Tuition Assistance

At Our Lady of Mercy Catholic School, tuition assistance is available from three sources: 1) the NC Opportunity Scholarship; 2) Our Lady of Mercy Tuition Assistance Program; and 3) through the ESA+ Program.

The Opportunity Scholarship Program provides tuition assistance  for NC families. Our Lady of Mercy Catholic School is a Direct Payment School for the North Carolina Opportunity Scholarship Program. This program has provided North Carolina’s families the option of a tuition-based school education since 2013. Initially a need-based program, last month the North Carolina legislature voted to expand the program significantly so that all North Carolina families are eligible to apply for the 2024-2025 school year. What does this mean for our families?

• There are no changes for families who already have the scholarship. They will be able to renew it in the same way they have in previous years. 
• There is no longer an income requirement to qualify for the scholarship. However, the number of scholarship levels will be expanded, so that a family’s income will determine the amount of the scholarship a student receives. The income and corresponding scholarship levels are anticipated to be published in January 2024. 
• Students in the 3rd grade and higher will no longer be required to have attended a North Carolina public school within the past year. This means that families whose students have been enrolled in a private school may now apply. 

The Priority period for applicants begins February 1st and end March 1st but applicants can still continue apply until December 31st. Click Opportunity Scholarship Program for more information.

Our Lady of Mercy Tuition Assistance Program in a limited tuition assistance for eligible families  To determine who is eligible, OLM School uses an outside online source called FACTS, which ranks families according to financial need. Once we receive the rankings from FACTS, we do our best to match needs with the tuition assistance funds we have available. To begin the application process, please click here.  FACTS processes the applications to ensure total confidentiality and objectivity. Please note: all applications must be completed and submitted by no later than March 15, 2023. Tuition assistance offers are usually mailed by the last week of May.

ESA+ Program was created by the North Carolina General Assembly to help parents pay qualified expenses for children with disabilities who attend school in an eligible nonpublic setting for which tuition is required. Qualified applicants can receive up to $9,000 per child and students with certain designated disabilities may be eligible to receive $17,000 a year. The Priority period for applicants begins February 1st and end March 1st but applicants can still apply until December 31st. For more information, please click here: K12 ESA+ Program