WHEELING, W.Va., Jan. 15, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- West Virginia has broken new ground in school choice, and families will be celebrating expanded learning opportunities this School Choice Week at an inaugural school fair in Wheeling on Saturday, Jan. 22.

The school choice fair will showcase more than a dozen schools and learning organizations, including public schools and private schools. Families can receive information, ask questions, and learn whether they are eligible for the state's new Hope Scholarship program.

The event will take place from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Oglebay Resort's Pine Room and more than 500 community members are expected to attend. The event is free, open to all families, and will feature face painting, a DJ, photo booth, snacks, and additional fun for children.

A scavenger hunt at the fair will allow three families to receive $250 scholarships to spend on educational materials for the upcoming school year. Also, during the event, Dynamic Dyslexia and Speech will offer free dyslexia screenings for interested families.

The school fair is planned to coincide with the history-making celebration of National School Choice Week 2022, which will feature more than 26,000 school choice events across all 50 states. As part of the celebration, Jan. 22 will be "School Fair Saturday," and will feature school fairs in more than a dozen U.S. cities, simultaneously with the Wheeling event.

Another major event taking place in West Virginia during School Choice Week will be a celebratory rally at the Charleston Capitol on Thursday, Jan. 27.

"West Virginia has expanded educational options available for the 2022-2023 school year – new charter schools and the Hope Scholarship are among them," said Amanda Kieffer, communications director at the Cardinal Institute for West Virginia Policy. "We want to celebrate that by connecting families with educators, so they can find the best educational environment for their children."

West Virginia's new Hope Scholarship program is scheduled to begin for the fall 2022 school year, and allows eligible families to use the state portion of their child's education funding to create an individualized learning experience for their child, such as through tutoring, educational therapy, private school, a non-public online program, or extracurricular services.

The school fair is being organized by the Cardinal Institute for West Virginia Policy, a nonprofit dedicated to researching, developing, and communicating effective public policies for West Virginia, in partnership with West Virginia Voices for Education Choices, a group of parents, students, teachers, and schools who believe that education choice is vital to the creation of opportunity for all.

The Oglebay Resort is located at 465 Lodge Dr. in Wheeling.

National School Choice Week shines a spotlight on effective K-12 education options for children, focusing equally on traditional public, charter, magnet, online, private, and home education options. Every January, participants plan tens of thousands of celebrations –– such as school fairs and open houses–– to raise awareness about school choice across all 50 states. School Choice Week also develops resources and guides to K-12 education for families. As a not-for-profit effort, the Week is nonpolitical and nonpartisan and does not advocate for legislation. For more information visit schoolchoiceweek.com.

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SOURCE National School Choice Week