Assistant Education Commissioner Darrell Smith discusses the latest numbers for the Arkansas Educational Freedom Account program with members of the State Board of Education on Thursday, Sept. 11, 2025. (Screenshot from Arkansas PBS YouTube channel)
Homeschooled children account for nearly 40% of those approved to participate in Arkansas’ Educational Freedom Account program this school year, according to figures presented to the State Board of Education Thursday.
Darrell Smith, assistant commissioner in the Office of School Choice and Parent Empowerment, told board members 18,420 of the 46,634 students approved for EFA participation this fall are homeschooled. The school choice office is part of the state Education Department’s Division of Elementary and Secondary Education…