My Learning Source Louisiana › Homeschooling in Louisiana › LA GATOR Scholarship — A Guide for Homeschool Families
LA GATOR Scholarship — A Guide for Homeschool Families
The LA GATOR (Louisiana Giving All True Opportunity to Rise) Scholarship Program is a state-funded education scholarship account. It pays for approved education expenses at a BESE-approved nonpublic school or for a "home-based education" built from approved providers. It was created by Act 1 of 2024 and is set out in La. R.S. 17:4037.1 and the sections that follow. The Louisiana Department of Education (LDOE) runs the program, and families apply and spend their funds through Odyssey. Two cautions up front: awards depend on what the Legislature funds each year, and they have not covered every eligible applicant. Also, a child cannot be in LA GATOR and in a registered Louisiana home study at the same time.
| Overseen by | Louisiana Department of Education, under rules adopted by the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) (La. R.S. 17:4037.1 et seq.; Act 1 of 2024) |
|---|---|
| Administered by | Odyssey (applications, student accounts and the LA GATOR Marketplace) |
| Amount per student, 2026–27 | Up to 5,253 for students with an IDEA disability (tiered by disability), $7,626 for families at or below 250% of the federal poverty level, and $5,243 for all other eligible students. Former Louisiana Scholarship Program students keep their 2024–25 award amount. |
| Who is eligible | Louisiana residents age 5 to 21 by September 30, 2026 who were in LA GATOR in 2025–26 (or the Louisiana Scholarship Program in 2024–25), are entering kindergarten, were enrolled in a public school on both October 1 and February 1 of 2025–26, or have household income at or below 250% of the federal poverty level. |
| Application window / next dates | The 2026–27 window ran March 1–16, 2026, and returning students had to renew in it. Dates for 2027–28 have not been announced; LDOE says to watch the LA GATOR website. |
| Funding limits | Awards depend on the money the Legislature appropriates each year, and eligibility does not guarantee an award. When money runs short, returning students come first, then low-income students and students with disabilities, then siblings, then everyone else, with earlier applications first within each group. Students waiting for funding show as "Eligible" in Odyssey. |
| Already homeschooling? | A student in a BESE-approved home study program, or in a home study registered with LDOE as a nonpublic school not seeking state approval, cannot take part in LA GATOR at the same time. LA GATOR has its own "home-based education" setting instead. |
How LA GATOR works for homeschool families
Start with the home study rule. Act 1 of 2024 says a student may not take part in LA GATOR at the same time as a BESE-approved home study program or a home study registered with LDOE as a nonpublic school not seeking state approval. Louisiana's two usual homeschool routes are both excluded. A family that wants LA GATOR uses the program's own "home-based education" setting instead of registering a home study.
In "home-based education", the student learns primarily or partly at home, using approved LA GATOR service providers from the Odyssey Marketplace. The family builds the program from courses, tutoring, curriculum, therapies and materials bought through the Marketplace. Tuition at a full-time BESE-approved school is not part of this setting. For compulsory attendance, a student in LA GATOR counts as attending a day school (La. R.S. 17:236). The family must make sure the student is taught at least English language arts, math, social studies and science. The education must also satisfy Louisiana's compulsory attendance law.
Apply through Odyssey during the window. Odyssey checks residency and income with the Louisiana Department of Revenue and asks for documents if that check comes back empty. Award notices go out only after the Legislature sets the money and the Governor signs off. An approved family must opt in for each child in Odyssey, or the child's place is forfeited for the year. Students funded later in the year from the waitlist get a prorated award: 75% if funded in the second quarter, 50% in the third.
Every participating student must take an annual test in English language arts and math: the state assessment for their grade, or a BESE-approved nationally norm-referenced test such as the Iowa, Stanford, TerraNova, CAT, MAP, CLT, ACT, SAT or PSAT. Skipping it can affect eligibility in later years. Unused funds stay in the account while the student remains eligible. Eligibility ends if the student enrolls full-time in a public school, leaves Louisiana, graduates or withdraws, the family gives false information, or the account is inactive for two years in a row. Families must re-verify eligibility every year.
