Applying for West Virginia’s Hope Scholarship

• Eligible expenses include tuition and fees for private schools or nonpublic online learning programs. This includes tuition and fees for participating in online Christian schools such as Enlightium Academy.
• Enlightium Academy’s team can coordinate with both your family and the Hope Scholarship organization so that your tuition can be paid directly by the scholarship.
• At Enlightium Academy, this scholarship can be used to offset or completely cover a premium teacher support package at Enlightium Academy, such as the Gold package. Additionally, funds may be able to roll over to the next school year, allowing a family to choose different packages each year (such as the Silver Package one year and the Diamond Package the next).
• Certain eligibility requirements must be met to qualify. All qualifying families are encouraged to pursue this opportunity by applying for the Hope Scholarship. This article will walk you through the steps to apply, as well as the next steps required to use the funds.
• Applications for the upcoming school year begin on March 1. Applications submitted after June 15 may not be eligible for the full scholarship, so it is important to apply as soon as possible to have the best chance at securing your funds.

1. Review the eligibility requirements for the Hope Scholarship. In general, students must reside in West Virginia and either be enrolling for kindergarten for the first time, or have attended a private school for a qualifying period.
   1. The Hope Scholarship plans to expand eligibility to all West Virginia students for the 2026-2027 school year.
   2. Students who attended a preschool program, including those offered by Enlightium Academy, will still be eligible to apply for the Hope Scholarship if they are otherwise eligible.
2. Gather the required documents for the Hope Scholarship using this application checklist.
   1. The Notice of Intent to Participate in the Hope Scholarship Program is required for all Hope Scholarship students. It is recommended that this step is completed before applying for incoming kindergarten students, and after the scholarship is approved for students entering grades 1-12.
3. Apply for the Hope Scholarship. 
   1. You must complete the “Student Information” section of the application before you can save your draft.
   2. You must submit one application per student. You can submit applications for multiple students using the same Hope Scholarship account. The status of each student’s application can be found in the Hope Scholarship portal.
   3. When completing the Notice of Intent form, you will need to note that your students will be attending a participating school. You do not need to include the name of the participating school.
4. Enroll at Enlightium Academy; please speak to our Enrollment Department if you have questions about this.
   1. Note: Out-of-pocket payments for tuition or fees at a participating school will not be reimbursed by the Hope Scholarship. As a result, the enrollment fee will be deferred so that it can be paid through the Hope Scholarship. The enrollment fee is still considered due and non-refundable 72 hours after submitting the enrollment form.
5. Complete the entrance exams in IXL and provide required records to Enlightium Academy.
6. Once your scholarship is awarded, you will need to “enroll” at Enlightium Academy in the Hope Scholarship portal. Locate your student’s application in the portal, click “Select School,” and search for Enlightium Academy. 
   1. Once your student’s classes are assigned, an Enlightium representative will verify your student’s enrollment through the ESA portal. Your student’s enrollment cannot be verified in the ESA portal until classes are assigned.
7. After your student is verified in the ESA portal, you will receive an email from billing@enlightiumacademy.com with the total tuition and fees, as well as the due dates for each payment.
8. Once Enlightium’s Billing Department has provided you with a breakdown of the tuition and fees, log into the Hope Scholarship portal and submit payment for the first half of the tuition. 
   1. Log into the Hope Scholarship portal, and click on “My School.” Click here for more detailed directions on navigating the Hope Scholarship portal.
   2. Select “Pay Tuition and Fees” for the appropriate semester.
   3. Ensure that the amounts listed equal 50% of the full-year tuition and fees listed in the tuition breakdown from Enlightium Academy. If this is not the case, please email billing@enlightiumacademy.com. 
9. Enlightium’s Billing Department will reach out to you when the payment is received from the Hope Scholarship.

The total scholarship amount may change each school year, depending on the funding per pupil provided by the state for public school students. The total amount awarded to a given student also depends on when the scholarship application was submitted. Visit the Hope Scholarship website for current scholarship amounts and application deadlines.

Students who attended Enlightium full-time for the 2024-2025 school year and did not use the Hope Scholarship are not currently eligible to apply. However, the scholarship plans to allow current private school students to apply for the 2026-2027 school year.

Yes. The Hope Scholarship allows up to 50% of the tuition and fees for the school year to be paid in a single payment during the first semester and the other 50% to be paid in a single payment during the second semester. Payment amounts and due dates will be set by Enlightium Academy to accommodate this schedule.

Enlightium offers some tuition packages or services that may only be partially covered by the Hope Scholarship. The parent is responsible for any balance that may remain after applying all Hope Scholarship payments for the school year.

Since the primary parent on the account assumes full responsibility for any amount not covered by the Hope Scholarship, parents are encouraged to confirm how much the Hope Scholarship will cover prior to selecting a tuition package.

If your student’s tuition and fees for the school year are greater than the typical award amount for the Hope Scholarship, or if there is a remaining balance after payment is made for the second semester, you must make arrangements with Enlightium’s Billing Department for the remaining balance.

Students who return to their public schools will not be able to participate in the Hope Scholarship. Families returning to public school can email hopescholarshipwv@wvsto.com the following information:

• That their student will be returning to public school
• The name of the county board of education or charter school their student will be attending

Any remaining scholarship funds will be returned to the state and/or your student’s new school to fund their public education. You cannot re-apply to the Hope Scholarship during the same school year, but you will be eligible to apply for future school years.

Yes. Enlightium’s standard discounts can be applied to ESA recipients if they meet the eligibility requirements for the discount.

According to the Hope Scholarship Reimbursement Policy, parents may be reimbursed for purchases of off-the-shelf curriculum, including supplemental material for a specific course. This includes textbooks, workbooks, educational videos, and more. Parents may also be reimbursed for purchasing ACT or SAT exams, Advanced Placement exams, and other nationally normed standardized online tests if certain conditions are met.

Parents will not be reimbursed for purchasing other qualifying expenses out of pocket (such as tuition) without extenuating circumstances noted in the reimbursement policy, nor will they be reimbursed for purchases from vendors who are not approved by the Hope Scholarship. Please check the reimbursement policy before making out-of-pocket purchases, and contact a Hope Scholarship representative if you are unsure whether your purchase is eligible for reimbursement.