Unreasonable ESA Expenditures
Pay-to-Play? Arizona Schools Charging ESA Families Up to $1,500 a Class
Arizona’s Empowerment Scholarship Accounts (ESAs) have been making headlines over what critics call outrageous charges. The debate now centers on a basic question: what counts as a reasonable expenditure? If a parent pays under $100 for a single ESA-funded course, most would agree that’s reasonable. Even $350, including books, might be reasonable if it is a college class1. But when the price tag for just one course jumps to $1,200–$1,500 per semester, many say that crosses the line into outright excess.
If ESA students were paying $3,000 for a single course or lesson in the private sector, there would be widespread condemnation—yet in Arizona’s public schools, it’s becoming policy with barely a whisper.
Public schools are now charging ESA-funded students as much as $3,000 a year for a single course and up to $1,000 for a club or extracurricular activity—costs that, objectively speaking, many see as punitive or downright outrageous.
GROK: Thinks this is what school board members looked like mid-brainstorm session on bold new ways to milk ESA students.
In full disclosure, this report began when State 48 News editor Christy Kelly attempted to enroll her daughter2 in Junior ROTC (JROTC) and Cross Country. Over the past week, Kelly has navigated the challenging process of working within the public school system to access JROTC—a program not offered anywhere else. More about her individual takeaways later in this report.
Some Arizona public school districts are offering individual classes or extracurricular programs to ESA students (Arizona Department of Education – ESA Program Overview). Under Arizona’s ESA program, students must be officially withdrawn from a district or charter school before they can receive an ESA, which is designed to pay for education outside the public school system. ESA funds can, however, be used to pay for specific services a public school might offer—such as band, art, career and technical education courses, or athletics—if the school is willing to accept those students and provide itemized billing (Arizona Department of Education – ESA Parent Handbook 2025).
During this past week, Kelly received more questions than answers, and it appears even experts do not agree on best practices for applying ESA funds in these scenarios.
Arizona’s constitution guarantees free public education, and state law prohibits district and charter schools from charging non-waivable fees that would block enrollment (ACLU of Arizona – School Fees and Deposits). Schools must waive fees for students facing economic hardship, and nonpayment cannot be used to prevent enrollment or continued attendance. The question now is: does this rule apply to ESA students?
If it does, then reports suggesting that some schools still charge fees for textbooks, materials, or activities without offering waivers point to practices that could be legally questionable (ACLU of Arizona – School Fees and Deposits).
The arrangement has sparked debate over whether letting ESA students pay for public school classes is essentially “pay-to-play” in a system meant to be tuition-free. In fact, some schools openly call it exactly that. The bigger question—does this amount to an impermissible tax on ESA funds, especially given the hostility many schools have shown toward Arizona’s expanded program?
Critics warn that it risks creating inequities, where only families with the means to supplement their ESA funds can access certain public school programs. Supporters argue that it allows for more educational flexibility and resource-sharing between the public school system and families who have chosen alternative education paths.
While Arizona law keeps ESA and public school funding streams separate for full-time students, the growing need of ESA recipients seeking partial access to public school programs could force policymakers to clarify what constitutes a “reasonable fee.” If the average ESA award is approximately $7,000 per year (Arizona Department of Education – ESA Program Overview), is it reasonable to charge over half of that—$4,000—for access to a course and elective the student can’t find anywhere else?
That is the question now at the heart of Arizona’s ESA controversy.
Dysart School District - Lack Of Clear Information
One barrier to enrolling an ESA student into a public school course or club is the lack of clear guidelines on the school or districts website. For research purposes, Dysart, Agua Fria, Tolleson, Yuma and Mesa were researched for this report.
Kelly personally called the Dysart School District no fewer than ten times over the course of the week. She spoke with several secretaries who admitted they didn’t have answers and never received a return call from an administrator until about 2:30 p.m. on Friday. She missed that call but phoned back just two minutes later, only to reach his voicemail—and he never returned the call. After repeat phone calls, it remains unclear whether Dysart accepts out-of-district students, what fees might apply, or what their enrollment process entails for ESA students.