What the money can pay for
LDOE's list of eligible expenses for LA GATOR includes the following. All purchases and tuition payments go through the Odyssey platform, and some items have price caps:
- Curricula, textbooks and other instructional materials, including supplemental materials or online instruction required by a school or service provider
- Tutoring by a tutor or tutoring service
- Educational services and therapies: occupational, behavioral, physical, speech-language and audiology
- Tuition or fees for nonpublic online learning programs, and tuition and fees for dual enrollment courses at a college
- Tuition, fees, materials and exam fees at a career or technical school
- Fees for LDOE-approved assessments, AP, CLEP and IB exams, and college admission exams
- Computers and other devices used mainly for the student's education, and educational software
- Summer programs and before- or after-school programs that offer academic support
- Individual classes, extracurricular activities and other services bought from a public school
- Parent navigation services, such as help choosing curriculum or planning for college and careers
- Tuition and fees at a participating BESE-approved nonpublic school, and school uniforms (for students in the school setting)
- Other educational supplies or expenses approved by BESE
Before you buy
- Shop through the LA GATOR Marketplace in your Odyssey wallet. Program guidance says all purchases and tuition payments are completed through the Odyssey platform.
- Check the price caps. For example, tablets, laptops and desktops are capped at ,000 with one purchase every three years. Printers are capped at00 with one every five years, and calculators at50.,500), up to the school's tuition. It does not pay for home study and cannot be combined with LA GATOR. (LDOE)
- Keep your child out of a registered home study while in LA GATOR. Registering a BESE-approved home study, or a nonpublic school not seeking state approval, conflicts with the program.
- Plan for the annual English language arts and math test, and keep the results.
- LA GATOR cannot be combined with the Course Choice Program or the School Choice Program for Certain Students with Exceptionalities. It can be stacked with a Tuition Donation Credit scholarship for private school tuition, within limits.
- Amounts, windows and rules can change every year. Confirm anything important on the LDOE LA GATOR pages and in the Odyssey help center.
Funding and the waitlist
LA GATOR is not an entitlement. Its funding is set by the Legislature each year, and LDOE states plainly that meeting the eligibility requirements does not guarantee a scholarship. More than 39,000 students applied in the program's first year (LDOE, April 2025), far more than the money could cover.
When funds fall short, LDOE awards in this order: students who were approved and funded the year before, then students from families at or below 250% of the federal poverty level or with an IDEA disability, then siblings of current participants, then all other eligible students. Within each group, earlier applications come first. In practice that means returning students take most of the money, and a new family without priority may wait or not be funded at all. The 2026–27 window lasted only 16 days (March 1–16, 2026). Watch for the 2027–28 dates early in the year and apply as soon as the window opens.
For vendors: becoming an LA GATOR provider
Vendors and service providers apply through Odyssey's LA GATOR vendor portal. You must operate as a U.S. entity and offer products or services that are eligible under the program. You pick a provider type and upload its documents. Full-time education providers, such as microschools and online schools that are not BESE-approved, send their LLC documents and disciplinary policies. Part-time education providers such as tutors, therapists, and "other" vendors such as retailers and curriculum sellers send their LLC documents. Public schools need a letter from the superintendent. LDOE and Odyssey review every vendor and every offering, and Odyssey says reviews take about two to three weeks.
Once approved, you list each product or service in a Marketplace category, within LDOE's price caps. A nonpublic school that is not BESE-approved can sell individual courses and services this way, but it cannot take full-year tuition.
Listing on My Learning Source is separate from LA GATOR approval — you don't need one to have the other, and families find you here either way.
Homeschooling in Louisiana: the basics
- Louisiana has two home study options. One is a BESE-approved home study program. The other is a home study registered with LDOE as a nonpublic school not seeking state approval. Either way the parent chooses the curriculum, and no teaching certificate is required. (LDOE; La. R.S. 17:236, 17:236.1)
- BESE-approved home study: apply to LDOE (online is the usual route) within 15 days after the program starts. With the first application, send a certified copy of the child's birth certificate and certify that the program will offer a sustained curriculum of quality at least equal to that of public schools at the same grade level. Approval lasts one year from the approval date. (La. R.S. 17:236.1(A)–(B); LDOE guidelines)
