‘Opportunity Arkansas’ launches dashboard to help parents navigate school choice program

Opportunity Arkansas has launched a brand-new dashboard to help parents navigate the state’s school choice program.

Arkansas Children’s Educational Freedom Account (EFA) program was created in 2023 and currently serves select student groups such as special needs students, those in foster care, those who are homeless, and those in the lowest-ranked public schools.

But in 2025, it will become universally available to all Arkansas families.

Opportunity Arkansas’ (OA) new dashboard – Empower AR Parents – makes it easy for families to find information about how the program works, how the EFA funds can be spent, which schools are already EFA-approved, and common misconceptions about school choice.  

“Education freedom is catching fire across our state. It’s helping families find new, needed educational options and it’s already changing the course of the next generation of Arkansans,” Nic Horton, founder and CEO of OA, said in a press release obtained by The Lion. 

“OA is committed to ensuring [students] know about this new, life-changing program,” Horton continued. “That’s why we launched EmpowerARParents.com. It’s a one-stop shop for Arkansas parents so they can have the facts they need to make the best decisions for their kids.”  

Last fall, the inaugural group of nearly 5,000 students was approved for the state’s first EFAs, and the Arkansas Department of Education found positive results in its first quarterly report.  

Other states with new school choice programs are also having major success.  

Ohio recently approved nearly 90,000 scholarships – more than double the previous year’s number – after making its preexisting program universal. Iowa gave over 18,000 scholarships during its inaugural year, and Oklahoma received 30,000 applications in the first two hours of the application being opened.