Your Options

Louisiana offers more parents more educational options than many states.  In addition to traditional public schools, Louisiana allows for public charter schools, and parents may also be eligible to send their children to private schools using a state-funded scholarship (voucher).

Student Scholarships for Educational Excellence
Louisiana's Student Scholarships for Educational Excellence (SSEE) Program was created in 2008 to serve low and middle-income families in Orleans Parish.  The program allows eligible parents to receive school vouchers to send their children to a participating private school of their choice.  In April 2012, the SSEE program was expanded to low and middle-income families throughout the entire state as a result of the passage of House Bill 976.


Do I Qualify?

  • Do you have a child who is entering kindergarten or attends a Louisiana public school rated C, D, or F?

  • Is your family’s adjusted gross income (the amount you report on your federal income tax form, after deductions) 250 percent of the federal poverty level?


If you answered YES to these two questions, your child is eligible to participate in the Student Scholarships for Educational Excellence Program.

How Do I Apply?

  • Families will be able to apply again for the statewide SSEE Program beginning mid-February.  The Department of Education has not yet determined the exact dates, but the deadline will be mid-March.  We will have a complete listing of scholarship schools once the Department of Education finishes the school sign-up process in mid-February.

  • New Orleans and Jefferson Parish students can apply NOW through March 15, 2013.  You can apply now online at www.enrollnola.org.  For more information, visit www.LAScholarshipProgram.com.

  • After the application process is completed and eligibility is determined, the Department of Education will identify scholarship recipients through a prioritized lottery process.

To learn more, visit www.LAScholarshipProgram.com. If you have questions or want additional information, please call 866.402.9947 or send us an email at LouisianaInquiry@federationforchildren.org.