HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — The application period for Texas’ controversial school voucher program, formally known as Texas Education Freedom Accounts, is now closed, and the comptroller’s office is touting what it calls a record-breaking initiative.
As previously reported by Eyewitness News, most of the applicants are students who already attend private schools. Texas Acting Comptroller Kelly Hancock confirmed that over 70% of applicants already attended a private school or were homeschooled during the 2024-2025 school year.
Now that the application period has concluded, preliminary data has been released on the over 274,000 Texans who applied. ABC13 is breaking down the numbers.
Where are most of the applicants from?
Most applicants live in the area served by HISD, which makes sense since HISD is the largest district in Texas.
Fort Bend, Cy-Fair, and Katy are also among the top eight areas for applications.
How much money is being given out?
Hancock said that accepted students will receive about $10,500 per year to attend approved private schools, thousands more than the homeschoolers, who can expect to receive up to $2,000 each year.
Children with disabilities may qualify for up to $30,000, based on the estimated cost of educating them in a public school.
The Comptroller said that 36% of voucher applications are from low-income families, defined as families of four earning $64,000 or less per year.
Meanwhile, 27% of all applications are from families of four making more than $160,000.
For comparison, data from the Texas Education Agency shows that about 60% of public school students are considered economically disadvantaged.
How do the applicants differ from public school students?
According to the Texas Comptroller’s Office, 45% of applicants are white, 23% are Hispanic, and 12% are Black.
The breakdown of students in Texas public schools differs from the application pool.
TEA data shows that 54% are Hispanic, 24% are white, and 13% are Black.
What are the next steps?
Families will find out later this month if they have been accepted into the program.
After that, they are scheduled to receive the money in July.
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