- Renew by October 1 of the school year or within 12 months of the first approval, whichever is later. Renew sooner if the child moves up a grade. A renewal needs one of three kinds of evidence: (1) a packet such as subject outlines, a book list, work samples or test results; (2) a standardized test showing the child at or above grade level, or a year of progress for each year in home study; or (3) a statement from a teacher certified for the child's grade that the curriculum meets the standard. (La. R.S. 17:236.1(C)–(D))
- Students in BESE-approved home study count as attending a day school, aren't required to take state tests, may borrow state-approved textbooks from the local school system when extra copies are available, and can try out for activities and sports at their zoned public school. Their parent-issued diploma carries the same rights as one from a state-approved nonpublic school. (La. R.S. 17:236, 17:236.1(G); LDOE guidelines)
- Nonpublic school not seeking state approval: each year, submit the school's enrollment through LDOE's online attendance form. State law has schools report attendance as of the 30th day of the session. If the child left a public school, send that school a notice of enrollment within 10 days. LDOE guidance says the school must keep attendance records and run a session of at least 180 days. LDOE does not approve or keep records for these schools. (LDOE guidelines; La. R.S. 17:221.3, 17:232(C), 17:236)
- Students in a nonpublic school not seeking state approval are not eligible for TOPS, and their diploma does not carry the weight of a state diploma. (LDOE)
- Neither home study option qualifies for special education services under IDEA or Section 504 accommodations, so talk with your school district first if your child has an IEP. (LDOE)
- Neither registered home study option can be combined with LA GATOR. (Act 1 of 2024; LDOE)
Other Louisiana programs: special needs, tuition donation scholarships, tax deductions, TOPS and dual enrollment
School Choice Program for Certain Students with Exceptionalities: tuition help at a participating BESE-approved nonpublic school for students with disabilities in Caddo, Calcasieu, East Baton Rouge, Jefferson, Lafayette, Orleans and St. Tammany parishes. It pays 50% of the district's state per-pupil funding (about
Tuition Donation Credit (TDC) scholarships: nonprofit School Tuition Organizations give private school tuition scholarships to students from families at or below 250% of the federal poverty level who were in public school on October 1 and February 1, are entering kindergarten, or had a TDC or Louisiana Scholarship Program scholarship the year before. Donors earn a Louisiana income tax credit (La. R.S. 47:6301). These scholarships do not pay homeschool costs. (LDOE)
State income tax deduction for home-schooling: Louisiana taxpayers can deduct 50% of what they spend on textbooks and curricula needed to home-school a dependent child, up to $6,000 per child for tax years 2024 and later. Claim it on Schedule E of Form IT-540 with the School Expense Deduction Worksheet. (La. R.S. 47:297.11; Louisiana Department of Revenue)
TOPS for home study graduates: LDOE must certify to LOSFA that the student completed 11th grade (if applicable) and 12th grade in a BESE-approved home study program. A student who earlier attended a Louisiana or approved high school must complete both grades in home study. Home study completers qualify by test score instead of GPA and core curriculum. The minimum ACT scores are 17 for TOPS Tech, 20 for Opportunity, 23 for Performance, 27 for Honors and 31 for Excellence; LOSFA also lists SAT and, from the class of 2025, CLT equivalents. Use high school code 969999 on the ACT. (LOSFA TOPS Q&A, revised April 23, 2026)
Dual enrollment: colleges set their own rules for home study students. For example, SOWELA Technical Community College asks for a BESE-approved Home Study approval letter and a transcript with a GPA. Ask each college about eligibility and cost. LA GATOR students can use their funds for dual enrollment tuition and fees. (SOWELA; LDOE)
Driver's licenses for home-schooled teens
Driver education: a teen under 18 must complete a driver education course with at least 30 hours of classroom instruction and 8 hours of behind-the-wheel instruction (La. R.S. 32:402.1). The Office of Motor Vehicles (OMV) says these courses are offered by OMV-licensed driving schools and at some secondary schools. Neither the law nor OMV mentions a parent-taught course. Before starting, the teen gets a Temporary Instructional Permit (TIP) from OMV, available from age 14. Someone 18 or older who never took driver education takes a shorter prelicensing course instead: at least 6 classroom hours and 8 driving hours. (La. R.S. 32:402.1; OMV)
Learner's permit: after driver education, the teen passes a vision test and a knowledge test (80% to pass), and a custodial parent or legal guardian signs the application. A teen who starts at 15 must hold the learner's permit for at least 180 days and be 16 before applying for an intermediate license. (OMV, Class E learner's permit requirements for minors)
School attendance rule: Louisiana won't issue a driver's license or learner's permit to a minor (ages 15 through 17) without proof of a qualifying status, such as being enrolled in school or having graduated. Being "enrolled in and participating in a home school program" counts, and for a home school the parent is the "appropriate authority" (La. R.S. 32:431.1).
