West Virginia’s Hope Scholarship program has selected a new vendor to manage its growing initiative, awarding a $9.8 million contract to Student First Technologies. This Indiana-based company, which has limited state-level experience with education savings accounts (ESAs), will handle the online components of the program starting this school year.
The contract was signed in April by the State Treasurer’s Office, which oversees the Hope Scholarship program. The online platform developed by Student First Technologies will facilitate program forms, financial transactions, and offer in-state customer service support.
Rachel Dispennette, a Charleston mother who homeschools her three children, has used the Hope Scholarship to purchase educational materials like curriculums, printer paper, and crayons. She praises the program for providing substantial support, stating it has been “life changing” and improved the quality of her children’s education.
The Hope Scholarship provides approximately $4,400 per student for private schooling, homeschooling, and other educational expenses. With over 9,000 students awarded the scholarship for the 2024-25 school year and anticipated growth in enrollment and program eligibility, the new vendor is expected to help manage this expansion.
Student First Technologies, a six-year-old company, is relatively new to managing ESAs. Its experience includes overseeing an ESA program in Tennessee but lacks the extensive state-level track record of competitors like ClassWallet, which manages ESA programs in five states. Despite this, Student First Technologies won the contract, scoring highest in the bidding process.
Jared Hunt, spokesperson for the Treasurer’s Office, emphasized that the new platform will offer enhanced functions and features to simplify online transactions and improve the participant experience. He expressed confidence in Student First Technologies’ ability to support the program’s growth and provide high-quality service.
ClassWallet, Odyssey, and Merit also bid for the contract, but Student First Technologies was selected based on its performance and bid evaluation. The company claims its cloud-based platform has managed over $300 million in K-12 education funding with no reported instances of fraud.
Mark Duran, President of Student First Technologies, declined an interview but expressed pride in partnering with West Virginia for the Hope Scholarship program. The company’s limited ESA experience in Tennessee has raised some concerns, but Hunt noted that the ESA market is still evolving, with no significant issues identified with Student First Technologies’ qualifications.
The new online platform is scheduled to go live after July 31 for the upcoming school year. A transition period will be managed to ensure there is no disruption in applying for or using the Hope Scholarship funds.
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