Budget & Tax, Education

Stitt launches school choice hub, opts Oklahoma into new federal tax credit

January 27, 2026

Ray Carter

As part of National School Choice Week, Gov. Kevin Stitt has signed an executive order to establish the Oklahoma School Choice Hub within 90 days and announced that Oklahoma is among the states opting into a federal tax credit program that will fund private-school scholarships for low- and middle-class students.

“Every Oklahoma child deserves access to the best education possible, no matter their zip code or family income,” Stitt said. “That belief drove us to pass the best education freedom plan in the country. I want to make sure every Oklahoma family can take advantage of that freedom.”

To achieve that goal, Stitt said he wants to create an Oklahoma School Choice Hub. 

Stitt’s executive order states that “parents, not the government, know their children best and are uniquely equipped to choose the school that aligns with their child’s needs, values, and learning styles,” and that “the State of Oklahoma is committed to providing every child with access to a high-quality education that meets his or her unique needs.”

In the order, Stitt noted that “during my administration, I have championed the enactment of successful school choice legislation in Oklahoma, including Open Transfer within the public school system, the creation of the Oklahoma Statewide Charter School Board, expansion of the Opportunity Scholarship program, and the landmark Parental Choice Tax Credit. Each of these initiatives empowers families to select the best educational environments for their children, regardless of zip code or socioeconomic status, leading to improved student outcomes and greater parental involvement.”

The Oklahoma Parental Choice Tax Credit program provides refundable tax credits of $5,000 to $7,500 per child to cover the cost of private school tuition, with the largest credits going to those with the lowest income.

Families earning up to $75,000 can receive a $7,500 per-child refundable tax credit; those earning $75,001 to $150,000 get a credit of $7,000 per child; families with income from $150,001 to $225,000 qualify for a $6,500 credit; those earning $225,001 to $250,000 receive a $6,000 credit; and those earning $250,001 and up qualify for a credit of $5,000 per child.

According to the latest report from the Oklahoma Tax Commission, the families of 39,846 children have used the program during the ongoing 2025-2026 school year, and the majority of those children—56 percent—are from low-income or middle-class families with adjusted gross income of $150,000 or less.

Among married-couple families, the median household income in Oklahoma is $95,573.

Stitt’s order said the new Oklahoma School Choice Hub will provide “a user-friendly and widely available central resource for parents to find information they can use to make informed decisions about where to send their child to school.”

Stitt’s announcement that Oklahoma will participate in the federal school-choice tax credit program creates additional opportunities for many lower-income and working-class families in the state.

Among other things, the federal One Big Beautiful Bill Act provided for an individual, dollar-for-dollar tax credit of up to $1,700 per individual taxpayer for contributions to state-approved, federally recognized non-profits that distribute private-school scholarships to eligible children, defined as students from households earning no more than 300 percent of their county’s median income. Officials estimate that 90 percent of children in most states will qualify.

States have to opt in to the federal tax credit program, which will take effect on Jan. 1, 2027.

A fact sheet issued by the Trump administration noted that school choice “is supported by 72% of Democrats and 82% of families with K-12 students,” and stated that the national annual tax credit for scholarships will be “empowering families to choose the best schools for their children in all 50 states.”