Latest news with #EducationFreedomScholarshipAct
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Over 30K applications for TN education freedom scholarships
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Governor Bill Lee announced that the Tennessee Department of Education received more than 33,000 applications for the Education Freedom Scholarships. According to a press release, Tennessee's first-ever universal school choice program allows parents to choose the school that best fits their child's needs, regardless of income level or zip code. Families can apply for a $7,000 scholarship for their children to attend the private school of their choosing. This comes after legislators passed and Gov. Lee signed the Tennessee Education Freedom Act, which allowed Tennessee's universal choice program to be in effect on Feb. 12. Applications for school vouchers launch May 15 On Mar. 20, the State Board of Education held a meeting to hear the Education Freedom Scholarship Act emergency rules. In the meeting, terms were defined, and processes and procedures for the scholarships were established. EFS_ApplicationChecklistDownload During the meeting, the emergency rules received a unanimous positive recommendation. The emergency rules will remain in effect for 180 days while the department and the State Board of Education work to promulgate permanent rules. The release said a waitlist will be established should additional seats become available. 'This remarkable response demonstrates what we have known all along: Tennessee parents want choices when it comes to their child's education,' said Gov. Lee. 'I'm grateful to the General Assembly for their partnership in delivering universal school choice to families across our state, and I thank the Department of Education for their dedication to a smooth implementation.' The Education Freedom Act has faced significant pushback from lawmakers, educators, and local leaders across the state, with many stating that the program will divert money from struggling public schools. School vouchers officially signed into TN law: What does it mean? 'When you're pulling all of that money from public education, and then that hurts us. It hurts, you know, us when we're trying to build the infrastructure in schools,' said Dolores Rivers with the Memphis Shelby County Education Association. Tennessee State Rep. Jesse Chism of Memphis said the private schools' selectiveness could negatively impact neighborhood schools. 'It won't be school choice for the parent. It's school choice for the schools themselves, because if there's only a certain amount of seats available, they're only going to pick the valedictorians and the athletes,' Chism said. 'So that leaves our other students at our neighborhood schools at a disadvantage, because if you take away the highest achievement students, that makes the median test score go down.' For the 2025-26 school year, 20,000 scholarships will be awarded at more than 200 participating private schools, with the updated list of schools officially registered or intending to participate available on the EFS webpage. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
26-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Tennessee parent eager to apply for new school voucher program
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Next month, public school families will be able to apply for private school vouchers in Tennessee, and some parents are counting down the days. The Tennessee Department of Education announced Thursday applications for the Education Freedom Scholarship Program (EFS), which uses public dollars to help families pay for private school, will open at 12 p.m. CT on May 15. RELATED: School voucher applications to open soon in Tennessee. Here's what you need to know According to the TDOE, 20,000 scholarships worth $7,295 are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Meanwhile, 10,000 scholarships will be reserved for lower-income students; the rest are open to all students. 'I cannot be happier. I cannot be more relieved,' said Yadira Calderon, parent of a Metro Nashville Public Schools student. Calderon's 16-year-old daughter is on the autism spectrum, and lately school has been an uphill battle. 'She's delightful and she's incredible. She has all of these incredible skills, and she has all of these holy cow challenges,' Calderon said. 'I have not had the financial ability to get her out of the system earlier and find that environment that is more conducive to the way she can learn, because my goodness, she can learn.' This past January, the General Assembly narrowly passed the Education Freedom Scholarship Act, which will provide taxpayer-funded scholarships to help families pay for private school or other options. Opponents pushed back against the controversial program and argued the measure diverts money away from public schools and into private schools that have no accountability. 'I can't overstate how frustrating it is, and how that it's someone's priority to destroy public education,' Rep. John Ray Clemmons (D-Nashville) said in January. 'I understand the controversy. I was one of those five, seven years ago,' Calderon said. [I thought], 'A voucher? Why? The public school system exists for a purpose and a reason, and many kids and many families benefit from it.' But in my case, we have not benefited, and there are many like us.' ⏩ The scholarship likely won't cover the full private school tuition, another concern brought up by opponents. Calderon told News 2 there's no perfect solution, but she believes private school will be a huge improvement. 'We're going to be working on removing those concerns, removing the barriers, because that's what the voucher does. The voucher removes the barrier that many of us have and facilitates going and knocking on the doors of some of the schools that exist that have a proven record of how to better support all kinds of learning,' Calderon said. So far, 211 private schools in the Volunteer State have expressed interest in participating in the Education Freedom Scholarship program. Almost 150 private schools have officially registered. To learn more, click here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
