Indiana families have access to lots of choices for finding the school that is best for their children and sets them up for future success in life. Educational freedom means Hoosier families can choose to educate their child in a public school, charter school, private school, or home school – regardless of their income. While our educational options aren’t perfect, tens of thousands of Hoosier families are choosing the school that is right for their child – and many more children are eligible.
In Indiana, your children aren’t limited to the public school determined by where you live. Thanks to our public school open enrollment law, roughly 100,000 children attend a public school their family chooses.[i] Open enrollment puts the child’s needs ahead of geographic restrictions.
Learn more about your open enrollment options.
Roughly 44,000 children attend one of Indiana’s 95 innovative charter schools. These schools aren’t limited to the one-size-fits-all approach dictated by the state, but instead give autonomy to teachers to design innovative approaches to learning for their students – all while being held to a higher level of accountability compared to traditional public schools.[ii] In fact, Indiana’s charter school law is ranked best in the nation.[iii]
Learn more about your charter school options.
Indiana has made it possible for tens of thousands of low and middle income children to afford a private education. Through scholarship programs – like the tax-credit program – low and middle income families can send their children to private schools they otherwise might not be able to afford. The tax credit scholarship program is funded by generous donations from individuals and businesses who receive tax credits of 50 cents per dollar they donate. Similarly, the choice scholarship program provides scholarships to children whose families earn up to 150 percent of the federal free and reduced-price lunch. An additional program, the private school/homeschool deduction, allows families to deduct up to $1,000 per child for educational expenses, including private school tuition, textbooks, fees, software, tutoring, and supplies.[iv]
Learn more about your private school choice options through the tax credit scholarship, choice scholarship, and private school/homeschool deduction.
Indiana families can educate their children at home if they believe that environment is best for their child’s success. Indiana law does not impose heavy regulations on homeschooling families or mandate extensive state reporting.[v] Homeschool families can deduct up to $1,000 per child for educational expenses thanks to Indiana’s private school/homeschool tax deduction.[vi]
Learn more about your home school choice options and applying for the home school deduction.
Indiana’s extensive educational freedom policies make it possible for children to find the instruction, curriculum, and learning style that will best set them up to be successful– regardless of their family’s income or the neighborhood in which they live. Educational freedom puts our children first.
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[i] Ed Choice, Mapping Indiana’s Public District School Choice Transfers
[ii] State of Indiana, Indiana Charter School Board
[iii] National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, Indiana State Ranking
[iv] Ed Choice, Indiana Education Choice Programs
[v] Home School Legal Defense Agency, Homeschool Laws in Indiana