KJZZ is a service of Rio Salado College,
and Maricopa Community Colleges

Copyright © 2025 KJZZ/Rio Salado College/MCCCD
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

New Analysis: Arizona ESA Students Primarily Moved From Highly Rated Public Schools Into Private Schools

Proposition 305 would substantially expand who is eligible to participate in Arizona's empowerment scholarship account (ESA) program.

That program allows parents to pull their kids out of public schools and get 90 percent of the money that otherwise would have gone to the child’s public school district so they can attend a private school.

Proposition 305 is on the ballot asking voters to either uphold or get rid of a law that state legislators passed last year to expand the ESA program.

But an Arizona Republic analysis has found that most Arizona students who use ESAs to go to a private school are disproportionately leaving wealthier, well-rated school districts.

The Show was joined by Rob O’Dell with the Republic to discuss what he found.

More About This

Lauren Gilger, host of KJZZ's The Show, is an award-winning journalist whose work has impacted communities large and small, exposing injustices and giving a voice to the voiceless and marginalized.