12 Mar Education Choice passes first hurdle in Tennessee Legislature
Education Freedom Scholarships are moving! The legislation has passed its first big committees in both houses and is on to the next step in the legislative process.
FOLLOW ALONG WITH BILL PROGRESS
About these bills:
- Give all families access to the education choices that currently are only available to a handful of families in Davidson, Shelby and Hamilton counties
- Ensure that every student is able to find an educational setting that is the best fit for them
- Begin with making the scholarships available to 20,000 students
- Students will receive approximately $7,000 in an Education Freedom Scholarship account to use on tuition, tutoring, access to neighboring school districts and higher education courses, educational therapies, curriculum, and other pre-approved educational expenses.
It is an exciting time where Tennessee can be a leader in providing educational options to families! There is no need to force kids to go to a school based only on their zip code.
With what we know now about how kids learn differently, there is no need to continue running education the same way it has been for over 100 years. Traditional public schools will always be available and will work for many students, but we can now build a system where every child can find their best fit.
Your help is needed to continue advancing this legislation! Email your legislator and let them know you support Education Freedom Scholarships.
Stay tuned as Tennessee policymakers coalesce around program specifics.
This Week’s FAQs
Will rural families benefit from school choice?
Curious how school choice works in rural areas? Check out the state with the most robust school choice — Florida. Rural public schools continue to fill their role but options spring up to serve students with the need to do something different. Watch this great video or read this amazing report about how rural education in Florida is flourishing thanks to school choice.
Who supports school choice?
Polling shows that everyone does! Thankfully most Republicans support school choice. President Donald Trump has even made school choice for all a key part of his platform. And when Republicans do oppose choice, voters respond. This year, school choice supporters declared that Texas Republicans who opposed school choice would lose their next election. So what happened last week? Nine Republican members of the Texas House of Representatives who oppose school choice lost their re-election and more are likely to lose in runoff elections.
Let our Republican legislators know that Tennessee needs school choice!