More Than 53,000 Additional Students Awarded Texas Education Freedom Accounts in Program’s Inaugural Year
(AUSTIN) — Acting Texas Comptroller Kelly Hancock today announced that more than 53,000 additional students will be awarded Texas Education Freedom Accounts (TEFA) for the 2026-27 school year, expanding access to Texas’ first statewide school choice program in its inaugural year.
The new awards will begin going out today, May 4, and continue through Wednesday, May 6. Families receiving awards will receive email notifications and see updated status information, including funding amounts, in the program portal.
The students awarded this week qualified as Tier 2 applicants — students from households with incomes at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty level, or $66,000 per year for a family of four.
“Texas families have waited a long time for school choice, and the response to TEFA shows just how much this opportunity means to parents across our state,” Hancock said. “This first year is groundbreaking for Texas. More students will now have access to an education path that fits their needs, and the Comptroller’s office is working carefully to launch this program the right way and serve families well.”
This round of awards builds on the more than 42,600 Tier 1 applicants — students with a disability and their siblings — already given awards through the program. An updated fact sheet provides details on students given awards to date.
By July 15, families who receive TEFA awards must take one of the following actions: confirm enrollment in a participating private school, selecting homeschool or other (which provides $2,000 in funding), or opt out of the program.
As families make those selections, opt out of the program or resolve appeals, additional funding is likely to become available to students who are currently waitlisted.
Because demand from Tier 2 students exceeded available funding, awards for this group were determined by random lottery, as required by state law. The lottery process established the order in which eligible students receive awards or move from the waitlist as funding becomes available.
The Comptroller’s office has published additional details on the lottery and waitlist process. Key points include:
- Odyssey conducted the lottery using a process tested and evaluated by a team of data scientists and data management experts in the Comptroller’s office.
- Comptroller leadership, representatives from the State Auditor’s Office and advisers from Ernst & Young observed the lottery.
- All applicants were included in the lottery and assigned a sequential position using a random number generator.
- Siblings were grouped according to the applicant in their household with the highest priority tier and highest sequential position.
- Tier 2 students were given awards in sequential order until available funding was allocated.
- Additional funding was reserved to cover appeals. Parents have 30 days after notification to appeal their child’s funding amount, application priority or ineligibility.
- If an appeal is successful, the student will receive an award or be placed on the waitlist according to the lottery results.
Families can stay up to date with program developments and check their application status at EducationFreedom.Texas.Gov.
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