How Much Is the Hope Scholarship in 2026-27, and Why Do Later Applicants Get Less?

By My Learning Source · October 29, 2026 · Scholarships, Guides, Tips

Two families in the same county can both be approved for a Hope Scholarship for 2026-27 and receive very different amounts in their first year. That is not a mistake. It is how the program handles applications that arrive at different points in the year. This article explains the 2026-27 award, the proration windows and the quarterly payment schedule.

The full award for 2026-27

The Board's FAQ and the parent handbook updated June 25, 2026, both put the full 2026-27 award at $5,435.62 per student. The handbook says the amount changes every year and is published on the Hope website before the first August funding date.

The formula is in §18-31-6: the yearly amount equals 100 percent of the prior year's statewide average net state aid share allotted per pupil, based on net enrollment adjusted for state aid purposes. That ties Hope to the state school aid formula from the year before. The handbook adds that up to five percent of the per-pupil amount may be retained by the Board to administer the program.

Why later applicants get less

The statute says the Board must accept applications at any time during the year, and that a student awarded an account for less than a full fiscal year receives a prorated amount based on the portion of the year covered. To keep that simple, the Board adopted standard windows. For 2026-27:

March 2 to June 15, 2026: 100 percent, or $5,435.62.
June 16 to September 15, 2026: 75 percent, or $4,076.72.
September 16 to November 30, 2026: 50 percent, or

,717.81.

December 1, 2026, to February 28, 2027: 25 percent, or

,358.91.

After February 28, 2027: no 2026-27 funding, but you can apply for 2027-28.

Those dollar figures come from the funding chart in the Board's FAQ. The handbook says the window is set by when the original completed application is submitted, and that the Board may shift the window dates slightly from year to year.

Proration applies to a student's first year only. Once a student is in the program, continuing from year to year depends on the continued participation confirmation, which must be submitted between January and June 15. The FAQ warns that missing that deadline means filing a new application, and new applications after June 15 are funded at less than 100 percent.

Quarterly payments are new this year

Before 2026-27, the account was funded in two halves, by August 15 and January 15. House Bill 5686 from the 2026 session added §18-31-6a, which requires four deposits starting July 1, 2026: one quarter each by August 15, October 15, January 15 and April 15.

For a student funded at 100 percent from the start of the year, the FAQ chart shows four deposits of roughly

,358.90 each. A 75 percent student funded from August receives four deposits of

,019.18.

The notice of intent cutoffs

A student's account is not funded until the application is in Approved status and a Hope notice of intent is on file with the county board of education. The handbook lists funding cutoff dates of August 1, October 1, January 2 and April 1. If you miss a cutoff, your child is funded in the next quarter, and the FAQ chart shows the missed amount catching up then. So a family that files its notice late does not lose the money, but it arrives later.

Leftover money

Unused funds carry over to the next year, as long as the student stays eligible and the family submits the continued participation confirmation by June 15. If the account closes, the statute says remaining money goes back to the state. The law also says the Board will give a parent 45 days' notice before closing an account for a problem, and the account closes if the parent does not respond or fix the issue within 30 days of the notice.

What does not change the amount

A few things families sometimes expect to matter do not. The award is the same for every eligible student in a given window. It does not change with household income, with your county, with grade level or with whether your child attends a private school or learns at home. It is not reduced because your child takes a part-time class at a public school, although that class is paid for from the account. And siblings each receive their own account, so a family with three eligible children applying in the spring window would receive three full awards, each kept separate.

Taxes

Under §18-31-6, deposits into a Hope account are not taxable income to the parent or student, with one exception in the statute for funds spent on transportation services. If you use the account for fee-for-service transportation, ask a tax professional how to handle it.

A late start

The Delgados moved to Morgantown in August 2026 and applied for their two children in September. Because the applications landed after September 15, each child was approved at 50 percent, or

,717.81, for 2026-27. They filed their notices of intent right away so the first deposits could arrive in the January quarter, and they put the June 15, 2027, renewal deadline on the calendar so next year would start at the full amount.

(A composite example — names and details are illustrative, drawn from situations homeschool families commonly describe.)

Planning tips

If you are considering Hope for 2027-28, the handbook says new applications open March 1, 2027. Apply by mid-June for the full award.
File the Hope notice of intent as soon as your application shows Eligible. It is the most common reason for a delayed deposit.
Budget by quarter, not by year. Tuition schedules and big purchases need to line up with August, October, January and April deposits.
Put the funding cutoffs and the June 15 renewal date on your education calendar.
Before buying, check that the seller is a participating provider. Our vendor directory is a good starting point.

Bottom line

For 2026-27 the full Hope award is $5,435.62, and when you apply decides how much of it you get in your first year. Apply early, file the county notice promptly and the rest of the schedule takes care of itself. Our Hope Scholarship guide has the current windows in one place.

My Learning Source is an independent marketplace and is not affiliated with the West Virginia Hope Scholarship Board, the West Virginia State Treasurer's Office, the West Virginia Department of Education, Student First Technologies or any county board of education. The award and the funding calendar are set each year — confirm the current figures with the Hope Scholarship Board before you plan purchases. Family examples are composites, not real individuals.

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