Your EFA account has money in it. Here is exactly how to turn it into curriculum, start to finish, without chasing reimbursements.
What the EFA actually covers
Arkansas Education Freedom Accounts give eligible homeschool families a set amount per student each school year, managed through ClassWallet. ADE publishes the current amount. Curriculum and instructional materials are an approved spending category. That includes online courses from approved EFA vendors, and Compass Life Skills is one of them.
The five steps
1. Log in to ClassWallet. Use the account the Arkansas Department of Education set up when your EFA was awarded. Your available balance shows on the dashboard.
2. Find the vendor. In ClassWallet, open Direct Pay and click Pay, then search for Compass Life Skills. We are a Direct Pay vendor rather than a marketplace store, so you will not find us in the shopping catalog. If the search does not turn us up, email hello@compasslifeskills.org and we will send you a vendor link.
3. Choose Direct Pay. Direct Pay sends funds from your EFA straight to the vendor. No credit card, no reimbursement paperwork, no waiting on a check.
4. Submit the order. For Life Ready 1, the amount is $249, one time, per student. Enter your student's name with the order. We print your student's name on every invoice.
5. Enroll. Once the Direct Pay clears, we email your enrollment link. Your student can start the same day. Every invoice we issue lists our vendor name and EIN, your student's name, dates, and an itemized description of the course.
What if I already paid cash?
Keep your receipt. ClassWallet reimburses eligible purchases, and that is the route once you have paid by card. It goes through the same ADE review as Direct Pay, so the wait is similar. The real difference is that with Direct Pay your own $249 is never tied up. If you have already paid and would rather use your EFA, email us at hello@compasslifeskills.org before you file the reimbursement and we will work it out with you.Why families use their EFA on life skills
The EFA exists so parents can pick the education that fits their kid. Life Ready 1 is 12 weeks and 60 lessons on the skills most curricula skip: emergency medical response, personal finance, navigation, vehicle care, home skills, and more, taught by Daniel Shaw, a retired Marine, career firefighter, and Advanced EMT. Students finish with a certificate and documentation for a suggested 0.5 high school elective credit.
The first 50 families enroll at $249 and keep that price.