05-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Some counties left out as private schools start showing interest in Tennessee's voucher program
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Governor Bill Lee's Education Freedom Scholarship program, which created taxpayer-funded school vouchers in the state, was described as universal school choice, but so far, private schools in just 36% of Tennessee counties have expressed interest. According to a new webpage on the Tennessee Education Freedom Scholarship program, 192 private schools have submitted an interest form so far, which is more than half of all eligible schools. However, those private schools are located in just 35 out of Tennessee's 95 counties. Twenty of the 35 counties have just one or two private schools listed. Social media safety could be taught in Tennessee schools The Education Freedom Scholarship Act passed during a special legislative session this Jan. Democrats and some Republicans opposed to the measure were concerned students from rural counties wouldn't benefit from the program due to the lack of private schools in those areas. The measure's fiscal note estimated 12 of the state's counties would receive the majority of the 20,000 vouchers. 'I have one little private school that started up this year. I think it has eight students. It's a K-3 school and it has eight students, and I think next year they're hoping to get to about 30 students,' Rep. Todd Warner (R-Chapel Hill), who voted against the measure, said. 'It's not good for my district. That's the only private school we have.' However, pro-voucher Republicans argued counties that don't have a private school likely border one that does, so those students could still take advantage of the vouchers. While private schools still have time to express their interest in the program, numerous counties in Tennessee don't have a private school at all. In addition, Dr. Kevin Cline, headmaster of an East Tennessee private school currently on the voucher program interest list, previously told News 2 that the measure still increases options for many parents, even if it doesn't for all. 'Everything the state does does not impact every resident,' Cline said. 'The Titans stadium is doing great, right? They're building it; it's huge. It's big time. My tax dollars have helped support that, but I'm four hours away, so that's not really going to help me much. I'm not going to get to utilize the stadium. That's part of pouring into a system as a state.' Families can begin to apply for the Education Freedom Scholarships this spring on a first-come, first-served basis, according to the state's website. For more information, follow this link. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
25-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Bristol, Tenn. BOE approves bonuses for teachers, staff
BRISTOL, Tenn. (WJHL) — The Bristol, Tennessee Board of Education on Monday approved one-time bonuses for teachers and support staff. Teachers and other eligible full-time employees will get $2,000 bonuses and eligible part-time employees will get $1,000 bonuses. The teacher bonuses will be paid for by the state under the governor's expanded school voucher program. The bonuses for everyone else will be paid for by the school system. Board of Education Chair Eric Cuddy said extending bonuses to teachers and support staff was the right thing to do. 'They're answering calls at night, they're answering text messages at night, they go above and beyond their duties,' Cuddy said. 'But also we want to make sure that our support staff and our other full-time employees who do so well and give so much time to their job and dedication to our school system, we want to make sure, that they also receive, a gift and a bonus showing our appreciation for them as well.' In order to get state funding for the teacher bonuses, the board had to affirm its participation in Section 4 of the Education Freedom Scholarship Act, which was passed by the General Assembly in late January. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
12-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Four local private schools have shown interest in voucher program so far
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WJHL) — Several Tri-Cities private schools are among those that have shown early interest in participating in Gov. Bill Lee's newly expanded school voucher program. The Tennessee Department of Education on Tuesday released a list of 162 private schools that had already 'signaled an intent to participate in the program.' Department of Education lays off nearly half of workforce Four Tri-Cities schools were on the list: St. Dominic Catholic School Lakeway Christian Schools: Tri-Cities Christian Academy St. Mary School – Johnson City Lakeway Christian Schools: Boones Creek Christian Academy 'A quality education has the power to change the trajectory of a child's life, and I'm grateful that Tennessee parents will have the opportunity to choose the best school for their child through the Education Freedom Scholarship Program,' Lee said in a release. 'I commend the participating schools for their partnership to deliver excellent educational choices for parents in the coming school year.' In January, state lawmakers passed the governor's Education Freedom Scholarship Act, which expanded the state's school voucher program to all 95 counties. The program will provide scholarships of around $7,000 to parents to help cover tuition and costs of sending their children to private schools. The complete list of schools that have expressed interest in the voucher program can be found on the department's website. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
