NJ parochial schools hail new federal voucher program; who is eligible?
By: Deena Yellin
NorthJersey.com
USA Today Network - New Jersey
..... Susan Russo, whose children attend the Academy of our Lady at Mount Carnel in Tenafly, was thrilled to hear about the school choice subsidy including in Washington Republicans' "Big Beautiful Bill," which narrowly passed this month. [07/2025] Tuiltion at the Catholic school costs nearly $10,000 per child, it website says.
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"Credits toward tuition would help incentive families with young children to stay in high-tax state like New Jersey, especially when we aren't utilizing all of the services our property taxes pay for," said Russo, who lives in River Edge.
..... The subsidy would provide families with "more ability to send their kids to a religious school of their choosing," she said.
..... "Everyone thrives when they can make choices for their families.
..... Russo was among many parochial and private school parents aorta the country who hailed the bill. Critics meanwhile, called it a break for the wealthy that threatens the public school system.
..... The $1,700 federal tax credit to support tuition at private and faith-based schools marked a victory for advocates and conservative lawmakers who had long pushed for the measure. The cost of the program is unclear, given uncertainties over how many states will participate.
..... However, one congressional analysis estimates it could cost the federal government as much as $26 billion in lost tax revenue over the next 10 years.
..... Scheduled to begin in 2027, the plan establishes an annual tax credit for those who donate to an eligible educational nonprofit.
..... to qualify for the scholarship, students must come form households earning mo more than 300% of their area's median household income - about $300,000 in New Jersey. The money would be distributed by scholarship granting organizations, or SGOs donors across the country, whether they have children or not, could receive a dollar-for-dollar credit if they contribute to one of the SGOs which could then provide scholarships to donors.
..... Despite the excitement among private school advocates, the future of the program in New Jersey is uncertain. Individual state government must opt in to take advantage of he new credit.
Where NJ governor candidates stand
..... With Governor Phil Murphy set to leave office at the end of the year, [2025] the decision will likely fall to one of the two main candidates vying to replace him, Republican Jack Ciattarelli and Democrat Mikie Sherrill.
..... Sherrill's campaign did not respond to messages seeking comment. She voted against the Republican policy bill in congress, citing its deep cuts to Medicaid, among other concerns.
..... Ciattarelli also did not respond, but in a July 9 [2025] Facebook post, he wrote that with the number of private school students in New Jersey, he has "long supported a voucher program. "He vowed to opt in if elected.
..... New Jersey has more than 1,000 private schools. The latest figure from the National Center for Education Statistics show that about 211,000 students opted for a private education in 2021. About 1.3 million students attend the state's 2,500 public schools.
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Private and religious schools boast that they offer a better academic experience than public education, with smaller class sizes, individualize attention and an array of extracurricular offerings. Religious schools unlike public schools, also integrate faith and religious values into the daily schedule.
..... But such amenities aren't cheap: The average private elementary school in New Jersey costs $18,856 a year, and the private high school tuition averages roughly $22,839, says the website Private School Review.
..... Some states - including Arizona, Florida and Ohio - already have some type of voucher program that allows parents to use public funds for private school costs.
What happens to public schools?
..... Robert Kim, executive director of the Education Law Center in Newark, a nonprofit that advocates for the rights of public school students, warned about the impacts of the "new harmful federal tax credit."
..... Kim said the Education Law Center opposes the state's participation in any voucher program because studies show that such initiatives "increases segregation of students by race and income." He added that "vouchers decimate the budgets of public schools, which serve the vast majority of students in New Jersey and throughout the nation."
..... The voucher program comes as the Trump administration has moved to cut or freeze billions in public school funding. New Jersey and 24 other states sued over the decision that would cost Garden State school districts $140 million, state officials said.
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Religious school advocates said parents deserve the freedom of choice that the vouchers will help provide.
..... Rabbi A.D. Motzen, national director of government affairs for Audath Israel of America, an Orthodox Jewish organization based in New York, said the scholarship tax credit could benefit families "across the country, including those choosing Jewish and other non-public schools. ... The funds can be sued of a range of educational expenses including tuition, tutoring and special needs services," he said.
..... "This will increase the purchasing power of parents and help them attend a school that until now may have been out of their reach," Motzen added. "We have seen this firsthand in the more than 20 states with similar programs.
Rebound fro Catholic schools?
..... Father Daniel O'Mullane, the president-rector of Our Lady of Mount Carmel School and Lumen Gentium Academy in Booton, classical Catholic schools that teach pre-K thorough 12th grade, cheered the initiative as a potential boon for his parents.
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"Surveys show that many more people would choose Catholic schools if they though they could afford them,' O'Mullane said. "the bill should bring private schools within arm's reach for parents who want to send their kids to them."
.....Enrollment at Our Lady of Mount Carmel, where tuition is about $18,000 per student, is at 350, while Lumen Gentium, which costs nearly $10,000 per year, has about 55 students.
..... Catholic schools enrollment has been shrinking in recent years, leading to school mergers and closed in New Jersey and across the country.
..... Mike Walsh, a spokes,man for the Catholic Diocese of Camden, cautioned that much work need to be done before the tax credit provision turns into financial support for families. The U.S. Treasury Department must still write regulations governing the tax credit, including decision on which nonprofits would be eligible to receive donations for scholarships and how students would apply.
..... There is a "complicated matrix to navigate that requires several layers of both federal and state logistics," he said. "What no one knows for sure is what the final system will look like and how and when it will be available."
..... Nevertheless, he said. diocese officials and parents alike are "optimistic about the possibilities."