Jordan Brown | January 6, 2026

Texas Education Freedom Accounts - Expanding Preschool Access

In 2025 the Texas Legislature passed Senate Bill 2, creating the Texas Education Freedom Accounts (TEFA) program. TEFA is an educational savings account (ESA) program that provides public funding to eligible PK-12 students to pay for private education-related expenses. Known colloquially as “school vouchers” or “school choice”, these funds can pay for tuition and fees at preschools, private schools, microschools, and tutoring. It can also be used to pay for homeschooling resources and special education services.

Beginning in the 2026-2027 school year, TEFA will provide funding to approximately 70,000 to 100,000 eligible students in Texas. The estimated amount per student is around $10,500 per year. Students with disabilities can receive up to $30,000 depending on their documented need; homeschool students will receive a capped amount of $2,000.

Program Oversight

TEFA is housed at the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, which contracts with a statewide operator, Odyssey, to administer the program. Among other responsibilities, Odyssey will process student applications, authorize payments, verify provider and vendor eligibility, and maintain the web portal. Outschool, a state-approved subcontractor, will provide on-the-ground support and technical assistance to families applying for and participating in the program.

Opportunities for Early Learning

While other states have implemented similar school choice programs, Texas is the first to include students aged 3 and 4 who are eligible for public pre-k, paving the way for more options for families with preschoolers. Also unique to Texas, students in pre-k and kindergarten can enroll in high-quality child care and early learning programs to pay for tuition and other expenses up to the maximum $10,000 amount.

In the Comptroller’s initial rule release, the majority of early learning providers were limited to the homeschool amount of $2,000, which was not in alignment with Senate Bill 2. The final rules clarify that students attending private early learning programs are eligible for the full amount if that program meets existing accreditation requirements.

Early Learning Program Eligibility

Child care programs serving preschoolers and/or kindergarteners are eligible to participate in TEFA they meet one of the following criteria:

  • Texas Rising Star 3-star or 4-star certified​,
  • Texas School Ready! Participant​,
  • Existing Pre-K Partnership with school district​, or
  • Accreditation from: NAEYC, NAC, NECPA, NAFCC, COA, Cognia, Association of Christian Schools International, or an organization recognized by the Texas Private School Accreditation Commission.

Eligible providers must apply via Odyssey. The first application for the 2026-2027 school year was emailed directly to eligible programs on December 9th, 2025. If you are an eligible program and did not receive an invitation, contact Odyssey at 737-379-2362 or help.tx@withodyssey.com. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis, but programs are encouraged to submit before the end of January to be visible to families applying in February. Approved programs will be made visible on the TEFA school finder.

Eligible Use of TEFA Funds

Students can use TEFA funds to pay for education-related expenses at approved education service providers or vendors of educational products. This includes tuition and fees, instructional materials or uniforms required by the school, meals, academic assessments, educational therapies, and certain types of transportation.

Pre-K students may only use their TEFA funds for the pre-k hours of the day, in alignment with the public school classroom hours required by TEA. Full-day early learning programs must charge families separately for before- and after-care services. The educational provider may not charge a TEFA student a different rate than their posted rate. The Texas Workforce Commission will determine guidance on billing tuition for TEFA students who also receive child care scholarships.

Student Eligibility

In order to be eligible for TEFA, a child must be a citizen or national of the United States or lawfully admitted into the United States and eligible to attend a Texas public PK – 12 program (currently lives in Texas). A participating TEFA student cannot be enrolled in a public school in a manner that generates funding for that school. Students in kindergarten must be five years of age on or before September 1. Students aged 3 and 4 must be eligible for free pre-k – this includes students who are:

  • Free and Reduced Lunch status (household income at or below 130% federal poverty level).
  • English learner.
  • Homeless or foster care.
  • A child of a member of the armed forces or a reserve component of the armed services who is active duty or was injured or killed in the line of duty.
  • A child of a person eligible for the Star of Texas Award as: a peace officer, firefighter, or emergency medical first responder.
  • A child of a public school teacher.

Application and Waitlist

Families can apply for TEFA beginning February 4th, 2026 to be considered for funding in the 2026-2027 school year. The application window will close on March 17th, 2026. While the K-12 application will require families to submit similar documentation to public school enrollment, prekindergartners may require extra verification depending on the child’s qualifying criterion (homeless, foster care, English learner, etc.). Families should begin gathering documents to affirm their child’s eligibility. Pre-k families can attest their eligibility on the TEFA application and will receive further guidance regarding verification later in the Spring.

If the number of applicants exceeds available funding (a likely scenario, considering around 7 million school-aged children live in Texas), TEFA accounts will be distributed through a lottery process. Students will be prioritized based on disability status and income level. Siblings will receive automatic prioritization, and new program participants will be prioritized over students who have previously received a TEFA account. Once a student receives a TEFA account, they do not need to reapply each year. Families who do not receive a TEFA account will need to reapply for the following year.

Conclusion

The Texas Education Freedom Accounts program takes the first step to expanding PK-12 options for families. Importantly, while TEFA makes a variety of schooling options more accessible to children, it also ensures parents can choose accredited early learning programs that meet their preschoolers’ needs. This could alleviate pressure on the current child care scholarship system, for which over 90,000 Texas families are currently waiting. With expanded access to high-quality early learning services, TEFA can support working families and help more students enter kindergarten ready to learn.

For more information, visit the Odyssey Support page.