For many Central Arkansas families, the Education Freedom Account has turned Catholic school from a stretch into a real option. Every Catholic school in Pulaski and Saline counties in our directory took EFA students in 2024-25. But Catholic tuition has more moving parts than most: parish rates, sibling discounts, diocesan assistance, and separate high-school pricing. Here is how the account fits with each of them.
The nine schools
The Diocese of Little Rock runs or sponsors nine K-12 Catholic schools in our two counties:
- Elementary and middle (PK-8): Christ the King, Our Lady of the Holy Souls and St. Theresa in Little Rock; Immaculate Conception, Immaculate Heart of Mary and North Little Rock Catholic Academy in North Little Rock; and Our Lady of Fatima in Benton.
- High school (9-12): Catholic High School for Boys and Mount St. Mary Academy, both in Little Rock.
In the state's 2024-25 report, the parish elementary schools had some of the highest EFA shares in the area: 275 of about 546 students at Christ the King, 250 of about 470 at Holy Souls, and 224 of about 336 at Immaculate Conception. The two high schools had lower shares, roughly a third at each, partly because many of their families started paying tuition before the account existed.
Step one: find your real tuition
Catholic schools usually publish at least two prices: a rate for active, registered parishioners who contribute to the parish, and a higher rate for everyone else. Some also have a third tier for Catholics from another parish. Before you do any EFA math, ask the school which rate you qualify for and what "active" means in practice: registration, Mass attendance, a minimum annual gift, or volunteer hours.
This matters because the state requires participating schools to charge EFA families the same tuition they would charge anyone else in the same category. Your parish rate stays your parish rate. The account doesn't push you into a higher bracket.
Step two: subtract the account
The 2026-27 Education Freedom Account is $7,208 per student, paid into ClassWallet in four quarterly deposits of about $1,802. Students who came into the program from the former Succeed Scholarship receive $8,011.
The school invoices ClassWallet, and the payment comes out of your child's account. Ask each school whether it bills the full year's tuition against the account in quarterly pieces, or bills tuition first and fees separately. Registration, books, technology fees and uniforms bought through the school can often be paid from the account too, but only if the school invoices them. Ask for a list.
At many parish elementary schools, the parishioner rate is close to or below the account amount, so a family may owe little or nothing for tuition itself. At the high schools, where tuition is higher, the account covers a substantial share and the rest is the family's to plan for.
Step three: stack the discounts
Catholic schools commonly offer multi-child discounts, and many have staff or alumni rates. Ask whether the sibling discount applies before or after the account. On a three-child family, the order can change the bill by a meaningful amount. Some schools apply the discount to the full tuition and then let the account pay what's left, which is the better order for families.
Step four: diocesan and school aid for the balance
Need-based aid is the last layer. Many Catholic schools use a third-party application service to assess need, and parish or diocesan funds may be available on top. Ask two specific questions:
- Does the school count the EFA as a resource when it calculates your need? Most will.
- Is there a separate parish fund, endowed scholarship or diocesan program for the balance, and when is the deadline?
From January 2027, a new federal tax credit lets donors fund K-12 scholarships through approved scholarship-granting organizations, and Arkansas is one of the states that opted in. Expect new scholarship money aimed at exactly this gap, though the details of who will administer it in Arkansas are still being set.
Pre-K and the kindergarten switch
Most of the parish schools start at age 3. The EFA starts at kindergarten, and a child must be 5 by August 1. Pre-K years are paid privately or through early-childhood aid. If your child is in a parish pre-K now, plan your EFA application for the spring before kindergarten. For 2026-27 the window ran from March 9 to June 1, and the state hasn't announced 2027-28 dates yet.
High school: Catholic High and Mount St. Mary
For families moving from a parish school to Catholic High for boys or Mount St. Mary for girls, the account follows the student. Its value doesn't change between grade 8 and grade 9, but tuition usually goes up. Both schools participated in 2024-25. Catholic High had 227 EFA students, and 76% of them were still at the school the next year. Mount St. Mary had 169.
Ask the high school when it bills. Some expect a deposit in the spring, before the first EFA deposit of the school year arrives. If yours does, ask whether the deposit can be credited back from the account later or must come from family funds.
You can see each school's EFA figures, enrollment and grades on its page in our Catholic schools listing. If you'd like help putting the numbers together for your family, start a funding check.