Treasurer’s ESA application portal has gone live!

Good morning ESA friends,

The Treasurer’s ESA application portal has gone live! There’s a lot to walk through, so let’s get straight to it…

Please be aware, while Treasurer Dan Schwartz continues to move forward with ESA applications, the program remains unfunded. Continuing through the application process does not guarantee funding. Ultimately, getting the program funded and fully operational will be an issue for the 2017 legislature.

For now, if you are interested in applying for the ESA program, you can do so through NevadaESA.com or the Treasurer’s ESA website. Previous applicants will be able to update their files through both of those links as well — but a word of warning from the Treasurer:

If you have already sent in an application, do not reapply!! Reapplying will change your enrollment date.

New Applicants

If you haven’t already applied, here’s what you need to know:

Sign in as a new applicant and set up your account. The first page you will complete seeks parent information. This will be your primary dashboard to apply for and access all your children’s accounts. You will be required to upload your driver’s license or other ID, utility statements, proof of income and, if applicable, military orders here.

Also, this is the place to mark yourself as a participating entity — something you will want to do so the Treasurer can reimburse you for education-related expenses covered by ESAs.

Also, if you are interested in being on the treasurer’s parent review committee, you can indicate that interest here. It only lets the Treasurer know you are interested — it doesn’t necessarily mean you will be picked.

After you complete your information, you will “add” your child and go through the application process for each student you want to enroll in the program. During this phase of the application you will be asked for your child’s social security number, student ID number (if age 7 or older) and public school information. Remember, most charter schools will be listed under the State Charter School Authority, not your school district. However, if you cannot find your charter school on the school list, go back to the sponsor list and check the schools listed under your school district.

You will need to upload your child’s birth certificate, any guardianship papers, if applicable, as well as any IEPs. New to the application, you will be asked to upload documentation supporting 100 days of enrollment in a Nevada public school — report cards, letter from school, or attendance transcript.

After completing the application and uploading the required documentation, you will submit your application and receive a confirmation email. This email is proof of application, not an approval notice. Approval or denial notices will come later, after the application has been processed.

If you need to apply for another child, again select “add” from the dashboard, and repeat the process for the next child.

Previous Applicants

A large batch of notices have already gone out to some parents. You may or may not have received an email asking you to update and verify your application information online. Do not worry if you have not received a notice — the treasurer’s office is still entering paper applications and transferring older applicants to the new database.

If you’ve already applied for an ESA, and you haven’t seen an email from the Treasurer, check your Inbox and Spam folders for an email from accounts@nevadatreasurer.net. Check it every few days, as notices will continue to be sent out as the Treasurer enters the backlog of paper applications into the system.

Whatever you do, do not reapply!! Reapplying will change your enrollment date!!

I cannot stress this enough. DO NOT REAPPLY.

Seriously. Don’t reapply.

Even if your neighbor — who applied after you — gets an email notice before you, do not reapply. Even if three of your four children are in the system, do not reapply. Doing so will change your enrollment date, and could impact your eligibility.

Missing applications can be addressed directly with the Treasurer after all other applications have been entered into the system.

Please note, at some point soon, everyone will be required to update their accounts — even if you were previously approved. All applications, including those that have already been processed, must go through the new system’s approval procedures as part of the database update and transfer. So keep your eyes open for an email from the Treasurer.

In a nutshell

Enrollment for November/December has opened. No paper applications will be accepted. Parents must register using the online portal.
Notices to updated accounts and applications will be going out to previous applicants. DO NOT REAPPLY if you do not receive a notice. Not all applications have been transferred into the new system, and notices will be generated as applications are transferred.
Check your Inbox and Junk email periodically for a notice from Accounts@Nevadatreasurer.net
Previous applicants and new enrollees will all enter the ESA system at a common portal, using the same URL or link.
There will be an option to choose between new applicants or return applicants.
New enrollees will "add" an application for each child from one parent account.
New documentation will be required to be uploaded for all applicants:

Report cards, letter from school or attendance record to prove 100 days of enrollment if over age seven
Proof of income

Parents should mark themselves as a participating entity in order to receive reimbursements

Treasury staff extends their appreciation to everyone for their patience this past year. If you have any problems or need assistance with this process, you can submit an inquiry “ticket” to the treasurer’s office directly from your account dashboard.

As always, we at NevadaESA.com are also happy to answer any questions, scan your documents and help walk you through the application. You can reach the office at 702-222-0642 or email me at kg@npri.org.

I wish you all a wonderful Thanksgiving!

#LetOurChildrenSucceed

~Karen