Conservative billionaire revives South Carolina’s school choice program rocked by sudden court decision

Just weeks after the South Carolina Supreme Court struck down school choice in the state, a conservative billionaire is coming to the rescue, at least through the end of this year.

The South Carolina Supreme Court ruled the state’s Education Scholarship Trust Fund (ESTF) unconstitutional last month due to an antiquated law called the Blaine Amendment.

The 3,000 families using the ESTF program to send their children to private school were immediately thrown into chaos since the school year was already underway. Scholarship funds had been awarded for the whole year but the court’s ruling effectively blocked any remaining payments, leaving participants in a state of jeopardy.

“The joy we felt when we received the grant award for Jazlyn was indescribable,” Sarah, the mother of an ESTF recipient, told state legislators. “After years of struggling to pay for private education for our eldest daughter, we saw this grant as a divine blessing, especially given the financial strain we’ve endured due to health issues and the economy.

“With the revocation of the grant, we face the daunting prospect of uprooting Jazlyn from the only classroom and teacher she knows, just weeks into her kindergarten experience.”

But now Jeff Yass, a Pennsylvania-based investor and school choice supporter, has decided to step in.

“I am pleased to announce the Palmetto Promise Institute [PPI] will be able to fund ESTF scholarships for school tuition [through] the end of the calendar year due to the generosity of Jeff Yass [who] is a strong believer in the power of school choice options to change lives,” said Wendy Damron, president and CEO of PPI.

Yass is pledging roughly $900,000 to the cause.

Other prominent South Carolinians are also defending the program, including Gov. Henry McMaster.

McMaster says the court’s ruling – which forbids public funding for private schools – negatively impacts poor families and could affect pre-K and college scholarships as well.

“[The ruling] may also jeopardize the future enrollment of tens of thousands of students in state-funded four-year-old kindergarten programs and state-funded scholarships utilized by students at private colleges and HBCUs [historically black colleges and universities],” McMaster, a Republican, said in September.

“For these reasons, and more, we will request the Court to expeditiously reconsider this decision – so that the children of low-income families may have the opportunity to attend the school that best suits their needs.”  

State Superintendent Ellen Weaver also opposed the court’s ruling.  

“Families cried tears of joy when the scholarship funds became available for their children, and today’s Supreme Court ruling brings those same families tears of devastation,” Weaver said in a press release.  

“I remain committed to working with the Governor and the General Assembly to find a way forward to support these students and educational freedom for all South Carolina families. These students deserve better, and I will not rest until they get it.” 

But in the meantime, it’s up to private donors like Yass to keep school choice alive in the Palmetto State. It will cost $3,000 per student to fund the scholarships through the end of the school year.

“If you would like to support ESTF families through the entire 2024-25 school year, we are continuing to accept donations, 100% of which go to pay ESTF families’ school tuition,” Damron said.