Education Savings Accounts (ESAs): Research, Accountability, and Transparency

17/03/2025 17 min Episodio 15
Education Savings Accounts (ESAs): Research, Accountability, and Transparency

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Episode Synopsis


Education Savings Accounts (ESAs) have expanded across the United States in recent years. These accounts provide state education funds, originally allocated for students to attend public school, to be redirected to families to use for educational services of their choice.
These programs enable parents to use these funds for a wide range of educational services, such as private school tuition, tutoring, distance learning options, and more.
In this episode of the Leading Voices podcast, host Danny Torres talks with William Berry, Research Associate with WestEd’s Charter and School Choice team, and Robin Chait Project Director with our School Choice team. They discuss how ESAs work, three primary accountability mechanisms, and the need for research on student outcomes.
Their conversation covers the following topics:

The growth or popularity of ESAs over time
Variation and flexibility among state ESA programs
Three types of accountability mechanisms

Transcript
Resources Mentioned in this Episode

Education Savings Accounts and Accountability: A Landscape Analysis Across States (Report)
Charters and School Choice (Website)


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