How to Receive Funds Through Arizona's Empowerment Scholarship Account Program

Did you know that families in Arizona may qualify for thousands of dollars toward private education through the Empowerment Scholarship Account Program?

Most Arizona students enrolled at Enlightium Academy are eligible to apply. Enlightium Academy is an approved ESA provider, which means ESA funds can be used for Enlightium Academy tuition and eligible fees. Funding amounts vary by grade and student needs, but many families receive between four thousand and nine thousand dollars per student per school year through this program.

So, what does this mean for your bottom dollar?

ESA funds can be applied to your student’s tuition, and can either partially or fully cover your chosen tuition package. For example, students could enroll in Enlightium’s Gold package, which offers phone, screen sharing, and messaging support from certified Enlightium teachers, and the tuition will likely be fully covered for most ESA recipients. You can also use ESA funds to purchase required school supplies, such as print curriculum for our Book-Based program, making the transition to homeschooling much more affordable.

With guidance from the Enlightium team, it should be relatively simple for you to apply for Arizona’s ESA Program.

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Who is Eligible for ESA Funds

Before applying, check the eligibility requirements. Arizona’s ESA program has universal eligibility, meaning that all Arizona students in kindergarten through 12th grade are eligible. However, certain conditions must be met, such as the student residing in Arizona. 

If your student is in kindergarten, age limits also apply. Kindergarteners must be 5 years old by January 1st of the contract year to be eligible for ESA funding.

Students in preschool with certain disabilities may also be able to apply for the ESA. According to the ESA website, preschool students who are at least 3 years old and have a current IEP, 504 plan, or MET Evaluation report from an Arizona public school may be able to apply.

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Applying for Approval to Receive ESA Funds

Before starting the application, make sure you have all the required documentation. At a minimum, you’ll need your student’s birth certificate and proof of Arizona residency. Documents to prove residency may include utility bills or property tax bills, but the Arizona ESA website lists other options if these are not available.

Next, visit the ESA website and click “Apply for an ESA.” Now you will need to create an account. After creating the account, you’ll need to log in to the ADE Connect portal, click on “applications,” and select the ESA applicant portal. At this stage, you will provide your personal information. 

Next, you will need to create a new application for each student. When creating your application, follow the prompts to provide the necessary information for each student.

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What to Do While Waiting for Approval

ESA applications are accepted on a seasonal basis, and it may take up to 30 days to receive a final decision. The earlier you apply, the more funding you may be eligible to receive. For example, if you apply by mid-July, your application will likely be reviewed and approved before Enlightium’s first day of school. The ESA will notify you via email when a final decision is made regarding your application. After that, you’ll need to agree to the account holder contract. 

The ESA Parent Handbook says it may take three or more weeks to receive your student’s funding after the ESA contract is signed. During this time, we recommend familiarizing yourself with the ESA Parent Handbook. This is also an excellent time to enroll or re-enroll your student at Enlightium Academy and complete Enlightium’s admissions process.

You’ll be able to review your student’s ESA contract information in the ESA applicant portal. This portal also includes a calendar for expected ESA funding dates, as well as a link to your ClassWallet account.

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What is ClassWallet?

The Arizona ESA uses a digital wallet platform called ClassWallet to manage ESA funds. Every student will have their own funds in ClassWallet, and those funds can only be used for that student. If you have multiple students using ESAs, you’ll have one account where you can access each student’s ESA funds.

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New Enlightium Students: Paying the Enrollment Fee

Typically, a family enrolling at Enlightium Academy will first pay the enrollment fee, then submit the enrollment form. If you are enrolling your student at Enlightium Academy with ESA funding, you’ll need to follow a slightly different process. Arizona families new to Enlightium using the ESA program will first complete the enrollment form, and later pay the enrollment fee directly through ClassWallet. Start by emailing an enrollment consultant at consultants@enlightiumacademy.com for a link to fill out the enrollment form. You do have the option to pay the enrollment fee yourself and request that the state’s ESA Program reimburse the payment; however, Enlightium cannot guarantee if or when reimbursement requests will be approved. We recommend consulting the ESA Parent Handbook or confirming with the ESA that your purchase is reimbursable before taking that route.

