I have been getting a lot of questions about the differences between the Hope IIP (HOPEschool) exemption (m) and the traditional homeschool exemption (c).
These are both compulsory schooling exemptions in West Virginia that are used when a family wants to educate their child at home.
With traditional HOMEschooling exemption (c), families have fewer restrictions and they do not receive any educational funding from the state.
With the HOPEschooling exemption (m), families are using the Individualized Instruction Program (IIP) track of the Hope Scholarship program. This means they have more regulations, and they receive access to an educational savings account (ESA) through the State Treasurer's Office that can only be used for qualified academic purchases according to the law.
Here is a rundown of the differences between HOMEschooling and HOPEschooling. It is also great education for anyone who is not familiar with either of these compulsory schooling exemptions - you might be surprised at how strict they are!
For the purposes of this post, we are going to ignore the eligibility criteria that current exists and be clear that this is for the 2026 - 2027 school year and beyond.
The major differences between HOPEschooling and HOMEschooling (besides the obviously funding) are:
1.) HOPEschoolers must be assigned a WVEIS number before they can apply. HOMEschoolers who filed an NOI prior to Fall of 2022 do not have WVEIS numbers unless they attended public school or received services from public school.
2.) The Hope Scholarship requirement to complete an application, which includes some additional residency documents.
3.) Hope Scholarship families do not need to provide the state with a high school diploma, and HOMEschooling families do.
4.) HOPEschoolers have to submit updated NOIs when they change address or change tracks between IIP and private school.
5.) HOPEschoolers need to use the Hope Scholarship NOI from the website. No other NOI is accepted.
6.) HOPEschoolers and HOMEschoolers both have to do academic progress reviews annually. HOPEschoolers have to submit it to the county BOE every year and HOMEschoolers only submit during 4 grades.
7.) HOPEschoolers submit their academic progress by June 8th. HOMEschoolers submit their academic progress by June 30th.
8.) Portfolio reviews for HOPEschoolers must include their WVEIS numbers.
9.) HOPEschoolers must submit a continuing participating application including residency verification documents annually.
10.) As a Hope Scholarship account holder, YOU are responsible for reading the Parent Handbook (especially the Qualified Expenses and the Technology Policy, Reimbursement Policy, and Non-Qualifying Expense List (NQEL) and making sure that every purchase you attempt to make through the portal or submit for Reimbursement is compliant. DO NOT RELY ON THE STO OR SFT FULLFILLMENT TEAM TO BE RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR COMPLIANCE WITH QUALIFIED EXPENSES.
I CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH. YES I AM YELLING.
If you submit something that is not qualified, and it gets approved, and then the purchase is caught in an audit later... YOU WILL BE HELD FINANCIALLY RESPONSIBLE TO PAY IT BACK.
Take your responsibility as a Hope Scholarship account holder very seriously. Fullfillment team roulette / order and hope is financially risky and it puts Hope at risk for everything!
Some other things to note:
Hope does NOT affect your income tax filings at the state or local level. It is not considered income.
The STO can freeze or audit your Hope account at any time. There are very few protections built into this - you may have no access to your funding for an indeterminate amount of time and they may not tell you why or give you any idea when you get it back. Plan accordingly.
As with any money related things, if you are accused of fraud with Hope (reselling Hope items, getting refunds directly to yourself, anything else shady) your bank accounts/personal info could be requested or subpoenaed by the state to help prove your innocence/guilt.
I hope this is helpful for new families coming from HOMEschooling to HOPEschooling this coming school year!
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