MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Families across Tennessee can continue applying for the Education Freedom Scholarship Act, commonly known as the state’s school voucher program, after a major move by the Tennessee State Board of Education.
The Board approved permanent rules that give private schools the green light to keep processing applications for the scholarship, which provides eligible students up to $7,000 each to attend participating private schools.
Without these finalized rules, private schools would have been forced to pause application reviews.
Some of the newly adopted regulations outline how applications are reviewed, how the funds may be used, and the terms of participation for both schools and families. The rules also clarify that once a student returns to their zoned public school, their scholarship will be terminated.
One Memphis mother, Monica Brown, shared how the program has already made a difference in her children’s education.
Brown said that one son currently enrolled at Pure Academy, a private boarding school for boys in Memphis. This fall, her second son will join him, and both will now be funded through the Education Freedom Scholarship.
She said the structured environment and positive male role models at Pure Academy were key factors in her decision.
“They’re learning how to become young men verses not being taught by men,” Brown said. “Kids in public school, I’m not saying they, like, just run the streets, but at Pure, my kids don’t have to run the street, and they still get to interact with other kids and still get taught at the same time.”
Since the application portal opened on May 15, more than 40,300 applications have been submitted statewide.
The state has capped the number of scholarships for the 2025–2026 school year at 20,000. In future years, the State Board of Education said if the number of applications received by the department exceeds the number of EFS available for the respective school year, then the Department has parameters to award school vouchers.
Pure Academy Dean of Students, Manuel Burton said the school has seen a 27 percent increase in enrollment and applications since the program launched on May 15.
“The voucher system allows use those dollars to offset some resources and all of those resources are for the students,” Burton said.
Burton said that although each student’s tuition totals about $40,000 annually, private donations help cover the full cost.
He said the additional scholarship funds, from the school voucher program will go toward enhancing programming, learning materials, and student support needs. Burton said they have a facility that focuses on building a culture for underserviced kids.
“This is something they don’t normally see, but this is at their fingertips, peers at their fingertips; our program is no cost to the families, so that’s what makes us unique,” he said.
Despite growing participation, the program remains controversial. Parents and community members argue that public funds should not be diverted to private institutions, which are not held to the same standards or oversight.
Participation in the voucher program remains optional for private schools, and not all are choosing to accept the scholarship.
For more information about the EFS permanent rules, click here. Families looking to apply for the EFS can click here.
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