Dysart does list on their website that the fee for sports for an ESA child is $1,500 per sport. With the caveat that fees may be reduced with approval for “promotional activity” but is silent as to needs based.
The lack of clear communication for courses felt less like an oversight and more like a built-in feature of the system, where discouragement from attending and frustration with the process seem intentional rather than accidental.
Dysart is the only district in the West Valley offering Army Junior ROTC, a program that carries a unique advantage: students who complete two years enter military service with a higher rank. For students, completing programs like JROTC can translate into entering the military at a higher pay grade and salary—often starting at E-2 or E-3 instead of the standard E-1. That advancement can mean an additional $4,000 to $6,000 per year in base pay right from the start.
It is a special benefit available only through public schools. While other districts offer Air Force JROTC, Kelly’s daughter plans to join the Army—making Dysart’s program the obvious and preferable choice. That is why so many calls were made, and why the lack of answers was more than just an inconvenience—it was a roadblock to a rare and important opportunity.
Yuma School District
Yuma also makes it easy for ESA families to understand how they can participate—at least in the district’s sports programs. State 48 News could not find any publicly available information about ESA access to academic courses, but the athletic guidelines are clear. Full-time public school students pay a $45 fee per sport, traditional homeschoolers pay $65, and ESA homeschoolers are charged a staggering $650 per sport. The sharp price jump for ESA families raises questions about whether the fee structure is meant to cover costs—or to send a message.
Tolleson Union High School District
Most school districts are not advertising their “Pay-to-Play” fees on their website. For evidence of the fees you have to search through consent agendas.
In a school board context, a consent agenda is a bundled list of routine items—like approving minutes, contracts, or policy updates—passed with a single vote and no discussion unless a member pulls something out. Critics call it “sneaky” because controversial actions can be buried among mundane items, slipping through without public debate.
Here is Tolleson’s ESA fees buried in a consent agenda.
“ESA Tuition shall be charged at $1,571 a month.”
State 48 News contacted Superintendent Jeremy Calles to clarify whether the district was charging ESA students $1,571 per month or if the consent agenda item was inaccurately worded.
Calles explained:
“The fee is per activity, per semester. For instance, if you just wanted to take an Art Class for the first semester, then you pay the fee. If you also want to join the Art Club after school, then you would pay the fee for both the class and the club. I believe we only have one student that has paid the fee, but I can have the team double check if you need me to.”
We will address the “only one student has paid the fee” comment later in this report. Superintendent Calles has consistently responded promptly to State 48 News, and we appreciate his clarification.
A review of the April 8, 2025, board meeting video shows there was no discussion of “ESA Tuition Rates” prior to the vote. The item was included in the consent agenda—a bundled list of routine or noncontroversial items approved with a single motion and no discussion unless a board member specifically requests otherwise. Representative Elda Luna-Najera cast the only dissenting vote, offering no public explanation for her opposition.
It makes us wonder — did anyone on the board actually read the provision? How did error-filled language make it to a vote?
Is anyone even reading these things?
Agua Fria Union High School District
On June 5, 2024 Agua Fria Governing Board placed ESA fees on the consent agenda. The policy states, “by accepting an ESA, a student may not enroll in a public district school, charter school, and/or public district school … without paying the school.”
There is no mandate in Arizona law requiring school districts to charge ESA students for classes, clubs, or sports. State 48 News contacted Superintendent Tom Horne’s office, which provided the following statement:
“No directive for charging fees to ESA students has come from the Arizona Department of Education. ADE has no desire or authority to do that. Any fees that may be charged would be the action of a local district or charter,” a spokesperson for ADE said.
This means rates—such as the $1,571 per-semester activity fee in this case—are set entirely at the discretion of the local governing board, not the state.
Under A.R.S. § 15-2402(B)(2), once a parent accepts an ESA, the student “may not be enrolled in a school district or charter school, and shall be released from all obligations to be educated” by that institution. The law does not require ESA students to pay public schools—it simply prohibits them from being publicly enrolled (full time) while receiving ESA funds.
