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PARKERSBURG -- Wood County is in the top five counties in West Virginia of students who are recipients of a Hope Scholarship for 2025-26, according to a report released by the state treasurer.
The 2025-2026 Hope Scholarship Annual Report said there were 788 students from Wood County receiving the scholarship, ranking the county third in the state behind Kanawha where there were 1,668 students and Berkeley where there were 1,424 students. Cabell County was listed with 787 students and Raleigh County with 717 students.
All but two counties in the region have fewer than 100 recipients, the least being Doddridge County with 13, which also is the fewest recipients in the state. In Jackson County, 255 students are recipients. Recipients in other counties in the region are 52 in Calhoun, 48 in Wirt, 41 in Gilmer, 34 in Wetzel, 28 in Tyler, 28 in Pleasants and 25 in Ritchie, according to the report.
Statewide, 14,486 students were recipients during the 2025-2026 school year, nearly 38% more from the previous year and six times greater than in the first year of the program in 2022-2023.
An education savings account program, the Hope Scholarship allows eligible families in West Virginia to use the state portion of funding for their K-12 child's education for expenses such as tuition at private schools, curriculum, tutoring and other educational services that qualify. It cannot be used for college, and students become ineligible at age 21.
Children in grades K-12, including in existing private schools and homeschool students who were previously ineligible, can now apply. More than 26,000 approved applications for the 2026-2027 school year have so far been received.
The report also said of the 893 families that responded in the Parent Satisfaction Survey, the leading reasons parents selected the Hope Scholarship were access to religious-based education (34%), concerns about public school curriculum (14%) and greater educational flexibility (10%).
The fourth annual report cites record growth and expansion of the Hope Scholarship, Treasurer Larry Pack, chairman of the Hope Scholarship Board, said. The report can be seen here: https://hopescholarshipwv.gov/Portals/HopeScholarship/content/Documents/Reports/Hope%20Scholarship%2025-26%20Annual%20Report.pdf
"The Hope Scholarship has come a long way since its launch in 2022, growing from just over 2,300 students to more than 14,400 during the past school year," Pack said. "What started as new opportunities for students has evolved into the gold standard for education choice programs around the country. We are proud of our ability to serve students throughout all 55 counties while providing more education resources and greater flexibility than ever before. We encourage parents to explore how the Hope Scholarship can meet their child's unique educational needs."
The report said 62% of recipients attended non-public schools and about 38% received an individualized instructional plan through home-based learning or other approved educational options.
The program served students in all grades, but kindergarten is the largest with 2,130 students, and 1,217 recipients, 8.4%, were students with special needs, the report said.
More educational opportunities are available to families, with more than 300 participating nonpublic schools and microschools and more than 1,300 non-school education service providers offering services such as tutoring, educational therapies, specialized instruction and supplemental learning resources.
Pack said the findings reinforce the importance of continuing to strengthen the program as more students become eligible.
"The Hope Scholarship is about more than funding education. It's about empowering parents to make decisions that can shape their children's futures," Pack said. "As a father of six children, I know first-hand every child learns differently and has unique needs. Next to your individual faith journey, education is the biggest determinate to a successful life. We look forward to working with policy makers to improve educational outcomes regardless if it's private, public, or an individualized learning plan."
The issue is taxes can be spent out of state when public schools in West Virginia are facing dire financial problems, according to Dale Lee of Education West Virginia, which represents educators. The existing school aid formula is being debated in the Legislature and challenged in court.
"West Virginia tax dollars are being spent in schools, public and private, out of state," Lee said.
Lincoln County residents have sued to change the formula and the state has asked to delay action until after the 2027 legislative session when the issue will be addressed.
Five of the top 10 education service providers were out of state, according to the report: Miacademy of Garberville, Nev., $287,504; Steubenville City Schools, $219,913; Acellus Academy, Kansas City; PF High School LLC, Nashville, Tenn., 138,307; and Out School, San Francisco, $136,850.
Out-of-state students also attend schools in West Virginia, but residents of West Virginia aren’t paying for it, Lee said.
"The difference is the parents are paying the tuition, not the taxpayers in West Virginia.," he said.