Tutoring has emerged as a key strategy to accelerate student learning in the wake of the pandemic. What was once a resource primarily available to families with the means to afford private tutoring became more widely accessible as public schools began offering these supports to all students. Fueled by federal Covid relief dollars, states took on a more active role in expanding access to tutoring across the public education system.
But with those federal funds expiring, an important question remains: What will happen to state-led tutoring initiatives without that support? More broadly, will states maintain their momentum around tutoring, or will responsibility shift entirely to individual districts and schools—or even back to families themselves?
In recent years, state education agencies have pursued a range of strategies to scale and sustain tutoring: awarding competitive grants or allocating formula funds, developing approved provider lists, offering technical assistance, and partnering with higher education institutions to recruit and train tutors. States such as Arkansas (Tutoring Corps), Colorado (High-Impact Tutoring Program), and Louisiana (Accelerate) have established statewide frameworks designed to reach large numbers of students, reflecting a broader shift toward embedding tutoring within state education systems to promote consistency, quality, and long-term sustainability. Many of these efforts focus on “high-impact” or “high-dosage” tutoring that research says gets the best results―programs with four or fewer students working with the same tutor for at least 30 minutes per session, three times a week, over several months.
Yet while a few states have committed to funding beyond federal relief dollars, most continue to rely on temporary appropriations. According to the National Student Support Accelerator, Tennessee remains the only state to incorporate “high-impact” tutoring into its permanent K–12 funding formula. Others, such as Louisiana, Virginia, Michigan, and Maryland, have supported tutoring through one-time legislative appropriations or short-term formula funding, much of which is set to expire in the next few years. For example, Colorado’s five-year program will conclude in 2026, and Virginia’s funding for its ALL In Tutoring initiative is also scheduled to end that year.
...