Georgia Promise Scholarship: How Much Money Do You Get?

$6,500 Per Student, Per Year

The maximum annual award is $6,500 per eligible student. This amount is identical whether the student enrolls in a participating private school or pursues a home study program — there's no different funding level for different educational paths.

The award is funded through a statutory cap of 1% of Georgia's annual Quality Basic Education (QBE) formula appropriation, which translates to roughly $141 million to $144 million statewide. At full capacity, the program can support approximately 21,500 to 22,000 students. In the inaugural 2025-26 year, about 7,600 students actively drew funds, with total spending around $50 million — well below the cap.

The Quarterly Payment Schedule

The $6,500 doesn't arrive as a lump sum. It's disbursed in four equal quarterly installments of $1,625 each, deposited into the student's Odyssey digital account.

Deposits are contingent on one critical step: the student must formally withdraw from public school after receiving the award notification, but before the first quarterly deposit releases. GESA will not fund the account while the student is still enrolled in public school.

For families applying during Windows 3 or 4 (typically August and November), the award is prorated to $3,250 — two installments of $1,625 covering the second half of the academic year.

No Cash, No Direct Reimbursement

Scholarship funds never leave the Odyssey platform as cash. Every dollar is spent through vendor payments within the managed marketplace. Direct cash disbursements to parents are prohibited under the statute.

For private school families, tuition payments flow directly from the student's Odyssey balance to the school's bank account. For home study families, payments go to curriculum vendors, PSC-certified tutors, licensed therapy providers, and testing organizations — all through the Odyssey interface.

If you buy something out of pocket and want reimbursement, the standard platform workflow doesn't support that. Plan purchases through Odyssey from the start.

Unused Funds Roll Over

Money you don't spend in one quarter rolls into the next. Balances also carry over from year to year as long as the student remains actively enrolled in the program.

However, there's no post-secondary rollover. The legislature struck that provision from SB 233 during drafting. When the student graduates high school, ages out (20 years old, or 21 for students with IEPs), re-enrolls in public school, moves out of Georgia, or exits the program voluntarily, any remaining balance reverts to the state general fund.

Multiple Children Multiply the Award

Eligibility is determined per child. Each qualifying student gets their own $6,500 Odyssey account. The funds cannot be combined or shared between siblings.

A family with three eligible children could access $19,500 per year. Over a K-12 career, a single child's cumulative award potential reaches $84,500. Kindergarten entry is the most strategic point because it maximizes years of funding and locks in first-priority renewal status from the start.

The Real Math for Private School Families

At $6,500 per year, the scholarship covers a meaningful share of private school tuition but rarely the full amount. Georgia private schools range from roughly $5,000 to $25,000+ annually depending on the institution. The quarterly payment structure means $1,625 arrives per quarter — if your school bills monthly, you'll need to bridge the timing gap between when tuition is due and when the next Odyssey installment deposits.

The Georgia Promise Scholarship Parent Guide maps the full payment schedule, explains how to coordinate quarterly deposits with tuition billing cycles, and walks through the spending categories that stretch each dollar furthest.

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