Virginia Private School Scholarships Threatened: What You Need to Know About HB 359

Did you know 105 students of our 289 recieve finanical aid?

In the last two weeks, a concerning bill (HB 359) was introduced in Virginia’s House of Delegates which would eliminate Regents’ ability to participate in Virginia’s tax credit program as well as the federal tax credit for private school scholarships that goes into effect next year. This bill stipulates that any private school receiving any state or federal funding must test and meet benchmarks with Virginia’s Standards of Learning curriculum (a back-door way to requiring the state curriculum) and cannot make admissions decisions based on a statement of faith.

Regents would not be able to accept these constraints and remain true to who we are as a classical Christian school. The bill would eliminate at least 25% of our budgeted scholarship funding for next year which provides scholarships for over 40 students. We would have to raise tuition or raise donations to cover that kind of shortfall in the future or accept fewer scholarship families. 

ACTION STEPS
1) Please familiarize yourself with the talking points in this memo from the Association of Classical Christian Schools so that you can explain what is happening to your friends and why the EISTC program is essential in Virginia to all schools, not just secular schools.

2) Do not let your friends tell you that these funds take money away from the public schools. That is not true. The funds are from the state portion of education funding only, not local funds, and the public school publicly states that they spend well over our tuition per child on education. In other words, our families save the public school system money.

3) Please pray. This is an important issue for religious freedom, school choice, parental rights, etc. I am equally concerned about some of the other measures that could follow this one which I am happy to explain in person.

4) Please use your voice with elected leaders and influential friends to stop these measures and bless the families who want a Regents education and need financial help to receive it.

SUPPORT THE PROGRAM: 24 STUDENTS STILL NEED SCHOLARSHIPS
Find out how to support the program by giving!