Frederick Douglass Christian School
under 1 mi ✓ Pennsylvania Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credit (OSTC) Grades PreK-8 55 students 5.5 students per teacher Baptist Co-ed
Private schools in Chester, PA
5 schools in Chester itself and 15 more within 6 miles. 7 of them are on the state’s OSTC list. Each scholarship organization sets its award; Opportunity Scholarships go up to $8,500, or $15,000 for a student with a disability.
Chester private schools at a glance
Chester has 5 private schools of its own, and 15 more are within 6 miles. In Chester itself: 1 Catholic, 1 other Christian and 3 nonsectarian; 3 teach elementary grades and 1 teaches high school. Of the 15 nearby: 3 Catholic, 2 other Christian, 8 nonsectarian and 2 not reported in the federal survey. 1 is all-boys. The typical school has about 86 students and 7.1 per teacher (2023-24 federal survey). 7 are on the official OSTC list, 2 of them in Chester.
4 Catholic
7.1 students per teacher, typical
6 in a school association
85% of graduates to a 4-year college, typical high school
Private schools in Chester (5)
Schools that give Chester as their address come first, then the 15 more within 6 miles. In each group, schools on the official OSTC list are first, then it goes by distance. No school can pay to change its place in this list or its badge.
Affiliation, co-ed or single-sex, association membership and the share of graduates going on to a 4-year college come from the 2023-24 federal Private School Universe survey.
No school in Chester matches all of those.
✓ Pennsylvania Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credit (OSTC) Grades PreK-8 167 students 15.8 students per teacher Roman Catholic Co-ed
Center for Self Development
under 1 mi Grades 1-4 39 students 7.8 students per teacher Nonsectarian Co-ed
Ysc Academy
1 mi Grades 7-12 82 students 7.5 students per teacher Nonsectarian Special program emphasis All-boys 100% to 4-year college
Grades PreK Nonsectarian Co-ed
Nearby, within 6 miles (15)
Schools in other towns within 6 miles of downtown Chester.
No nearby school matches all of those.
✓ Pennsylvania Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credit (OSTC) Grades PreK-12 306 students 13.9 students per teacher Calvinist Co-ed 85% to 4-year college
✓ Pennsylvania Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credit (OSTC) Grades PreK-8 203 students 13.6 students per teacher Roman Catholic Co-ed
✓ Pennsylvania Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credit (OSTC)
✓ Pennsylvania Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credit (OSTC)
✓ Pennsylvania Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credit (OSTC) Grades PreK-8 79 students 5.2 students per teacher Friends Co-ed
Grades PreK-8 184 students 14 students per teacher Roman Catholic Co-ed
Grades PreK-K Nonsectarian Montessori Co-ed
Milagre Kids School
3 mi Grades 1-12 Under 10 K-12 students Nonsectarian Special education Co-ed
Grades PreK-8 272 students 16.4 students per teacher Roman Catholic Co-ed
Grades K-12 130 students 6.2 students per teacher Nonsectarian Special education Co-ed 0% to 4-year college
Grades PreK-5 86 students 6.6 students per teacher Nonsectarian Co-ed
Grades 4-12 243 students 5.4 students per teacher Nonsectarian Special education Co-ed 8% to 4-year college
Davidson School
5 mi Grades PreK-12 269 students 7.1 students per teacher Nonsectarian Special program emphasis Co-ed
Grades PreK-K Nonsectarian Early childhood Co-ed
The Walden School
6 mi Grades PreK-8 53 students 2.9 students per teacher Nonsectarian Montessori Co-ed
On the state’s official list Other private schools
Are you a school near Chester? One sponsor per city, clearly labelled. Sponsor this city
What Pennsylvania pays, and what that leaves you
Pennsylvania EITC and Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credits Tax-credit scholarship
Set by each scholarship organization. Opportunity Scholarships go up to $8,500, or $15,000 for a student with a disability EITC has no statewide maximum, and no scholarship may exceed tuition and fees. Students at schools in the economically disadvantaged schools supplement can get up to $2,000 more ($4,000 in secondary school). The state’s September 2026 OSTC guidelines restate the $8,500 and $15,000 maximums. EdChoice reports average awards of $2,613 (EITC) and $2,699 (OSTC) in 2022-23.
Figures read from each program’s official pages, October 2, 2026. Sources and how to apply
What would you pay?
Enter amounts of $0 or more.
Tuition and fees EITC / OSTC pays You pay per year Spread over 10 months
We could not confirm this year’s EITC / OSTC amount, so type in the figure from your award letter. An award can never be more than the school actually charges. This is arithmetic, not a quote.
Keep looking
- Christian schools in and around Chester (3)
- Catholic schools in and around Chester (4)
- Special education schools in and around Chester (3)
- Private high schools in and around Chester (6)
- Private elementary schools in and around Chester (16)
- Private middle schools in and around Chester (13)
- Private schools with kindergarten in and around Chester (13)
- Private schools with pre-K in and around Chester (12)
- All schools in Delaware County
- Private schools in Media (5 mi)
- Private schools in Springfield (6 mi)
- Private schools in Drexel Hill (8 mi)
- Private schools in Lansdowne (8 mi)
- Private schools in Havertown (10 mi)
- Private schools in Newtown Square (10 mi)
- Private schools in Ardmore (12 mi)
- Private schools in Wynnewood (12 mi)
- Private schools in Bryn Mawr (12 mi)
- Private schools in Chadds Ford (13 mi)
- Pennsylvania EITC and Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credits: amount and eligibility
- All Pennsylvania EITC and Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credits schools
Get one email when applications open
Most programs open once a year, and several ran out of money or seats in 2026. Pick your state (you are looking at Chester) and we will email you the day the next window opens, with the official link. That is the only email you get.
One email per application window. No calls, no sharing your details.
Questions parents ask
How many private schools are there in Chester?
5 private schools give Chester as their address: Frederick Douglass Christian School, Drexel Neumann Academy, Center for Self Development, Ysc Academy and Widener University Child Development Center. Counting nearby towns, we list 20: 5 in Chester and 15 within 6 miles of downtown. Together they enrolled about 2,203 students in the last federal survey (2023-24). The largest in Chester is Drexel Neumann Academy with 167 students. The largest within 6 miles is The Christian Academy with 306 students.
Which Chester private schools take EITC / OSTC?
7 of the 20 schools on this page are on the state’s official OSTC list, 2 of them in Chester itself. They are marked with a green check and listed first in each group. Schools marked “OSTC school” here appear on the Department of Education’s list of schools that accept Opportunity Scholarship (OSTC) students in 2026-27: 398 private schools, reported by the schools themselves (the Department does not audit it). Pennsylvania keeps no list for EITC scholarships, so a school without the mark may still take EITC students. Ask the school which scholarship organizations it works with.
Will EITC / OSTC cover the whole tuition bill?
Sometimes, but do not count on it. Each scholarship organization sets its award; Opportunity Scholarships go up to $8,500, or $15,000 for a student with a disability, and schools set their own prices. Ask each school for tuition plus fees, then use the calculator on this page to see what is left for you to pay.