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Georgia Promise Scholarship — A Guide for Homeschool Families

The Georgia Promise Scholarship is a state-funded education savings account for students who leave a lower-performing public school, or who are about to start kindergarten, for private school or home study. It was created by Senate Bill 233 (2024) and is set out in O.C.G.A. Title 20, Chapter 2B. The Georgia Education Savings Authority (GESA) runs the program, and families apply and spend their funds through Odyssey. Most families who already homeschool will not qualify — see who is eligible below.

How Georgia Promise works for homeschool families

Be clear on eligibility first. A child qualifies only if they are currently enrolled in a Georgia public school and have been for two consecutive semesters, or are a rising kindergartner, and they live in the attendance zone of a school on the Governor's Office of Student Achievement list of the lowest-performing 25% of public schools. A child who is already homeschooled does not qualify by that route. GESA's handbook says students who qualify by coming from public school may choose home study instead of a private school.

Apply through Odyssey during an open window. Awards are decided after the window closes. When multiple applicants compete for limited funding, priority goes to current participants, then siblings, then families at or below 400% of the federal poverty level, then former participants, then everyone else, with a random draw within the last group considered. After an award, the parent opts in and picks an educational method (participating private school, non-participating private school, or home study). The child stays in public school until the current semester ends, then withdraws before the funded semester begins. A family choosing home study files a Declaration of Intent with the Georgia Department of Education.

Funds arrive quarterly. Families awarded in the March or May windows are funded for the full year; families awarded in the August or November windows are funded for the second half of the year only. A participating student must not enroll in a local public school, charter school or state charter school, and must recertify by May 31 every year. Home study students must take a GESA-approved nationally norm-referenced test, or the state assessment through their resident school district, every year and upload results by June 30. Students stay eligible until they return to public school, graduate, move out of Georgia, or turn 20 (21 for special education students).

What the money can pay for

Program rules define these qualified education expenses. Families spend through the program Marketplace, and only GESA-approved providers and offerings are eligible:

• Tuition, fees and required textbooks for eligible core and career-technical (CTAE) courses at a participating private school, an accredited community college or postsecondary institution, or a nonpublic online program or course
• Curriculum and the supplemental materials it requires, as approved by GESA, for core subjects
• Tutoring by an educator certified by the Georgia Professional Standards Commission
• Occupational, behavioral, physical or speech-language therapy from a Georgia-licensed physician or therapist
• Approved technology such as computers, tablets and accessories, with per-item price caps and per-family limits
• GESA-approved tests used to meet the annual testing requirement
• Fee-for-service transportation to a participating school or service provider, up to $500 a year
• Other expenses approved by GESA or the parent review committee

Before you buy

• Buy through the Odyssey Marketplace. Georgia Promise does not reimburse families for purchases made outside the Marketplace, except for eligible transportation.
• Transportation reimbursement covers paid services such as ride-share or public transit, not gas or mileage, and is capped at $500 a year.
• Check the Eligible Expense List before planning a purchase. Curriculum, books and classes must relate to core subjects, and electronics have item price caps and limits on how many a family can buy.
• A tutor must hold a Georgia Professional Standards Commission certificate to be paid with program funds.
• Funds can't be paid to family members or to businesses they own, including parents, grandparents, siblings, aunts, uncles and first cousins.
• No more than 50% of a year's award rolls over, whatever is left in the account. Plan your spending with that in mind.
• Amounts, windows and rules can change every year. Confirm anything important at MyGeorgiaPromise.org.

For vendors: becoming a Georgia Promise provider

GESA accepts service provider and vendor applications year-round through Odyssey's vendor portal. A vendor sells eligible goods, such as curriculum, books, software or kits. A service provider sells services: tutors must be educators certified by the Georgia Professional Standards Commission, therapists and physicians need a Georgia license, and community colleges, postsecondary institutions and online course providers need recognized accreditation. A business license is required for businesses and optional for individuals. Program rules require GESA to approve or deny an application within 60 days, and a denied provider can appeal to the parent review committee.

Once approved, you submit each product or service as an "offering" in a Marketplace category, and GESA must approve each one. Curriculum must relate to a core subject, and GESA encourages bundling (for example, ten tutoring sessions). Odyssey pays through a connected Stripe account once an order is fulfilled: when the first service is delivered, or when you enter a tracking number for physical goods. Approved providers complete an annual compliance form and agree not to charge Promise families more, not to add special fees, and not to refund or share funds with parents. Approved providers appear on a public list at MyGeorgiaPromise.org.

Listing on My Learning Source is separate from Georgia Promise approval — you don't need one to have the other, and families find you here either way.

Homeschooling in Georgia: the basics

• File a Declaration of Intent with the Georgia Department of Education within 30 days of starting a home study program, and by September 1 every year after that. It lists each child's name and age, the program's address, the local school system, and the 12-month school year. File online, by fax, by mail or by email, and keep a copy. (O.C.G.A. 20-2-690(c)(1)–(2); GaDOE)
• When a child leaves a Georgia public school, the district must have proof of home study enrollment within 45 days. The Declaration of Intent satisfies this; otherwise the district must refer the matter to the Division of Family and Children Services. (GaDOE)
• The teaching parent needs at least a high school diploma or a state-approved high school equivalency (GED/HSE) diploma, and may teach only their own children. Parents may hire a tutor with at least the same credential. (O.C.G.A. 20-2-690(c)(3))
• Teach a basic academic program that includes at least reading, language arts, mathematics, social studies and science. (O.C.G.A. 20-2-690(c)(4))
• Provide instruction equal to 180 school days in each 12 months, with each day at least 4½ school hours, unless the child is physically unable. Days already spent in a public or private school that year count toward the 180. (O.C.G.A. 20-2-690(c)(5); GaDOE)
• Write an annual progress assessment report covering each required subject, and keep it for three years. It is not filed with the state. (O.C.G.A. 20-2-690(c)(8))
• Give a nationally standardized test at least every three years, starting at the end of 3rd grade. Keep the results; you don't submit them. GaDOE notes that Georgia Milestones tests are not nationally standardized tests. (O.C.G.A. 20-2-690(c)(7); GaDOE)
• The parent controls the student's enrollment records, grades and transcripts. The Declaration of Intent serves as proof of enrollment for driver's permits and licenses, work permits and college admission. (O.C.G.A. 20-2-690(c)(6); GaDOE)
• Home study students in grades 6–12 may take part in extracurricular and interscholastic activities in their resident public school system under the Dexter Mosely Act. (O.C.G.A. 20-2-319.6; GaDOE)
• Georgia Promise home study students must also test every year, which is more often than home study law requires. (Georgia Promise Scholarship Program Regulations 17.4)

Other Georgia programs: special needs, tax-credit scholarships, Dual Enrollment and HOPE

Georgia Special Needs Scholarship: for public school students who had an IEP or a Section 504 Plan in specified areas during the previous school year. It helps pay tuition at a participating private school and cannot be used for home study. A student receiving it cannot also receive Georgia Promise. (GaDOE; O.C.G.A. 20-2-2110 et seq.)

Qualified Education Expense (QEE) tax-credit scholarships: Student Scholarship Organizations award private school tuition scholarships funded by donations that earn a Georgia tax credit. A student who was in a qualifying home study program for at least one year before the scholarship can qualify to move to a private school, but these scholarships do not pay for homeschool costs, and a recipient cannot also take Georgia Promise. The 2026 credit cap of