It’s National School Choice Week, and as is the case every last week of January, Utahns are holding events and visiting the Capitol, donning yellow scarves to celebrate the benefits of education choice.
In Utah, there’s much to celebrate.
According to a newly released 2026 ranking by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), titled “Index of State Education Freedom: a 50-State Guide to Parental Empowerment,” Utah is ranked #7 in the nation overall. The rubric assesses scores for categories such as student-centered funding programs, charter schools, homeschooling, virtual schools, and open enrollment.
Likewise, this past fall, the Heritage Foundation released its 2025 Education Freedom Report Card, which ranks Utah #12 overall. While still relatively high, it shows Utah dropping nine points in the overall ranking, something to consider.
Below is a brief summary of what is going well in Utah’s education choice landscape and how it can improve.
What’s going well in Utah education choice
Utah offers families many public and private education choices as well as the opportunity to homeschool.
Charter schools are an important education option in the state. These publicly funded schools, which are granted additional freedom to innovate, offer parents diverse public alternatives. An impressive 13% of Utah’s student population is being served in Utah’s 136 public charter schools. That means enrollment in charter schools continues to ramp up over time. In 2022-23, not quite 12% of Utah public school students were enrolled in charter schools, while in 2012-13, a little over 8% were. We anticipate this trend to continue.
The Statewide Online Education Program offers families more options and flexibility for their students as well. During the 2023-24 school year, the Statewide Online Education Program served 12,271 students, a 36% increase from the previous year. The program, which began in 2011, allows students in grades 6-12 to earn up to 6 credits per year through a state-approved online education provider.
Participation in Career and Technical Education (CTE) also continues to expand. In the 2023-24 school year, 187,580 students were enrolled in CTE courses, an increase of 1.25% since the prior year. In fact, enrollment has increased every single year for the past several years. More awareness, supported by the governor and legislature, is likely helping, but a movement across the nation is elevating the value of CTE.
Utah boasts one of the strongest school open enrollment laws in the nation. Year after year, Utah’s statutory framework is rated among the best in the nation, as it requires districts to allow open enrollment for students seeking to transfer from one public school to another, within or outside their home district. One study finds that several states still don’t even require districts to have an inter- or intra-district open enrollment policy. It found that Utah was one of 6 states earning an A+, A, or A- for its policy.
Utah also has many private schools (estimates of over 150) and a growing number of education providers, as well as programs that help students access them. The state offers education choice scholarship programs that allow students to use public funding to personalize their education by spending it on approved expenses such as tuition, therapies, and curriculum. The Utah Fits All Scholarship is currently serving 14,635 students. Despite its popularity among many parents, this program is being challenged in court.
The Carson Smith Opportunity Scholarship (a merger of a former voucher program and a tax credit scholarship) also allows eligible students to use the scholarship for approved expenses to create an a la carte education that fits the individual student. Currently, 86,000 Utah students with special needs are eligible for the scholarships.
Utah also just announced it is joining the new federal tax-credit scholarship program.
How Utah can expand education choice
Increase funding for the Utah Fits All Scholarship program. Utah has an interesting past regarding private education choice programs. A failed early attempt at a universal voucher program almost 20 years ago seemingly killed the concept in the state for many years. But by 2023, with the frustrations of the COVID-19 pandemic still fresh in mind, the state was ready for more choices and passed the Utah Fits All Scholarship (UFAS), a universal education choice program. Today, more families continue to use and apply for these scholarships. The legislature should appropriate more funding to the program, so more families can get the education their children need. Until the Utah Supreme Court hands down a ruling otherwise, the program is the law. Parents deserve to take advantage of it.
Improve transparency in open enrollment. While Utah has a strong open-enrollment policy on the books, greater transparency of open enrollment data is needed. Currently, it’s not possible to get a full, statewide view of how many students are taking advantage of open enrollment in Utah and where the transfers are occurring. Utah should make this information public by requiring the state board to gather, aggregate, and share data on open enrollment. Ideally, the board would simply share, in one place, the data that districts are already required to post on their individual websites (which most are not doing, unfortunately). The board should also be required to gather and share the contact person for open enrollment questions in each district. Increased transparency could help policymakers and parents better understand enrollment trends, education opportunities, and more.
Spread awareness of CTE and Career Pathway options. The state should continue to heighten awareness of the opportunities and the value of CTE and Career Pathways. The state has been a leader in this space and amplified CTE with its First Credential initiative, which seeks to give high school students “a meaningful, industry-aligned credential that supports college credit, career readiness, and lifelong learning” before graduation. The state can continue to fund CTE to offer kids more K-12 options that lead to high-demand career opportunities.
Create a navigator for public education choices. The state also needs a comprehensive, possibly AI-enhanced education choice navigator, specifically for public school choices. This would be a website that helps parents navigate the many public options available to them in the state, including the open enrollment process and public charter schools. Fortunately, several states offer similar types of tools, so the idea is not altogether new. But an important part of choice exists in the public education sphere, and there’s an opportunity in Utah to share better information with parents about these.
Conclusion
Utah has done a commendable job offering parents education choices. At the same time, there are improvements left on the table that legislators and the private sector can accomplish to improve the quantity and quality of options available.
