Nearly 37,000 Alabama students have signed up for the state’s newest school choice program, which would give families thousands of taxpayer dollars to use for private education.

But not every student’s family will get a check in July for private school tuition; current funding can support up to 14,000 students in the program’s first year.

The CHOOSE Act provides families with up to $7,000 in education savings accounts to use on private school tuition or up to $2,000 per student for home education expenses. State leaders say the $100 million program, which closed its applications on April 7, saw a “strong response” from families across the state.

“The CHOOSE Act, Alabama’s education savings account program, will allow more taxpaying Alabama families the opportunity to choose a school that meets their child’s individual needs,” Gov. Kay Ivey said in a news release Tuesday, noting that families across Alabama’s 67 counties applied for the program. “Clearly, taxpaying Alabama families want school choice!”

The Alabama Department of Revenue, which is overseeing the CHOOSE Act, received a total of 22,167 applications for 36,873 students by the application deadline.

Officials say they plan to prioritize applications from students with disabilities, military students and students who come from low-income households.

But ultimately, experts say, it will be up to schools to decide who they’ll let in.

“While it is still early to determine the full impact, we are closely monitoring how ESAs influence enrollment trends, school accessibility, and operational decisions,” Michael McLendon, president of the Alabama Independent Schools Association, told AL.com in March. “Some schools are exploring how the program aligns with their missions, while others are taking a wait-and-see approach.”

So far, 232 schools and 227 other vendors – including tutors, textbook companies and therapeutic services – have signed up as CHOOSE Act providers. McLendon estimated about 75% of AISA’s members are participating in the program.

Two public school districts, Dothan and Mobile, are also participants, along with University Charter School in Livingston and the Alabama School of Math and Science in Mobile.

State law prevents public schools from “double-dipping,” or allowing current students to use CHOOSE funds for non-tuition expenses. Several of those institutions told AL.com that they are still working to understand what services they can provide under the program.

(Can’t see the table? View it here.)

Who applied for the CHOOSE Act?

The largest group of applicants are current private school students. Among the 36,873 students who have applied:

• 15,436 attend private school
• 10,287 attend public school
• 9,070 are homeschooled
• 1,593 are entering kindergarten
• 478 people who the state categorized as “other.”

(Can’t see the chart? View it here.)

According to the governor’s office, 59% of applicants are white. A nearly even number of male and female students applied.

About 13% of applicants, 4,910 students, have disabilities and may qualify for priority registration. The law requires the first 500 approvals to go toward students with disabilities.

Special ed services, however, can vary by schools and providers. Some school officials told AL.com that the funding would make high-quality services more affordable for students with disabilities, but others said there’s a limit to how much support they can provide.

“There are some students that we cannot serve based on the special resource needs that they may have,” said Justin Castanza, president of Montgomery Catholic Preparatory School, who noted that every student receives the same instruction. “There are accommodations, but not modifications.”

A smaller number of applicants, 124, have family members who are active-duty military and may also qualify for priority registration if they are currently attending a public school with low test scores. It is unclear how many of those students are enrolled in schools on the state’s “priority” list, meaning schools with a D- or F-grade on their most recent report card.

Castanza said as many as 12% to 20% of students have family members who work on a nearby military base. He said he’d like to see the state drop current public school enrollment requirements so that the program can reach more families.

“I’d love to see that removed so that military families can move higher up in the pecking order,” he said.