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Education Department details rollout of Education Freedom Scholarship; 20,000 scholarships planned for 2025-26
Summary
The Tennessee Department of Education told the Fiscal Review Committee it will launch Education Freedom Scholarship applications late this spring and process them on a first-come, first-served basis; the committee approved an amendment to the Student 1st Technologies contract to add EFS functions.
The Tennessee Department of Education told the Fiscal Review Committee it expects to launch Education Freedom Scholarship applications late this spring and will process applications as they are submitted on a first-come, first-served basis.
Emily Cornute, the department's director of legislative affairs, said the EFS program was established by "Chapter 7 of the Public Acts of the 1st Extraordinary Session of 2025" and will allow residents with children entitled to attend public schools in grades K-12 to use state funds toward education expenses at registered private schools in the state. Cornute asked the committee to approve an amendment to the department's existing contract with Student 1st Technologies to add EFS functionality; the committee approved the amendment by voice vote.
Trudy Hughes, the department's assistant commissioner of choice, told the committee the department has already built a website, contacted category 1, 2 and 3 private schools to gather intent-to-participate responses and will update information for families as it becomes available. "We are looking to actually launch the application late spring at that point in time," Hughes said. "We will review applications as they are submitted. It is a first-come, first-serve." (Trudy Hughes)
Hughes described the program's initial scale: 20,000 scholarships in the first year (2025-26), split into two buckets. The first 10,000 scholarships are "universal" and available to any student entitled to attend a public school in grades K-12 who is a Tennessee resident and U.S. citizen or lawfully present in the state. The second bucket contains 10,000 scholarships with eligibility criteria tied to income and other programs; families can qualify by meeting income thresholds (documentation described below) or by qualifying for individualized education accounts or education savings accounts under existing law and rule.
On documentation, Hughes said families seeking scholarships under the income-based bucket will be asked to provide 2024 tax returns or proof of state benefits such as TANF or SNAP. The department emphasized that IEA/ESA eligibility will be determined according to the qualifications written in law and department rule.
Committee members asked for operational clarity on rollout and application processing timelines. A lawmaker pointed out an earlier misstatement about the income threshold and the department corrected the record, saying the relevant threshold is 300% above the free-and-reduced-price-lunch level (the department apologized for the earlier slip). The department also said it has reached out to schools and is updating its public site daily to prepare families.
The committee approved the Student 1st Technologies amendment and the contract amendment was recorded as approved by voice vote. The department said further procurement actions may be needed for other technical work, but the Student 1st amendment was presented as necessary to meet the statutory implementation timeline for the 2025-26 school year.
The committee adjourned after completing the calendar; the department will proceed with the announced launch timeline and posted guidance on its website.
