For families in Van Buren, Alma and the rest of Crawford County, school choice has always meant a drive across the Arkansas River. The Education Freedom Account hasn't changed the geography, but it has changed the math. Here are the three ways Crawford County families are using it: at Joshua Academy, at a Fort Smith school, or at home.
Joshua Academy
Joshua Academy is the one participating private school in Van Buren in our directory. It's a non-denominational Christian school serving kindergarten through grade 5, and the EFA has become central to how its families pay. In the state's 2024-25 report, 95 of its roughly 115 students used an account, about 83%. That's one of the highest shares in western Arkansas.
Its families also tend to stay. 96% of Joshua Academy's EFA students continued in the program the next year, and 92% returned to the school. Families recorded about $290,000 in EFA payments to the school in the spring transactions the report covers.
Because Joshua Academy ends at grade 5, families need a plan for the middle years. The nearest participating options are across the river: Union Christian Academy (PK-12), First Lutheran (through grade 6) and, for Catholic families, Trinity Catholic (grades 6 to 8).
Commuting to Fort Smith
Most of Fort Smith's participating schools are within a 15 to 25 minute drive of Van Buren. The account follows your child to any participating school, so the decision comes down to fit, schedule and the balance after the account. The 2026-27 account is $7,208 per student, paid in four quarterly deposits.
Families often ask whether the account can pay for the drive. It can cover some transportation through approved channels, but a 2025 state law (SB 625) caps transportation and certain extracurricular spending at roughly a quarter of the account. For most families, the commute stays a family expense. If a school runs a shuttle or carpool and invoices it, ask whether that fee is EFA-eligible.
Homeschooling with the account
Crawford County has a long homeschool tradition, and since 2024-25 the EFA can fund it. Statewide, 3,422 accounts, about a quarter of all accounts, were homeschool accounts in that first year. Homeschool families spent mainly on curriculum, supplies and homeschool program tuition, with smaller amounts on tutoring, enrichment, testing and therapy.
How it works in practice:
- Apply through the state's FACTS portal at arkansasefa.com during the spring window. For 2026-27 it ran March 9 to June 1. Arkansas still requires the usual notice of intent to homeschool filed with your district, which is separate from the EFA application.
- Spend through ClassWallet. Approved providers invoice ClassWallet directly, you buy approved items in its marketplace, or you submit receipts for approved purchases.
- Check first for anything outside the core categories. Program rules may require approval before you buy, and spending on extracurriculars, PE and transportation is capped.
A hybrid path
Some Van Buren families combine options: a homeschool account for elementary years, with co-op classes and tutoring, then a move to a campus for middle or high school. Others use an accredited online school as the academic core and build local activities around it. Our featured partner AmFaith, an online classical Christian school, publishes tuition of about $2,260 for K-2 and $3,000 for grades 3 to 12. That leaves room in a $7,208 account for curriculum extras or tutoring. Confirm any online school's approval in ClassWallet before paying from the account.
Which path fits?
- If you want a small Christian elementary school close to home, start with Joshua Academy and plan the grade 6 move early.
- If you want one school through graduation, look at Union Christian Academy in Fort Smith.
- If you want flexibility and control, a homeschool or online account gives you the most room to build your own program.
One year's budget, three ways
To make the choice concrete, here's how a $7,208 account might stretch across each path for a third grader. These numbers are illustrations, so get real quotes before deciding.
- Joshua Academy: the account goes almost entirely to tuition and school fees invoiced through ClassWallet. Your remaining costs are the things the school doesn't bill, like lunches and the daily drive.
- A Fort Smith school: the same idea, but tuition may be higher, and the commute across the river adds time and gas.
- Homeschool: you might spend $1,000 to $2,000 on a full curriculum, a few hundred on testing and supplies, and put the rest toward a co-op, tutoring or an online program. Unused money can roll over within limits set in the program rules.
The homeschool path offers the most control over spending. The school paths offer structure and community. Many families choose based on the child, not the dollars.
Every River Valley school is in our Fort Smith directory with its EFA figures. If you want an advisor to compare the options for your child, start a funding check.