What to bring: OMV policy says home study and registered nonpublic school families bring a letter each time a minor applies. For BESE-approved home study, that's the signed and approved Home Study Approval Notification Letter. For a nonpublic school not seeking state approval, it's the Registration Confirmation Letter for the school. Each letter is valid for one year from its date and must be renewed every year. A teen who has graduated or earned a high school equivalency diploma can show the diploma instead. (OMV Policy 8.00, revised September 4, 2018)
LDOE gives the same advice. BESE-approved home study families should keep a copy of the official approval letter (emailed to you if you applied online) and use it as proof of attendance at OMV. Nonpublic schools not seeking state approval should keep the Attendance Submission Confirmation letter and also fill out the parent-signed Certification of School Attendance form in LDOE's guidelines. Rules can change, so call your local OMV office to confirm which papers it wants before you go. (LDOE home study and nonpublic school guidelines)
Sports and special education for home study students
Sports: a public school may not disqualify a student from extracurricular activities or interscholastic athletics only because the student is in a BESE-approved home study program, as long as the student lives in that school's attendance zone (La. R.S. 17:176.2). The student tries out or applies in the same manner, at the same time and place as students who attend the school. Once on a team or club, the student must meet every requirement enrolled students meet, including a minimum grade point average and discipline standards, and the school can remove a student who doesn't. No public school may belong to, or compete in events run by, an athletic association that denies eligibility solely because a student is in approved home study. Act 545 of 2026 (HB 363), effective August 1, 2026, extends these rules to virtual school students. The law defines an approved home study program as one approved under R.S. 17:236.1, so if your family operates as a nonpublic school not seeking state approval, ask the school and district before tryouts. Ask the school's athletic director which LHSAA forms and deadlines apply.
Special education: LDOE's home study guidelines tell parents of children with exceptionalities to contact their local school system before enrolling in BESE-approved home study, to learn what free and appropriate educational services are available. Louisiana's special education rules (Bulletin 1706) require public agencies to keep looking for students suspected of having a disability who need special education, including students enrolled in a private school program in the agency's area and students not enrolled in any school (Bulletin 1706 §111). For children whose parents enroll them in private schools, the district where the school is located must locate, identify and evaluate them, and it serves those it designates through a services plan (§§131–132). If the parent of a home-schooled child declines consent for an evaluation or doesn't answer, the district can't override that, and it isn't required to treat the child as eligible for private school services (§301). Districts must find and evaluate gifted and talented private school students, but no district has to provide gifted services to students in private schools or home school programs (§1129).
Special education: LDOE says students in either home study option don't qualify for IDEA services or Section 504 accommodations, while Bulletin 1706's child find rules reach children who aren't enrolled in a school. Because these don't line up neatly, ask your district's special education office, in writing, whether it will evaluate your child and what, if anything, it will provide while your child is in home study.
Official sources
- LA GATOR Scholarship Program (LDOE)
- LA GATOR for families: eligibility and awards (LDOE)
- LA GATOR help center (Odyssey)
- Eligibility requirements for 2026–27 (Odyssey)
- Eligible schools and programs, including home-based education (Odyssey)
- Award amounts (Odyssey)
- Funding priority order for 2026–27 (Odyssey)
- Eligible educational expenses (Odyssey)
- Price caps and purchase restrictions (Odyssey)
- Testing requirements and approved tests (Odyssey)
- How to become an LA GATOR vendor or service provider (Odyssey)
- Vendor and service provider registration (Odyssey)
- La. R.S. 17:4037.1 (LA GATOR Scholarship Program)
- BESE-Approved Home Study Program (LDOE)
- BESE-Approved Home Study Program Guidelines (LDOE, March 2026)
- Nonpublic Schools Not Seeking State Approval Guidelines (LDOE, July 2026)
- La. R.S. 17:236.1 (approval of home study programs)
- La. R.S. 17:236 (definition of a school)
- TOPS for home study students (LOSFA)
- TOPS Q&A: Home Study Programs (LOSFA, revised April 2026)
- School Choice Program for Certain Students with Exceptionalities (LDOE)
- Tuition Donation Credit Program FAQ (LDOE)
- School expense deductions (Louisiana Department of Revenue)
- La. R.S. 47:297.11 (home-schooling expense deduction)
- Dual enrollment for homeschool students (SOWELA)
- La. R.S. 32:402.1, driver education required (Louisiana Legislature)
- La. R.S. 32:431.1, school attendance as a condition of driving (Louisiana Legislature)
- OMV Policy 8.00: a minor's driver's license application (Louisiana OMV)
- Driver's education: student and parent information (Louisiana OMV)
- Class E learner's permit requirements for minors (Louisiana OMV)
- R.S. 17:176.2: home study students in extracurricular activities and athletics — Louisiana Legislature
- HB 363 (2026), enrolled: Act 545 adds virtual school students — Louisiana Legislature
- Act 545 (HB 363) résumé digest, effective August 1, 2026 — Louisiana Legislature
- Bulletin 1706, special education regulations (LAC 28:XLIII) — Louisiana Office of the State Register
My Learning Source is an independent marketplace. We are not affiliated with the Louisiana Department of Education, the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, the LA GATOR Scholarship Program or Odyssey, and a listing here does not mean a vendor is an approved LA GATOR provider.
As of October 2026.
Loading the full Louisiana site… If it does not appear, everything on this page is readable above.