HOUSTON – Private school vouchers are now law in Texas. Families will have the chance to receive financial assistance to send their children to private schools.
The program promises to prioritize students with disabilities and low income families.
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This is a $1 billion investment which is anticipated to help around 92,000 families over the course of two years.
Robert Enlow, the president and CEO of a national nonprofit advocating for school choice called EdChoice, said this will give families the option to choose the best education.
“EdChoice has been involved in Texas since 1997,“ said Enlow. ”Since that time, we’ve been engaged in educating the public and making people aware of their options."
Under the new program, eligible families receive about $10,500 per year per child. Families of special needs students receive up to $30,000.
“This is the amount that the legislature felt was enough to make sure that families could access private schools across the state and that’s important to do,” said Enlow.
Enlow believes demand for this program will be high, and the state legislature will continue to approve funding for it in the future.
“It will put more pressure on the legislature and on the communities at large to say, hey, these families are demanding these options," said Enlow.
But Houston ISD parents like Jessica Campos are skeptical of the program.
“I have three girls. Each one of them has a learning disability," said Campos. “I know that private schools don’t have to accept children like mine."
Campos doesn’t believe the program would help families like hers because the amount of financial assistance isn’t enough to cover full costs and she is worried the quality of education for public schools will decrease.
“We’re already losing programs. We’re already losing certified teachers,” said Campos. “[The school voucher program] is a discount to the rich for the people that are already benefiting from private schools.”
Dee Dee Halpin is one of the owners of Houston School Options, an organization helping parents decide whether public or private school is better for their child.
“Our concern is it’s going to draw a lot of funds out of the public school, so it’s going to leave these public schools with probably more difficult to teach children and fewer funds to do that with,” said Halpin.
Halpin said there are also a limited number of schools that this program will cover the full cost of tuition.
According to the tutoring group General Academic, the average private school tuition cost per year is around $27,000.
Right now, Halpin said because there is still uncertainty surrounding this new law, Houston School Options is guiding families on best options as if this law didn’t exist.
“If then it happens and they’re the recipients of that money, it’s a positive win for them,” said Halpin. “But we just don’t know enough right now to guide families."
If demand for this program exceeds the funding available, there is a prioritization schedule.
However, any Texas school-age child is eligible for the program, including those already in private schools. The program does prioritize students leaving public schools over those already in private schools.
The program launches in the 2026 to 2027 school year. The Texas comptroller must still set up an application process for families interested in enrolling their children.
