There are many reasons families need K–12 options for their children. The 2025 tornado magnified that need — displacing families, disrupting school routines, and leaving many looking for something different. The CEAM Team stands with parents and families. We are here to help.
Below is a breakdown of the K-12 education options available to families in and around St. Louis.
Navigation resources at the bottom, too!
For families who need flexibility or are temporarily relocated, full-time virtual education through MOCAP can be a strong fit.
The Missouri Course Access and Virtual Education Program (MOCAP) allows any Missouri K–12 student to enroll in a full-time virtual program at no cost to the family.
👉 Visit CEAM’s virtual education page. Click here for more info on MOCAP
Charter public schools have offered St. Louis City families free, innovative education options since 1999. Today, there are 39 charter schools that operate in the city, and new charter schools are now expanding into St. Louis County.
Use the Missouri Charter Public School Association school finder to locate and compare your options:
👉 Find charter schools in St. Louis here. Look for charter schools in Kansas City here.
St. Louis is home to a wide range of non-public schools — from Catholic to independent to specialty schools. These may be a good fit for families seeking a values-based education, smaller class sizes, or specific learning supports.
📌 Note: The 2025–26 scholarship application window is closed, but it will reopen in early 2026. Families should start preparing now by signing up for updates and gathering documents.
👉 Get more info on MOScholars and how to prepare
For families with the time and ability to guide learning at home, homeschooling offers a personalized approach — and now, financial support through MOScholars can help.
👉 Learn more about homeschooling and scholarship support
For many families, the local public school remains the right fit — especially after relocating due to the tornado.
👉 Find and contact your local school district
Choosing the right school path — especially after a crisis — can feel overwhelming. That’s where CEAM comes in. Children’s Education Alliance of Missouri (CEAM) helps families understand their options, connect to resources, and advocate for the best fit for their children.
📞 Call us: (314) 561-8646
📧 Email: cici@ceamteam.org
Want to study this offline or share with a friend in real life?…
Even more resources…
There are several map-based websites designed to help you “see” the schools around you. The Missouri Charter Public School Association school finder page (link up above) includes both charter schools and traditional public schools.
The National School Choice Awareness Foundation has created this school navigation website. It includes all types of schools, which makes it especially useful for parents open to any type of school. This link goes straight to the Missouri page.
NOTE: The map feature can be tricky because not all schools are displayed at once on the map, you have to go through pages under the map. Use filters to reduce the number of schools displayed. If you live near the state border, it will display schools in neighboring states.
NavigateSTL is a STL-based organization that helps with navigation.
NOTE: This is site requires schools to sign up and as a result, not all private schools are included.
ShowMeSchoolOptions is a website CEAM made after the MOScholars K-12 Scholarship Program legislation was passed in 2021. Since then we have tried to keep it as up to date as possible. We noticed that the navigation sites do not provide much information about these transformative scholarships.
NOTE: Please note, that this site lists only private schools that accept MOScholars K-12 scholarships.
The Missouri School Rankings website was developed by Show Me Institute. It providers a deeper look into school performance outcomes using publicly available data from the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.
NOTE: This is not a school finder, it is a school performance site.
