A voucher worth up to $8,408 a year, whichever side of the city line you live on.
City families use the Cleveland Scholarship with no income test. Outside the district line, EdChoice takes over, and a household of four keeps the full amount until its income passes $148,500. 181 of the 243 schools in our Northeast Ohio directory hold the state charter both programs require, and we match your child to the program, the school and the dates.
K-8 voucher maximum for 2026-27 under the Cleveland Scholarship and both EdChoice programs; $8,408 for high school.
Chartered schools in our 243-school directory for Cuyahoga, Lake, Lorain, Geauga and Medina counties.
EdChoice-designated public buildings in 13 districts around the city for 2026-27, from Lorain to East Cleveland.
Local scholarship granting organizations on the Ohio Attorney General's 2026 certified list.
For a city family, the Cleveland Scholarship can cover most of a parish school's tuition.
An illustrative first grader in Old Brooklyn at a parish school charging $6,900, with a parishioner discount.
A made-up example to show the arithmetic; Ohio does not collect tuition figures from schools. If DEW verifies a K-8 family as low-income (200% of poverty or less), the school must treat the award as full tuition. Fees are billed separately either way.
Every source a Northeast Ohio family can draw on
Three vouchers, two disability scholarships, Catholic aid, 18 local tax-credit funds, College Credit Plus and help with the preschool years.
Cleveland Scholarship Program (CSP)
Ohio's original private school voucher, open only to K-12 students who live inside the Cleveland Metropolitan School District. It pays up to $6,166 (K-8) or $8,408 (9-12) for 2026-27 with no income test.
Who qualifies →Suburbs & exurbs · income-basedEdChoice Expansion Scholarship
The income-based voucher for every Ohio K-12 student who does not qualify for the Cleveland Scholarship. Households at or below 450% of poverty receive the full $6,166 (K-8) or $8,408 (9-12); above that the award tapers to a floor of 10%.
Who qualifies →Designated buildings · full awardTraditional EdChoice Scholarship
The performance-based voucher for students who would be assigned to an EdChoice-designated public building. 67 buildings in 13 suburban and Lorain County districts are designated for 2026-27, and the award is not reduced by income.
Who qualifies →IEP · $10,045 to $34,000Jon Peterson Special Needs Scholarship (JPSN)
Ohio's disability scholarship for children ages 3 to 21 with an IEP from their home district. For 2026-27 it pays between $10,045 and $34,000 depending on the primary disability category, and city and suburban families qualify alike.
Who qualifies →Autism · up to $34,000Autism Scholarship Program
A separate Ohio scholarship of up to $34,000 for 2026-27 for children identified with autism, paid to a participating private or alternative provider for the services in the child's IEP or Autism Education Plan.
Who qualifies →18 local SGOs · state creditOhio SGO Tax-Credit Scholarships
Scholarship granting organizations certified by the Ohio Attorney General collect gifts that earn donors a state tax credit of up to $750 ($1,500 for couples) and turn them into K-12 scholarships. 18 certified SGOs list an address in the five counties.
Who qualifies →| Cleveland Scholarship | EdChoice Expansion | Traditional EdChoice | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who | K-12 students inside the CMSD boundary | K-12 students everywhere else | Zoned to a designated building, a past recipient's sibling, or in foster or kinship care |
| Income test | None | Award tapers above 450% of poverty | None |
| 2026-27 maximum | $6,166 / $8,408 | $6,166 / $8,408 | $6,166 / $8,408 |
| Low-income families protected from extra tuition | K-8 only | All grades | All grades |
What a voucher pays, and what stays with you
Ohio's vouchers cover tuition and nothing else, and the Cleveland Scholarship treats high school balances differently. Here is the line for each cost.
Tuition at a participating chartered school
Up to $6,166 (K-8) or $8,408 (9-12) for 2026-27 under the Cleveland Scholarship, EdChoice or Expansion, or the school's tuition if that is less.
Tuition above the award, verified low income, grades K-8
In K-8 both programs shield DEW-verified households at 200% of poverty or less.
Tuition above the award, verified low income, grades 9-12
EdChoice families are still protected; Cleveland Scholarship high school families are responsible for the balance.
Tuition above the award, income above 200% of poverty
The school can bill the difference; its own aid, an SGO award or diocesan help is the usual answer.
Registration, book, technology and activity fees
DEW's fact sheets for all three programs leave registration, material and similar fees with the family.
Uniforms, lunches and busing
The vouchers pay tuition only. City families can ask CMSD about transportation to a private school; suburban districts handle their own.
Three steps with Cleveland Edu Funding
Tell us five things
Grade, kind of school, where you live, household size and when you want to start. No tax return and no account.
Get your map
A tuition counselor works out whether your address means Cleveland Scholarship or EdChoice, checks disability scholarships and Catholic or SGO aid, and puts your deadlines in order.
