July 10, 2025

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New Report: NC School Vouchers—Using Tax Dollars to Discriminate Against
Students & Families

Public Schools First NC has released a new report: NC School Vouchers—Using
Tax Dollars to Discriminate Against Students & Families!

As recent reporting highlights, “[7]North Carolina now subsidizes the
tuition cost for the majority of private students.” In the 2024-25 school
year, the state private K-12 tuition subsidy topped [8]$432 million.
Current appropriations earmark $731 million for state voucher programs next
year.

These voucher programs require virtually no accountability for how the
funds are spent, whether the schools provide adequate instructional
programs, or whether they discriminate against types of students or their
families. As a result, taxpayers are left without even the most rudimentary
understanding of the private schools benefiting from unprecedented
generosity of majority lawmakers in the NC General Assembly.

Our new report uncovers hundreds of examples of how voucher-accepting
private schools screen applicants to secure their desired student
population. Unlike public schools that accept all students, many private
schools employ discriminatory practices to select only students who conform
to their religious beliefs or don’t pose instructional or behavioral
challenges.

The policies range from exclusions based on religious beliefs of students
and family members, to academic performance, disability status, and whether
an applicant or family member is part of the LGBTQ+ community.

Some schools also require students and families to sign a “lifestyle
policy” that extends to activities and behaviors of family members and
associates. Not meeting the requirements may result in a rejected
application or the student being expelled from the school. And unlike
public schools, many private schools have no formal process for questioning
or appealing these decisions.

Our research focused only on schools that received $100,000 or more in
taxpayer-funded tuition payments during the 2024-25 school year. We found
21 schools that had no website and no public source of information about
the school beyond name and address. Together, these schools received more
than $6 million from the state in 2024-25.

The report recommends several requirements that the North Carolina General
Assembly could quickly implement for private schools that receive taxpayer
funds. Taxpayers deserve to know how their dollars are being spent.

Click on the link below for the report as well as an appendix showing
discriminatory policies of schools.

[9]Read the Report!

Read our other recent reports:
* [10]NC K-12 Private Schools 2024-25: A Review of Curriculum
* [11]North Carolina's Taxpayer-Funded Vouchers & Private School Tuition
Increases
* [12]North Carolina Charter Schools: Undermining Quality Education for
All

Help us support public schools!

Public Schools First NC is a statewide nonpartisan, 501(c)(3) nonprofit
focused solely

on pre-K to 12 public education issues. We collaborate with parents,
teachers, business and civic leaders, and communities across North Carolina
to advocate for one unified system of public education that prepares each
child for productive citizenship.

DONATE HERE

[13]www.publicschoolsfirstnc.org

Questions? Contact us today at [email protected]

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Public Schools First NC
PO Box 37832
Raleigh, NC 27627
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