Private school vouchers cost Johnston, Urbandale schools more than $1 million each in 1st year

Johnston and Urbandale students with school vouchers pulled more than $1 million away from their public school districts in the first year of school vouchers in Iowa.

Iowa’s private school voucher program is in year two of its roll out, and hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars now follow students into private schools.

In the first year of the program, each voucher was worth $7,635. The voucher’s value is based on how much the state gives to public school districts for each student they have enrolled. But when a student uses a voucher to leave a public school to go to a private school, the money goes with them.

The district does get a small kickback, with the state giving the district $1,205 as a kind of consolation prize for losing a student. But that’s just over 15% of what the district would make if the student stayed.

Johnston: $1.1 million gone

In the 2023-2024 school year, there were 144 students in the Johnston Community School District using school vouchers worth a combined $1.1 million. 

This comes as districts are preparing to pay more for professional development and curriculum services from the Area Education Agencies, another change led by Gov. Kim Reynolds. Add in costs from inflation and a small 2.5% increase in state funding and one thing is clear: Public school budgets are tight.

Johnston School Board member Lya Williams that it’s not one change that’s creating the challenge. It’s “a trickle that has a big impact.”

Jason Arnold, another Johnston School Board member, said this confluence of changes puts pressure on the district as it tries to meet student needs and keep lights on. The voucher program has already spent $360 million over its first two years. He said even a fraction of that would go a long way for his school.

“To me, that money could have been better spent giving it to our schools,” Arnold said. “If they have the money to do that, why not give that to the [public] school districts themselves?”

Both Williams and Arnold noted they were speaking for themselves and not the school board.

Urbandale: $1.2 million gone

In nearby Urbandale,163 students took vouchers worth $1.2 million in the 2023-2024 school year. To put that in context, Urbandale Schools budgeted $1.8 million for student transportation in fiscal year 2024. It budgeted $2.1 million for student support services, and $1.2 million for general administration.

In the 2023-2024 school year, voucher use was concentrated in the most populous counties. At the time, only 41 of Iowa’s 99 counties had private schools and another 23 only had one private school. 

Kindergarten tuition at Iowa private schools shot up anywhere from 21%-24% since the Reynolds voucher program began, according to a study by Brown and Princeton universities. On average, costs for kindergarten tuition increased by $1,280 and higher grades increased by $830.

“To the extent tuition levels outpace the [voucher] payment, families unable to further contribute to tuition may be priced out of schools, thus defeating the program’s stated goal,” the researchers wrote. “If this is the case, [vouchers] act as tuition subsidies for families who can already afford private school.”

Private operators find a ‘wild west’ of voucher funding

Since signing it into law in 2023, the cost of Reynolds’ private school voucher program has consistently blown past estimates.

In year one of private school vouchers, the state’s Legislative Services Agency estimated it would cost $106.9 million. However, the program would need $128 million before the end of the 2023-2024 school year—weighing in at 20% over budget.

In year two, that same estimate had this school year’s voucher program (2024-2025) costing the state $132.3 million. But at the governor’s recommendation, the Iowa Legislature raised its allocation to $179.2 million—a staggering 35% over budget. 

The state has declined to release data on the number of students using private school vouchers. It is expected to release this information in January. 

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But we do know the cost will be large, easily eclipsing the $179.2 million the legislature agreed to.

On stage with voucher advocate Betsy DeVos in July, Gov. Kim Reynolds said her Department of Education approved more than 30,000 Iowans to use private school vouchers. That’s an 11,000 student jump from last year and 10,000 more than the state estimated.

If 30,000 vouchers were approved and each voucher was worth $7,826, the floor of the private school voucher program’s cost is $235 million. That’s $55 million over budget at a minimum. 

And during the 2025-2026 school year, eligibility requirements loosen. The income restrictions of the first two years of the program are set to disappear, increasing the pool of eligible students. The state estimated year four would cost $365 million annually, costing the state $1 billion in the program’s first four years.

“It’s the Wild West for these for-profit schools,” said Jean Hessberg, communications director for the Iowa State Education Association. “They’re taking taxpayer money to fund private—and in most cases for-profit—schools.”