Utah state law allows Children First Education Fund to award a full-year scholarship award to qualified applicants up to the following amounts based upon the weighted pupil unit (WPU) as defined by the state as the amount established each year in the enacted public education budget. Based upon the Utah
The Utah state law governing the CSOS program requires that CFEF verify each applicant’s eligibility in key areas. The scholarship application will request a variety of information from the parent or guardian that must verify eligibility for a scholarship and determine the amount of a scholarship. The criteria below will
The CFEF application is required for all new applicants. Continuing students must complete a renewal applicant each year to indicate their desire to continue in the program. All students who are switching from the legacy Carson Smith program must also complete a new application, and indicate that they have been
History The Utah state legislature passed original legislation in 2019 called the Special Needs Opportunity Scholarship program and updated this legislation in 2024 by merging the program with the legacy Carson Smith Scholarship program. The new program is called the Carson Smith Opportunity Scholarship (CSOS). The legislation requires that a
Scholarship award for students in kindergarten through grade 12: $10,000 Scholarship award for Pre-school Students Full-Time = $4,800 Part-Time = $2,600 Sibling Scholarships The sibling scholarship previously available for siblings without a disability is no longer available. The 2026 legislature removed this option from the CSOS statute. Siblings without
A scholarship applicant is not eligible for a tuition scholarship if their parent or legal guardian is an administrator or board member of the qualifying school they will attend Children of employees of a qualifying private school are eligible to apply and receive a scholarship if they are approved A
CFEF application will contain the following acknowledgement to be made by the parent or guardian of the student applying: I acknowledge that: A private school or home school may not provide the same level of disability services that are provided in a public school. I will assume full financial responsibility
