Oct 28, 2026 · 10 min · 10 segments
On this *West Virginia Morning*, if your doctor recommends a big test or procedure, a decision tool with the acronym B.R.A.I.N. can help you talk through options collaboratively. It works at a routine…
The latest annual report on West Virginia's school voucher program shows it continues to grow in popularity and cost.
More than $68 million were spent in the past school year through the Hope Scholarship.
That's according to the 2025-2026 Hope Scholarship Annual Report released Monday by State Treasurer Larry Pack, who serves as chairman of the Hope Scholarship Board.
The Hope Scholarship provides financial assistance to qualifying families to be used for tuition, homeschool curriculum, and other approved educational expenses.
More than 14,400 students received some level of scholarship, with recipients of the full scholarship receiving just over $5,200 each.
The majority of Hope Scholarship funds, more than $45 million, went to non-public schools, such as private religious schools.
The next largest payment category were $12 million in payments to suppliers and orders placed through the Hope Scholarship Program's open marketplace TheoPay application.
Last year was the final year where Hope Scholarship applicants were required to be enrolled in public school for at least 45 days.
That requirement has been dropped as of the current 2026-2027 school year, and existing private school and traditional homeschool students who were not previously eligible for the program are now eligible to apply.
PAC's office has previously estimated the program's cost after universal enrollment will be around $245 million.
The state legislature appropriated more than $270 million for the program in the most recent state budget.
According to the report, the program had already received more than 25,000 approved applications for the 2026-2027 school year by late August, nearly doubling participation from the previous year.
For West Virginia Public Broadcasting, I'm Chris Schultz in Morgantown.
The latest annual report on West Virginia's school voucher program shows it continues to grow in popularity and cost.
More than $68 million were spent in the past school year through the Hope Scholarship.
That's according to the 2025-2026 Hope Scholarship Annual Report released Monday by State Treasurer Larry Pack, who serves as chairman of the Hope Scholarship Board.
The Hope Scholarship provides financial assistance to qualifying families to be used for tuition, homeschool curriculum, and other approved educational expenses.
More than 14,400 students received some level of scholarship, with recipients of the full scholarship receiving just over $5,200 each.
The majority of Hope Scholarship funds, more than $45 million, went to non-public schools, such as private religious schools.
The next largest payment category were $12 million in payments to suppliers and orders placed through the Hope Scholarship Program's open marketplace TheoPay application.
Last year was the final year where Hope Scholarship applicants were required to be enrolled in public school for at least 45 days.
That requirement has been dropped as of the current 2026-2027 school year, and existing private school and traditional homeschool students who were not previously eligible for the program are now eligible to apply.
PAC's office has previously estimated the program's cost after universal enrollment will be around $245 million.
The state legislature appropriated more than $270 million for the program in the most recent state budget.
According to the report, the program had already received more than 25,000 approved applications for the 2026-2027 school year by late August, nearly doubling participation from the previous year.
For West Virginia Public Broadcasting, I'm Chris Schultz in Morgantown.
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