1st term of GA school voucher program wraps. How many in Macon were approved?

Hundreds of students in Middle Georgia have been approved to receive funding through the state’s education school choice program for the 2025-2026 academic year, with a majority of eligible students residing in Macon.

The Georgia Promise Scholarship program is nearing the completion of its first year of operation, having opened applications in March 2025. About 20,200 families applied between March and December 2025, according to data recently provided by the Georgia Student Finance Commission.

The state’s school choice initiative, sometimes referred to as a voucher program, provides up to $6,500 for eligible K-12 students to transfer from identified low-performing public schools. The state-funded scholarships may be used for non-public education expenses, such as private school tuition, homeschooling or approved educational services including tutoring.

As of Jan. 5, more than 1,070 families in Macon-Bibb County applied for the scholarship since the program’s launch. Bibb County ranked third statewide in the number of total submitted applications for the 2025-26 academic year, consistent with rankings from earlier data releases.

But only 469 students in Macon were deemed eligible for the scholarship, down from 582 students who were initially listed as preliminarily eligible in July.

Lance Wallace, senior vice president of external affairs for the Georgia Student Finance Commission, said the newly released figures reflect students who have met eligibility requirements and are actively participating in the program.

Statewide, more than 7,700 students were eligible for the voucher program as of Jan. 5. That number is also lower than earlier preliminary eligibility estimates previously reported.

Wallace said the decrease followed a Georgia Department of Education validation process that found many applicants did not meet eligibility requirements.

Some disqualifications included students living outside the attendance zones of schools ranked in the bottom 25% statewide identified by the Georgia Office of Student Achievement, he added.

The voucher program still is receiving pushback; state officials are monitoring any potential changes that may affect the Georgia Promise Scholarship Act, Wallace added.

Georgia’s legislative session kicked off Monday.

Chris Green, president of the Georgia Student Finance Commission, is slated to brief lawmakers at a joint appropriations committee meeting on Jan. 20, where the Promise Scholarship is expected to be addressed.

How many applied in Middle GA?

In Middle Georgia, 1,930 applications were submitted for the scholarship program. About 42% of those applicants were deemed eligible to receive funds.

The commission did not release student demographic information specifically for Middle Georgia, but it has provided statistics for the number of scholars statewide.

About 75% of Georgia Promise Scholars come from lower-income households earning no more than 400% of the federal poverty level.

Demographically, about 45% of scholars identified as Black, 39% as white, 10% as multiracial, 4% as Hispanic, 1% as Asian or Pacific Islander and less than 1% as Native American or Alaska Native.

Most eligible students are in lower grade levels for the 2025-26 academic year. About 38% are enrolled in kindergarten, 33% in grades 1 through 5, 20% in grades 6 through 8, and 9% in grades 9 through 12.

About 70% of scholarship recipients chose to use their funds on approved private school, and another 18% plan to pursue home study programs, according to the state commission.

Bibb County School District officials have indicated enrollment levels are lower than previous years, but they did not fall as sharply as anticipated following the scholarship program’s launch.

Application timeline, funding use

Since the program’s launch in 2025, families have used more than $12.3 million for tuition and fees, $3.3 million for qualified educational expenses such as books and computers, and about $454,000 for professional tutoring and therapy services, according to state officials.

The final student application period for the 2025-26 academic year ran from Nov. 10 to Dec. 12, 2025. Applications for that academic year are now closed.

The Fall 2026 application window will be open from March 1 through March 31.

Students from all income levels will be eligible to apply for the fall semester, the commission said.

Only applicants from households earning at or below 400% of the federal poverty level will be considered for enrollment in the Spring 2027 semester, in accordance with the Promise Scholarship Act.

Families can visit the Georgia Student Finance Commission’s website for application details and eligibility requirements.