CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The number of Hope Scholarship applications have more than doubled this year compared to last year, according to state Treasurer Riley Moore.
“We had received 6,323 student applications, so far we have approved 3,698 of those,” Moore said on Wednesday’s MetroNews “Talkline.”
Last year at this time, the Treasurer’s Office received about 3,600 applications total.
The scholarship pays for educational expenses for students leaving the public school system.
Moore said the interest in the program has grown since last year, particularly among kindergarteners. The Legislature recently passed a bill that gives a 45 day requirement for public school attendance in order to be eligible for the scholarship.
“Once this opens up to everybody whether you’re currently in a home school or a private school, it’s going to open up to everyone in 2026, and I see those numbers climbing pretty rapidly once that takes place,” Moore said.
Monday was the deadline to apply for the scholarship.
Moore said his office will have 45 days to approve the rest of the applications. There are a number of areas they look at before giving final approval.
“We need things like proof of residency, birth certificate, things like that so we can verify that these are West Virginia residents,” he said.
Moore said a student also needs to submit a notice of intent to their local school board that they plan to apply for the Hope Scholarship.
Moore has been a big advocate for the scholarship since it was introduced. He said it brings competition to education.
“If we have public schools competing for those dollars for those students against the other outside entities including private schools or home schools, I think this is a good thing. I think competition is a good thing and at the end of the day, I think we’re going to get better outcomes for our students here,” he said.