1,250 families apply for vouchers in Louisiana

About 1,250 families have applied for Louisiana's first school voucher program, seeking mainly to enroll children in kindergarten classes in Orleans and Jefferson parishes' private and parochial schools. The Student Scholarships for Educational Excellence Program will pay a participating nonpublic school either $6,300 for a student entering kindergarten through third grade or the student's tuition and fees, whichever is less. The legislation will cover up to 1,500 scholarships. To qualify, voucher applicants must live in New Orleans and their household income must not exceed 250 percent of the current federal poverty guidelines. That amounts to $53,000 for a family of four.