Houston Takes the Lead in Texas' School Voucher Program

Texas is about to start a big new school voucher program called the Texas Education Freedom Accounts (TEFA). This $1. 1 billion initiative, supported by Governor Greg Abbott, will start taking applications on February 4. Families have until March 17 to apply, but there's a cap of 90, 000 students for the whole state. Houston is at the forefront of this program. As of January 16, 304 private schools and vendors in the Houston area have signed up to accept state funds. This is more than Dallas and San Antonio combined. Andrew Campanella, President and CEO of the National School Choice Awareness Foundation, thinks Houston's lead is due to its long history of offering different education options.The program offers different amounts of money to families. Students with disabilities can get up to $30, 000, while most other students will get around $10, 474. The funds will be given out through a lottery system, with priority given to low-income families and students with special needs. But not everyone is happy about this program. Critics say it will take money away from public schools, which most Texas children attend. Democratic State Rep. Christina Morales worries that rural areas, which have fewer private school options, will be left behind. She thinks taxpayers in these areas might see their money going to big cities like Houston and Dallas instead. If you're a parent interested in this program, you should start preparing your documents early. You'll need recent tax returns and your child's academic records.