School Choice

School Choice and Homeschool in District of Columbia

Private school choice programs, charter schools, homeschool rules and private schools in District of Columbia. Facts as of November 2026.

Choice programs1All limited by eligibility
Charter schoolsAllowedPublic charter law
Homeschool noticeYesTesting: No

Private school choice programs

How they work ›

DC Opportunity Scholarship Program

Voucher Limited Enacted 2004 (year not confirmed)

Open to District of Columbia residents entering kindergarten through grade 12 whose family receives SNAP or has income at or below 185% of the poverty threshold (300% for renewing families); scholarships fund tuition at participating private schools.

Federally funded and congressionally authorized (first enacted 2004, continued under the SOAR Act of 2011 and its 2017 reauthorization) and run by the nonprofit Serving Our Children; lottery when oversubscribed. The 2004 year comes from Congressional Research Service and Department of Education material surfaced in search, not from the administrator page.

Official source

Charter schools

District of Columbia has a public charter school law.

Official source

Homeschool rules

Parents file a Notification of Intent to Homeschool with the Office of the State Superintendent of Education at least 15 business days before instruction begins and a continuation notice each year by August 15. Parents keep a portfolio of work that OSSE may review on request; standardized testing is not required. Check your state's law before you start.

Notice: Yes Testing: No

Law: D.C. Mun. Regs. tit. 5-E, ch. 52. Official source

Notes

The District of Columbia is not a state; its scholarship is federally funded. The regulation citation (5-E DCMR ch. 52) comes from OSSE materials as surfaced in search results.

Some items in a note may rest on news reports rather than an official source.

Private schools in District of Columbia

The private school list will appear here after the first scheduled update.

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Sources: Serving Our Children: Apply (DC Opportunity Scholarship Program), U.S. Department of Education: DC School Choice (SOAR Act), DC Public Charter School Board: School Reform Act of 1995, OSSE: Homeschooling in the District, OSSE: Homeschooling in the District of Columbia (FAQ PDF), NCES Private School Universe Survey. State facts as of November 2026. Check your state's law before you start.