The school choice scholarship boom benefits kids already in private school: AP analysis
AP analysis shows most Texas school-choice scholarships go to students already in private or home schools, while 95,000 awards went mostly to low-income families.
- An Associated Press analysis finds Texas's Education Freedom Accounts program, launched with around $1 billion, primarily benefits students already in private or home schools rather than those leaving the public system.
- Gov. Greg Abbott fast-tracked the program last year with President Donald Trump's support, abandoning a provision that would have reserved 80% of scholarships for students transitioning from public schools to secure legislative passage.
- Fort Worth parent Maria Contreras struggled to secure required disability testing for her son, Ian, before the voucher deadline, demonstrating the barriers public school families face navigating the application process.
- Only 43% of recipients recently attended public school, while the share of approved applicants with disabilities, 28%, doubled the share in the public school system.
- Nationwide, states and the federal government increasingly promote taxpayer-supported scholarships, yet advocates warn that leaving public systems remains risky for students with special needs who may lack adequate support in private settings.
56 Articles
56 Articles
Ottumwa Courier
AP Exclusive: The private school choice boom leaves behind many kids in public school
Soon, half of all American schoolkids will live in states that offer public money for a private education. Texas is the latest to join in, budgeting $1 billion to spend this fall on private school scholarships or homeschooling expenses. Next…
School Choice Vouchers: Who Really Gets the Money?
School Choice Vouchers: Who Really Benefits From the Boom? A billion-dollar scholarship program was sold as a lifeline for struggling public school kids. The data tells a very different story. School choice vouchers were supposed to open doors for children trapped in failing public schools, giving low-income families the same options wealthy families have always had. That was the promise. But a sweeping new analysis by the Associated Press revea…
Telemundo 20
The visit to Catholic school ended and Maria Contreras felt an irresistible desire to enroll her 7-year-old son there. But before a difficult question: “Could I run my son?” she asked the principal in Spanish. The second-grader has trouble concentrating. He doesn’t listen to teachers and runs through the classroom, she explained. Could he be expelled? More and more families in various parts of the United States experiment with private schools as…
Private school choice boom leaves behind many kids in public school
Soon, half of all American schoolkids will live in states that offer public money for a private education. Texas is the latest to join in, budgeting $1 billion to spend this fall on private school scholarships or homeschooling expenses. Next…
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