Providing a Granite Foundation: Why New Hampshire Is 2025’s School-Choice Model 

W hile Congress debates whether to enact what would be a worthy nationwide school-choice program, the real transformation is already happening in the states. As the 2025 legislative sessions wrap up, one thing is clear: The once radical idea of giving every family access to educational choice is now mainstream.

Six states this year created or expanded school-choice programs to include all students, bringing the list of states with universal eligibility to 19. But one state, New Hampshire, didn’t stop at access. It joined a growing list of states to raise the bar even further and ensure its students can benefit from true educational freedom.

Making school choice available to all students is essential, but if programs limit how families can use funds, or fail to provide enough funding so interested families may participate, then states won’t live up to their promises. Prior to this year, New Hampshire’s education savings account (ESA) program, known as the Education Freedom Account (EFA) program, was already worthy of emulation in several ways. It was already a formula-funded program, ensuring funding for all eligible families, and it has always given families wide flexibility in how they may spend funds on their child’s education. This week, Governor Kelly Ayotte signed a law that lifts the program’s income cap, thereby allowing every child in the Granite State to participate in the program if their family chooses.

New Hampshire joins Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, and West Virginia, among others, in offering true, universal educational freedom, like that first envisioned by Nobel laureate Milton Friedman. Unlike some states that put excessive limits on how families may spend school-choice program dollars, or ones that fail to allocate sufficient funds such that programs with universal eligibility can only serve small populations, these states have created programs that serve all students, provide families with a wide range of options, and secure funding for all.

For example, Iowa and Indiana have enacted choice programs with universal eligibility and funding, but fall short in maximizing flexibility in how families use scholarships. Iowa requires families to use scholarship funds to pay for tuition first, while Indiana’s program limits use to tuition and fees. Utah and Alabama achieved universal eligibility and usage with their ESA programs, but they cap program funding at about $82.5 million and $180 million, respectively, meaning only a maximum of approximately 10,000 and 24,000 students can participate in each state.

By contrast, New Hampshire’s EFA program allows families to use EFA funds on a wide array of educational expenses aside from tuition itself, such as tutoring, educational therapies, relevant transportation, non-public online learning programs, computer hardware, books, testing fees, and more. The program is formula-funded, tied to the state’s Education Trust Fund — not a capped appropriation — meaning every student is guaranteed funding, regardless of how many apply.

Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, New Hampshire, and West Virginia are creating a marketplace of education where the money follows the student, thereby maximizing healthy competition between education providers and potential innovation. In Arizona, for example, which expanded its program to universality in 2022, education vendors have increased from under 3,000 to almost 5,600 in just one year.

But New Hampshire also stands out in how its program is implemented.

Unlike most states, which run their programs through a state department or agency, New Hampshire administers its program through an independent organization called the Children’s Scholarship Fund NH, and thus limits bureaucracy in a streamlined process that prioritizes families and their swift access to an education that best fits their needs.

As universal school choice becomes the new standard, the conversation must move beyond eligibility alone. A program that simply allows all students to apply isn’t enough. A truly universal system that will achieve the desired impact is one that funds every student and trusts families to choose from every type of learning environment. Importantly, this is something families want. Research carried out by EdChoice — a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization working to advance educational freedom and choice for all students as a pathway to successful lives and a stronger society — consistently shows overwhelming support for school-choice programs, especially among parents. A recent poll conducted by EdChoice and Morning Consult found 65 percent of Americans and 76 percent of school parents support ESAs. When it comes to support for making these programs universal, another EdChoice survey found 71 percent of Americans backing universal ESAs.

The momentum in the states proves this is not a passing trend. It’s the new reality. School choice is reshaping how America thinks about public education: not as a system bound by geography or bureaucracy, but as a commitment to funding students wherever and however they learn best. In 2025, New Hampshire didn’t just follow that trend — it defined the next chapter. Its bold, flexible, and fully funded program offers a blueprint for the future. Other states should take note: The bar has been raised.

Editor’s note: The funding amount for Alabama’s ESA program and the number of students participating in it have been corrected.