please contact Peter Franzen at peter@ceamteam.org or by phone at 314-249-9005.