Using LA GATOR at Bishop McManus School
LA GATOR can pay tuition at Bishop McManus School because the school is on the Louisiana Department of Education's 2025-26 list of BESE-approved nonpublic schools (accredited). Approval is a condition of the program, not a guarantee the school has registered for the year, so confirm that with the office. Its Brumfield v. Dodd nondiscrimination approval, required for any state-funded placement, dates from 2003.
On that list the school reported 94 K-12 students plus 18 in pre-K, which makes it the 90th-largest of 114 approved schools in the eight-parish area.
By enrollment it is the 31st of 42 approved schools within Orleans Parish; the nearest comparable schools with the same grade span and affiliation in the area are École Bilingue de la Nouvelle-Orléans, McMillian's First Steps Academy. Its pre-K program (18 children) is the usual route into kindergarten here, which is the first year LA GATOR can pay.
It was also on the state's 2024-25 list of schools taking Tuition Donation Credit scholarships. For a family at or below 250% of the poverty line that matters: since Act 403, an STO award from ACE, Arete, Aspiring Scholars or the New Orleans-based Son of a Saint can be added on top of LA GATOR, up to the school's actual tuition and fees.
The federal Private School Survey (2023-24) recorded 93 students, 9.1 full-time-equivalent teachers and a ratio of about 10.2 to 1.
Kindergarten to grade 8 is 9 years at this school. Funded every year at 2026-27 levels, that is roughly $47,187 at the standard amount or $68,634 at the 250%-of-poverty amount, before any STO scholarship. Awards are reset annually and depend on the appropriation, so use it for planning, not budgeting. Pre-K years aren't eligible; the account starts at age 5.
Covering the rest
Independent schools publish tuition and run need-based aid through FACTS or a similar service. Ask where LA GATOR sits in that calculation; at the larger campuses the account covers a fraction of tuition and aid does the heavy lifting.
Check my funding for this school →
Grade 9 options after Bishop McManus School
Approved schools serving grade 9, nearest first:
- St. Mary's Academy (New Orleans, grades PK-12, all-girls, about 4 mi)
- Brother Martin High School (New Orleans, grades 8-12, all-boys, about 7 mi)
- Holy Cross School (New Orleans, grades PK-12, all-boys, about 8 mi)
- St. Augustine High School (New Orleans, grades 8-12, all-boys, about 9 mi)
- Life of Christ Christian Academy (New Orleans, grades PK-12, about 9 mi)
- Cabrini High School (New Orleans, grades 8-12, all-girls, about 10 mi)
Ask the admissions office
- Is the school registered with Odyssey as a LA GATOR school for 2026-27, and does it bill tuition quarterly to match the deposits?
- What is the all-in cost for this grade, including fees, and what does a family at the $5,243 and $7,626 levels owe after the account?
- Do you take STO scholarships (ACE, Arete, Aspiring Scholars, Son of a Saint)? Which is applied first, LA GATOR or the STO award?
- Does a PK-4 seat guarantee a kindergarten seat, which is when the account can start?
Nearest private schools
| School | Type | Grades | Distance | BESE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Resurrection of Our Lord School | Catholic | PK-7 | 2.5 mi | ✓ |
| Lake Castle Private School | Independent | PK-8 | 3.0 mi | — |
| New Orleans Adventist Academy | Seventh-day Adventist | K-8 | 3.4 mi | ✓ |
| St. Mary's Academy | Catholic | PK-12 | 4.4 mi | ✓ |
| St. Benedict the Moor School | Catholic | PK-4 | 5.9 mi | ✓ |
| Brother Martin High School | Catholic | 8-12 | 7.4 mi | ✓ |
Straight-line distance between campus coordinates.