Logo courtesy of CalKIDS

SACRAMENTO, CA (MPG) – As California students finalize financial aid applications and college plans this spring, more than 100,000 students have claimed over $50 million in CalKIDS Scholarships in the past six months, helping families access money already set aside to support higher education and career training.

The milestone reflects expanded collaboration between the California Student Aid Commission (CSAC) and CalKIDS, a program of the ScholarShare Investment Board (SIB), which is administered by the California State Treasurer’s Office.

“Collaboration across state agencies helps make programs like CalKIDS work more efficiently for California families,” said California State Treasurer Fiona Ma, CPA, chair of the SIB. “By coordinating efforts and sharing data, we’re not only connecting more students with scholarships already waiting for them – we’re creating a more seamless pathway to financial security for California families, helping them cover costs like tuition, books and career training.”

About CalKIDS

Launched in 2022, the CalKIDS Program provides scholarship accounts to eligible California children and public-school students to help pay for higher education or career training. Eligible public-school students can receive scholarships worth up to $1,500, and every child born in California on or after July 1, 2022, receives a CalKIDS Scholarship worth up to $175.

Students can use their CalKIDS Scholarships between the ages of 17 and 26 for qualified higher education expenses, including tuition, fees, books, supplies and computer equipment at accredited community colleges, universities and career training programs.

Partnership Expands Access

The milestone comes as CSAC and the SIB expand collaboration to connect more students with their CalKIDS Accounts in K-12 and higher education.

Through a secure data match of more than 2.4 million records for high school and college-age students (age 14 and older), CSAC can identify eligible students and connect them with their CalKIDS Scholarship Accounts through the WebGrants 4 Students portal that families already use when applying for financial aid at the California Student Aid Commission.

“By integrating programs into our existing technology across state agencies, we are effectively connecting systems and ensuring that more California students are aware of all programs that help make college affordable,” said Dr. Daisy Gonzales, executive director of CSAC. “We are grateful to the State Investment Board for their hard work and trust to connect eligible students with CalKIDS Accounts. When a student completes a FAFSA or California Dream Act Application, our system will now prompt students who are eligible for CalKIDS to claim their account, and students and parents will receive intentional communications about their eligibility, with aligned cooperation between K12 institutions and their higher education destination of choice.”

Partnerships such as this show the potential of improving Californians’ lives through strategic coordination and interagency shared vision.

“The partnership with CSAC has been instrumental in helping us identify and connect more students with their CalKIDS Scholarships,” said Cassandra DiBenedetto, executive director of the SIB. “By turning eligibility into real access, more students are discovering and claiming their scholarships, easing financial barriers and expanding access to higher education.”

What’s Next

The next phase of the partnership is expected to launch spring 2026 and will include a new WebGrants 4 Students report allowing high school counselors to track CalKIDS Account claims among their students in grades 9 through 12. A CalKIDS dashboard will also be released to help schools, families and policymakers better understand program participation and expand awareness of CalKIDS.

In alignment with CSAC’s Student Success Blueprint, this partnership advances breaking down silos and utilizing data sharing to streamline access to programs that support basic needs such as CalFresh and MediCal. Together, these efforts aim to ensure more California students claim state resources already waiting for them that make college or career training more affordable.