Texas families can receive money from the state to help pay for private schooling, starting next school year.
Gov. Greg Abbott signed the $1 billion education savings accounts program into law in May, creating Texas Education Freedom Accounts. It is expected to be the largest school voucher-style program in the country. Approved private schools can start accepting ESAs in the 2026-27 school year.
Here’s what to know about how private schools become eligible to accept ESA funds.
What is an ESA?
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An education savings account offers selected families money to go toward their child’s tuition, tutoring, homeschool expenses and other approved education expenses.
Students attending an approved private school can receive about $10,500 to help with expenses. Students with disabilities could receive up to $30,000 each year. Homeschool students may get up to $2,000.
Acting State Comptroller Kelly Hancock said the program prioritizes low-income students and students with special needs. About 80,000 are expected to participate in the program in the first year.
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What kinds of private schools exist?
Private schools range from religious institutions to boarding schools. Some revolve around teaching philosophies or cater to specific types of students. For example, Montessori schools boast an individually paced, student-centered learning. Special needs schools hire specialized staff to support students with learning disabilities.
The median private school tuition for the 2024-25 school year was $9,400, according to the Texas Private Schools Association.
When are the deadlines for private schools and families?
The application period for private schools to take ESAs opened on Dec. 9. Afterward, private schools will be accepted on a rolling basis.
Families can start submitting applications in February. They are expected to know by May if they were approved.
Experts say the timeline of the program could prevent low-income families from participating in the program, the Houston Chronicle reported. Since private schools set their own admissions, some have application deadlines that close before families find out whether they will receive state aid.
Which schools in North Texas have been approved for the program so far?
As of January, more than 1,000 schools across the state have been approved to accept ESA funds next school year, according to a map released by the Texas Comptroller’s office. That includes more than 260 schools in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, serving pre-K to high school grades.
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The Hockaday School, the top-ranked private school in the Dallas Fort-Worth area on Niche, did not appear on the map. The school confirmed to The News that it has not signed up to receive ESAs and did not comment on whether it plans to.
What accreditation is required for private schools to participate?
Private schools must be accredited by an organization recognized by the Texas Private School Accreditation Commission or an accreditor recognized by the Texas Education Agency.
The private schools must also have operated for at least two school years before applying. To participate, private schools are required to administer a nationally norm-referenced test.
What accreditation is required for private day cares?
Private providers of pre-K or kindergarten can accept ESAs, as long as they are licensed by and in good standing with the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. They also must meet one of the following requirements.
Accreditation by a system approved by the Commissioner of Higher Education.Be a Texas Rising Star Program provider with a three-star certification or higher.Be a Texas School Ready participant.Have an existing partnership with a school district to provide a pre-K program not provided under Chapter 29, subchapter E-1 of the Texas Education Code.Accreditation by an organization recognized by the Texas Private School Accreditation Commission.Will schools with ties to CAIR and China be disqualified?
Hancock asked Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton whether schools could be excluded from the program, if they were linked to a “foreign terrorist organization,” “transnational criminal network,” or “adversarial foreign government” in a December letter.
Some schools that applied to accept ESAs have hosted events organized by the Council on American-Islamic Relations, Hancock said. Abbott designated CAIR — the country’s largest organization dedicated to advocating for civil rights of Muslims — as a “foreign terrorist organization” and a “transnational criminal organization” in November.
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Hancock also posed the same question for a school that may have links to the Chinese government.
As of January, the office has not published an opinion on the matter. Most opinions are issued within 180 days of the request, though time can vary, according to the Attorney General website.
The DMN Education Lab deepens the coverage and conversation about urgent education issues critical to the future of North Texas.
The DMN Education Lab is a community-funded journalism initiative, with support from Bobby and Lottye Lyle, Communities Foundation of Texas, The Dallas Foundation, Dallas Regional Chamber, Deedie Rose, Garrett and Cecilia Boone, Judy and Jim Gibbs, The Meadows Foundation, The Murrell Foundation, Ron and Phyllis Steinhart, Solutions Journalism Network, Southern Methodist University, Sydney Smith Hicks, and the University of Texas at Dallas. The Dallas Morning News retains full editorial control of the Education Lab’s journalism.