If a public school chooses to allow an ESA student to take a class or join an activity, it operates outside the scope of state funding and may charge tuition or fees. The 2025–2026 ESA Parent Handbook clarifies that if ESA students enroll as “tuition-paying student[s]” (Payer Code 2) rather than public students (Payer Code 1), the school can set its own rates and must issue a detailed invoice.
As a result, fees vary widely across Arizona. Some districts charge nothing, others a few hundred dollars, and then there’s are some coming in at over $1,500 per semester, per course. Which raises the question: is this truly about recovering costs, or is it the district’s polite way of telling ESA families, “you’re not welcome here”?
Bottom line: If a public school allows ESA students to participate, it may charge a fee because it does not receive state funding for that student.
But here’s the catch: Does Arizona require schools to offer a hardship waiver for these fees? There is no evidence that a waiver exists is for ESA students under state law. Whether a waiver or reduced rate is available is at the discretion of the local district. Some schools voluntarily offer breaks to families who can’t pay; others do not—leaving no safety net for students whose parents opted out of the public system.
That raises other questions: Are the fees being charged reasonable? Should there be a statewide requirement for hardship waivers? And can schools do more to streamline the process and clearly inform parents of their rights and responsibilities before a family is staring down a huge bill.
An administrator told State 48, “It would be easier if the Arizona Legislature would clean this up and define a parameter for fees.”
Families Are Not Paying Outrageous Fees to School Districts.
Agua Fria3 confirmed that last school year, only four students in the entire district paid to take a course or join a sport. This is in line with similarly low participation numbers reported, though not yet confirmed, by Tolleson. Kelly notes that while programs like Junior ROTC can be valuable, a fee of this size can be a strong deterrent, especially if similar opportunities exist elsewhere at a lower cost.
In addition to the financial hurdle, families often face practical barriers. Limited online guidance, unclear enrollment instructions, and inconsistent customer service can make the process more frustrating than it needs to be. For some parents, these challenges reinforce the very reasons they chose homeschooling in the first place: greater control, clearer communication, and a more streamlined educational experience for their children.
Which brings the question back into focus: if so few ESA students are taking advantage of these offerings, are the fees4 and the way they are administered truly reasonable, or are they functioning as a quiet barrier to entry?
State 48 News still has questions about how the ESA fee was approved in Agua Fria. Did board members carefully evaluate the proposal and understand the formula, or did they simply rubber-stamp what was put in front of them?
Here’s a preview of part two of our report: video from the board meeting showing how the ESA fee was approved despite clear signs that several members struggled to explain the formula, offered no individual analysis, and relied heavily on staff without fully considering the potential impact on parents. Aside from Governing Board Member Terry, whose substantive questions went unanswered, the panel moved the motion forward with minimal scrutiny.
Watch closely: This is how policy gets rubber-stamped.
Grand Canyon University offers a high school program for homeschool students where classes are approximately $350 per course, including the textbook.
For the record, Kelly has three daughters—two are graduates of Arizona public schools, while the youngest has attended a mix of charter schools and homeschool. Neither Kelly nor State 48 is anti–public school, so let’s skip the hate mail.
Side note: Agua Fria Superintendent Mark Yslas and his staff provide excellent customer service. We appreciate their prompt meeting with us and their willingness to walk through the thought process behind the fees.
Mesa Unified School District has a very detailed fee structure. This is from 2023 and has been use as a guide by other districts.
This article hits on a major problem with the ESA program: not all families have the money to pay in excess of the ESA award amount for education.
This is a major issue with private school tuition. The majority of private schools charge tuition that is higher than ESA award amounts. As a result, many private schools are only accessible to wealthy ESA families.
Any price controls for the ESA program should apply equally to public schools and private schools/providers in the marketplace.
If the private school tuition exceeds the ESA funding amount, families can opt to use STOs instead. You can’t use both sources of funding (you have to choose), but you can access more funding through an STO than through ESA. Families were using STOs before ESA universal was created.