PHOENIX (AZFamille) — Arizona’s public schools chief announced a multimillion-dollar grant that will help attract more charter schools across the state.

On Wednesday, Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne announced that Arizona received a $34.8 million federal grant to serve “educationally disadvantaged students.” The grant will create 24 charter schools and support 23 additional schools.

“These dollars will serve a critical purpose in ensuring that approximately 10,000 students living in traditionally underserved areas will have the opportunity to choose a high-quality charter school.” Every student in every region of our state, urban or rural, rich or poor, deserves this opportunity, and I am very pleased to be part of this effort,” Horne said in a statement. “I would like to congratulate the department staff who competed for this funding. Their work resulted in the state receiving the largest recipient of this grant, per capita, in the country.

Horne says the department will focus on helping students with disabilities, those facing economic challenges and English language learners. Additionally, Horne says the grant will also provide educational assistance to educators and improve academic outcomes.

Interested schools must apply and be approved by the state charter board. Their applications, if approved, will begin in March 2025.

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