PSFNC has just released their updated report, NC School Vouchers: Using Tax Dollars to Discriminate Against Students & Families. The report is a detailed look at how the private schools receiving taxpayer funds through the Opportunity Scholarship voucher program exclude students through discriminatory policies and admissions practices.
In North Carolina, hundreds of millions of dollars are spent each year on two school voucher programs (see our fact sheet for details). Unlike public schools, these voucher programs require virtually no accountability for how the funds are spent, whether the schools provide adequate instructional programs, or whether they discriminate against groups of students or their families. As a result, North Carolian taxpayers are left with no real understanding of the private schools benefiting from the vouchers while hundreds of millions of tax dollars are diverted from public schools that are highly regulated, transparent, and serve all students.
At the core of public education is the belief that a free, universal education system benefits society as a whole. The fact that every child is entitled to a quality education, free of discrimination based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, lifestyle, and income improves our economic and social wellbeing.
This report sheds light on the vast amount of public money directly funding institutional discrimination within recipient private schools during the 2025-2026 school year and provides recommendations to correct gaps in the current voucher program administration and oversight.
The policies described in the report range from exclusions based on the religious beliefs of students and family members, to academic performance, disability status, and whether an applicant or family member is part of the LGBTQ+ community. Some schools also require students and families to sign a “lifestyle policy” that extends to activities and behaviors of family members and associates. Not meeting the requirements may result in a rejected application or the student being expelled from the school. And unlike public schools, private schools are not required to provide a process for questioning or appealing these decisions. Read the Discrimination Report HERE.
To make it easier to find information on the 703 schools that accepted taxpayer-funded tuition vouchers in 2025-26 (along with a few others that are registered with NCSEAA and received vouchers in previous years), we created an online searchable database.
The database default orders the schools by total voucher dollars received in 2025-26. You can search by putting a keyword (e.g., school name, county) in the “Search in table” box at the top left side of the database.