The passage of the Educational Choice for Children Act (ECCA) has opened doors for families and schools across the country. For the first time, individual taxpayers can direct federal tax dollars toward scholarships — creating a brand-new stream of funding that has the potential to reshape private education.
But here’s the reality: ECCA is not just about fundraising.
Yes, donors matter. Yes, building pipelines of individual givers is essential. But if your school views ECCA strictly through the lens of raising money, you’ll miss the bigger opportunity. The schools that thrive in this new era will be the ones that prepare across fundraising, marketing, and admissions — aligning all three to attract, enroll, and retain more students.
1. Fundraising: Building the Engine
At the core of ECCA readiness is the ability to engage individual taxpayers. Unlike corporate tax credit programs, this is about volume and relationships. Hundreds of small- and mid-sized donors, giving year after year, fuel the program.
What schools need to do:
- Develop donor pipelines now. Parents, alumni, parishioners, and community supporters are your base.
- Educate them. Most people don’t understand how tax credits work. Schools must provide simple, clear resources.
- Invest in systems. Donor tracking, receipting, and stewardship can’t be handled on spreadsheets anymore.
But raising dollars is only step one. To maximize the impact, those dollars must flow seamlessly into enrollment growth. That’s where marketing and admissions come in.
2. Marketing: Owning the Narrative
ECCA dollars expand access — but only if families know about them. Parents who’ve never considered private education before will be curious, cautious, and hungry for information. Schools must be ready to meet them with a strong, consistent message.
What schools need to do:
- Update your website. Clear ECCA information should be front and center. Families should see at a glance how scholarships make your school accessible.
- Build campaigns. Use social media, email, and print to reach your community with targeted messaging.
- Tell stories. Highlight students whose lives were changed by scholarships. Humanize the impact of choice.
- Train staff as ambassadors. Every teacher, coach, and administrator should be able to explain ECCA simply and confidently.
Marketing is about visibility. If your school isn’t proactive, another school will capture those families first.
3. Admissions: Removing Barriers
ECCA will drive more inquiries. But if your admissions process is outdated, slow, or complicated, families will walk away. A scholarship only matters if it translates into enrollment.
What schools need to do:
- Simplify applications. Families new to private education need a clear, welcoming process — not red tape.
- Respond quickly. Speed matters. A 24–48 hour turnaround on inquiries builds trust.
- Coordinate with fundraising. Admissions staff should know when scholarship dollars are available and how to connect families to them.
- Track data. Monitor where inquiries come from, how families move through the funnel, and what roadblocks prevent enrollment.
Admissions is where the promise of ECCA becomes real. Without an efficient, family-friendly process, scholarship dollars risk going unused.
4. Integration: The Schools That Win
The schools that benefit most from ECCA will not be the ones with the biggest donor list or the flashiest campaign. They will be the schools that integrate fundraising, marketing, and admissions into one strategy.
Imagine this cycle:
- Fundraising brings in ECCA dollars from individual taxpayers.
- Marketing tells families those dollars are available and makes your school visible in the community.
- Admissions converts that interest into enrolled students, filling classrooms and strengthening the school’s future.
Each part feeds the next. Schools that align all three will grow. Schools that silo them will struggle.
5. The Time to Prepare is Now
ECCA officially launches in 2027, but the runway is short. Schools that start preparing today — building donor systems, updating marketing, and modernizing admissions — will be the ones that thrive from day one.
Waiting until the law goes live means you’ll already be behind. Donors will be claimed. Families will have chosen. The first-movers will dominate.
The Bottom Line
ECCA is bigger than fundraising. It’s an opportunity to transform your entire advancement and enrollment model.
Schools that treat it as a comprehensive strategy — fundraising + marketing + admissions — will not only unlock new dollars, they’ll grow enrollment, strengthen sustainability, and expand their impact for years to come.
At RedefinED, we’ve spent years building the systems schools need to succeed in this exact environment. We’ve proven that when fundraising, marketing, and admissions work together, schools don’t just raise more — they grow more and do more.
The schools that are ready will win. The time to prepare is now.
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