MOScholars Award Amount: How Much Money Do You Get?

The first question every Missouri parent asks about MOScholars: how much is the scholarship actually worth? The statutory maximum is tied to a number most people have never heard of — the State Adequacy Target — and the amount you actually receive depends on which EAO you apply through.

The State Adequacy Target

Missouri sets MOScholars award limits as percentages of the State Adequacy Target (SAT), calculated by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE). The SAT is recalculated every two years, with increases phased in over two years. The figure represents a per-pupil funding benchmark used in the state school funding formula.

Recent SAT values include:

• 2022–2024: $6,375 per student
• 2024–2025: $6,760 per student
• 2025–2026: $7,145 per student
• 2026–2027: check DESE's published SAT for the current year

The statutory award limit is based on the student's category, not whether the student attends a private school or an FPE school. Current law allows awards up to 175% of the SAT for a student with an IEP, 160% for a student meeting limited-English-proficiency criteria, 125% for a student eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, and the SAT for all other students.

What You Actually Receive

The maximum is a ceiling, not a guarantee. Three factors determine your actual payout:

EAO internal caps. Some EAOs limit FPE/homeschool awards below the full SAT to stretch their donor pool across more families. Herzog Tomorrow Foundation, for instance, has capped FPE awards at $2,500 per student in some cycles. Other EAOs like the Missouri District LCMS may offer the full SAT amount. This is the single biggest variable in how much your family receives.

Funding availability. MOScholars runs on tax-credit donations to EAOs plus state general revenue appropriations. When an EAO does not have enough funds for all qualified applicants, some approved applicants may land on a waitlist. The $51 million state appropriation in recent legislative cycles cleared much of the backlog, but funding is not unlimited.

Statutory allocation order. The law prioritizes qualified students who received a scholarship in the previous school year, then siblings of current recipients, then students with an IEP or diagnosed dyslexia. It next prioritizes lunch-eligible students by district accreditation and lunch status, active-duty military dependents newly relocated to Missouri, and then all other qualified students.

IEP Students May Receive More

Students with an approved IEP may receive up to 175% of the SAT under current law. The EAO determines the grant within statutory limits and available funding; therapy costs do not by themselves change the statutory cap.

How Funds Are Distributed

Award notifications begin in May. After you accept and sign the parent agreement, ClassWallet onboarding takes 10–14 business days. The statute allows payments four times per year or in a single lump sum at the beginning of the year at the parent's request. Ask your EAO when it will make funds available.

At the end of the school year, unused account funds remain in the student's account. Renew with your EAO to continue in the program and use rollover funds. If the student withdraws or is disqualified, or graduates, the account closes and remaining funds return to the EAO.

Maximizing Your Award

For a student whose statutory limit is the SAT, the gap between a $2,500 EAO cap and the 2025–26 SAT of $7,145 reflects the EAO's award policy. Student category also affects the statutory limit, so compare both the EAO cap and the applicable student category before applying.

Our Missouri MOScholars Scholarship Parent Guide compares every active EAO's award structure, internal caps, and payout timelines so you can select the one that offers your family the highest possible funding.

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