Enroll where the money works
We point you to chartered schools that fit and walk you through the forms the school files for you.
243 private schools across five counties, from state and federal records
Grades, affiliation, enrollment and each school's place on Ohio's chartered and non-chartered lists, including 38 Amish parochial schools in Geauga and Medina counties listed from the federal survey.
Catholic Schools
Diocese of Cleveland parish elementaries, interparochial schools and high schools, plus Catholic schools run by religious orders in the five counties.
90 schools →Christian Schools
Non-denominational, Lutheran, Baptist, Adventist, Pentecostal and other Protestant schools, including several on Ohio's non-chartered list.
36 schools →Jewish, Islamic & Other Faith Schools
Jewish day schools and yeshivas concentrated in the Heights and Beachwood, Islamic schools and schools of other traditions.
16 schools →Independent & Nonsectarian Schools
Secular day schools: college-prep campuses, girls' and boys' academies, Montessori and progressive schools, and programs built for learning differences.
44 schools →Schools With No Affiliation on File
Chartered schools, many opened in the past few years, that show up in Ohio's directory with no religious or secular label attached.
19 schools →Special Education & Learning-Difference Schools
Autism schools, learning-difference academies and other programs the federal survey codes as special education, with their sister campuses.
11 schools →Montessori Schools
Montessori programs, from toddler rooms to elementary and adolescent farm-school programs.
12 schools →Preschools & Early Learning
Early-childhood programs whose top grade is pre-K or kindergarten, from franchise centers to parish preschools.
10 schools →By area: Cleveland's West Side, Old Brooklyn & Ohio City · Cleveland's East Side, Midtown & University Circle · Collinwood & Euclid · Cleveland Heights, Shaker Heights & Beachwood · Lyndhurst, Pepper Pike & the Chagrin Valley · Lakewood, Rocky River, Westlake & the West Shore · Parma, Parma Heights, Brooklyn & Independence · Strongsville, Brecksville, Berea & North Royalton · Garfield Heights, Maple Heights & Bedford · Mentor, Willoughby, Painesville & Lake County · Lorain, Elyria, Amherst & Sheffield · Avon, Avon Lake, North Ridgeville & eastern Lorain County · Chardon, Chesterland & western Geauga County · Middlefield, Burton & eastern Geauga County · Medina, Brunswick, Wadsworth & Medina County
Work with Cleveland Edu Funding
Families who find you through us already know which voucher their address unlocks. Congregations thinking about a school get a plain account of Ohio's chartered and non-chartered tracks.
From the Cleveland Edu Funding blog
Angel Scholarships, DTA and 18 Local SGOs: Stacking Catholic School Aid in the Diocese of Cleveland
Nearly $3 million in DTA and $8.1 million in Angel Scholarships went out for 2025-26. Here is how the layers and deadlines fit together.
Read →Oct 26, 2026Cleveland Scholarship vs EdChoice Expansion: Same Dollars, Different Rules for 2026-27
The city voucher ignores income; the suburban one tapers. The bigger surprise is the high school balance rule.
Read →Oct 23, 202667 EdChoice-Designated Buildings Around Cleveland for 2026-27: From Lorain to Warrensville Heights
Every open building in Lorain City is designated, and five more districts are fully on the list. Here is what that unlocks.
Read →What Cleveland parents ask us first
Which voucher does a Cleveland family use for private school in 2026-27?
It depends on the address. Families inside the Cleveland Metropolitan School District use the Cleveland Scholarship, which has no income test; families elsewhere in the five counties use EdChoice Expansion or, if their assigned building is designated, traditional EdChoice. All three pay up to $6,166 for K-8 and $8,408 for 9-12.
Is there an income limit for the Cleveland Scholarship?
No. Any K-12 student living inside the CMSD boundary can receive it regardless of income. Income only matters if a K-8 family wants low-income status, which stops the school from billing tuition above the award for households at or below 200% of poverty ($66,000 for four).
How much EdChoice Expansion does a suburban family of four receive?
The full $6,166 (K-8) or $8,408 (9-12) up to $148,500 of adjusted gross income, 450% of poverty. Above that the award tapers and stops at 10% of the maximum.
How many Greater Cleveland private schools can take a voucher?
181 of the 243 schools in our directory carry an Ohio charter as nonpublic schools, which is the only status that lets them take voucher students (records pulled October 28, 2026). Each school also registers yearly as a provider, so check with the school.
Did the October 2026 court ruling end EdChoice in Cleveland?
No. The Tenth District Court of Appeals ruled against EdChoice on October 15, 2026 but stayed its decision while the state appeals, so EdChoice and Expansion keep paying. The Cleveland Scholarship is a separate program that the lawsuit does not target.
Find out which programs your child can use
Five questions, about two minutes. A tuition counselor calls back with the voucher, aid and deadlines that match your address and your child.