Diamond Star Academy - Waterloo, Waterloo IA: Accepts ESA

Can you use Students First ESA here?

✓ On the official Iowa ESA eligible (accredited) list

State list: Includes this school
Applying: The full-year window for 2026-27 ran April 16 to June 30, 2026. A second, half-year window (House File 2754, 2026) runs from 8:00 a.m. October 15 to 11:59 p.m. November 15, 2026, for a $4,074 spring ESA. A student whose full-year application was denied or not completed may apply; a student who received a full-year ESA may not.

Source: the official list, read October 26, 2026.

Net cost: Not worked out: no verified 2026-27 tuition yet. Check the school’s website

Award: $8,148 per student for 2026-27
How it varies: Paid in two equal installments, fall and spring. New for 2026-27: a half-year ESA of $4,074 for the spring semester. Homeschooled students do not qualify.

Figures read from each program’s official pages, October 11, 2026. Sources and how to apply

Yearly tuition the school quoted Fees, books, uniforms Students First ESA award Children

Ask the school: Its full-year tuition and required fees; whether it still takes Students First ESA for 2026-27; its application deadline. More questions to ask

School	Grades	Students	Per teacher	Affiliation	Miles
Waterloo Christian School ✓	PreK-12	312	14.9	Christian (nondenominational)	<1
St. Edward School ✓	K-5	321	11.9	Roman Catholic	1
Blessed Maria Assunta Pallotta ✓	6-8	175	10.7	Roman Catholic	2
Cedar Valley Catholic School	PreK-12	733	12.9	Roman Catholic	2
Cedar Valley Catholic School System	PreK-12	733	12.9	Roman Catholic	2
Columbus Catholic High School ✓	On the state list; not in the federal survey				2
Royal Legacy Christian Academy ✓	PreK-6	36	8	Christian (nondenominational)	2
Valley Lutheran School ✓	K-12	146	9.4	Lutheran Church (Missouri Synod)	3

On the program’s official list Other private schools

Next Students First ESA date: Open now, until November 15, 2026 (2026-27 half-year ESA application window).