Please note that the enrollment fee is not waived for ESA students; it is only deferred so that you can pay through ClassWallet after the enrollment is processed. The enrollment fee is still considered due and non-refundable 72 hours after the form is submitted. Coupons may not apply to deferred enrollment fees.

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Returning Students: Paying the Re-Enrollment Fee

Families returning to Enlightium each year will have their re-enrollment form sent to them. Once that form is submitted, Enlightium’s Billing Department will schedule the tuition and fees to accommodate ESA guidelines and disbursement schedules.

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Paying Tuition

When an Arizona ESA student is enrolled at Enlightium, Enlightium’s billing department will schedule tuition in up to 4 quarterly installments, with due dates set to accommodate the ESA’s published funding schedule. 

Next, the Enlightium Billing Department will send you an invoice that includes all the scheduled payments. Due dates for each installment are listed on the invoice, and the Enlightium team will send a reminder email three days before each payment is due.

It is your responsibility to log into ClassWallet once per quarter to submit the payment using ClassWallet’s direct payment option.

To submit a payment, you’ll need to log in to your ClassWallet account. Select “Pay Vendor” and search for Enlightium Academy in Spokane, Washington. Then click “Pay.”

Add the details for the installment payment. As supporting documentation, you can upload the invoice from Enlightium.

ClassWallet has a number of expense categories to choose from. In most cases, “tuition” is an appropriate category for Enlightium expenses; however, you may select other categories if they also apply.

After providing the payment information, review the details and click “submit.”

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Additional Notes About Payments

Enlightium charges an annual $150 voucher processing fee to receive payments directly from third parties such as ClassWallet. In most cases, this fee is divided among your quarterly tuition installments and is an eligible expense for the Arizona ESA. This helps cover the costs associated with complying with ESA regulations and maintaining a ClassWallet account. The ESA will usually pay this fee as long as you follow the steps provided.

Additionally, ClassWallet charges Arizona ESA users a 2% processing fee on all transactions. This goes directly to ClassWallet, not Enlightium. In order to make sure Enlightium receives the correct amount due, you’ll need to submit the amount in the “CW + 2%” column on your invoice in the “Payment Amount” field in ClassWallet. Then the “Amount to Vendor” field in ClassWallet should show the amount due to Enlightium.

On this example invoice, the next payment due to Enlightium is $122.50. To ensure that Enlightium receives the correct amount, the parent enters $125 in the “Payment Amount” field in ClassWallet. The “Amount to Vendor” field shows the actual amount due.

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What Happens Next?

In most cases, the ESA will approve payments promptly; however, approval times may vary. If your payment is due soon, please email billing@enlightiumacademy.com to let us know that your payment has been submitted, in case it isn’t approved by the due date.

Enlightium’s Billing Department will send you an email when the payment has been received from ClassWallet and applied to your account.

Please keep in mind that Enlightium does not have access to students’ ESA accounts, and we do not restrict purchases for families using ESA funds. It is ultimately your responsibility to make sure that the services you purchase are covered by the ESA, and you will need to make other arrangements for purchases that are not eligible or exceed your student’s ESA funding. 

In the event that your student’s funding is delayed, or if you have concerns about the ESA being able to cover certain services for your student, please email the Billing Department! Depending on your situation, we may be able to provide you with helpful resources, or we may have other options to help you.

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Since 2003, Enlightium faculty and staff have served partner schools, hybrid, online, and homeschool K-12 students. With parental support, excellent instruction, and a personalized approach to learning, Enlightium equips students with the academic, spiritual, physical, social, and emotional skills they need to succeed in life. For any other questions about Enlightium, please call (509) 319-2288 or visit EnlightiumAcademy.com.