Parents Choose, Students Succeed

The Education Freedom Act will empower Tennessee parents with the freedom to pick the right school for their child, while giving families a choice in where their taxpayer dollars are spent.

Learn More

Education has the power to change the trajectory of a child’s life, and every Tennessee child deserves to attend the school that fits their unique needs – regardless of income or zip code.

Opportunity For All

In the past six years, Tennessee has made great strides to strengthen education, but there’s more work to do to ensure that every child in our state has the opportunity to reach their full potential.

The Education Freedom Act will extend school choice to every family across rural and urban Tennessee, putting parents at the forefront of their child’s education so that students find the best school for their needs to succeed in the classroom and beyond.

Key Takeaways:

  • Every student has unique needs + every classroom offers unique value
  • Parents know best + can choose the right school for their child
  • Gives every Tennessee child a shot at success – regardless of zip code or income

School Choice Success

State and national trends make it clear that now is the time to bring education freedom to every Tennessee family, from climbing enrollment numbers in the ESA pilot program to widespread achievement and parent satisfaction nationwide.

Nationwide Success

33 states offer school choice programs, including 12 states that have adopted universal school choice, and more than 1 million students now participate in a K-12 school choice program nationwide

Type Of School Choice Programs Offered By Each State

Parents Support

84% of parents favor school choice policies, and parents are more satisfied when they choose their child’s school.

Students Achieve

Studies show rising test scores and better educational attainment and life outcomes with education freedom.

Schools Win

Public school scores, student achievement, and funding grow – school choice is a rising tide that lifts all boats.

6,500+

families have applied for the program

3,500+

students are enrolled in participating non-public schools, with enrollment numbers continuing to rise

99%

of parents are satisfied with the program

Hear From Tennesseans

Education Freedom Scholarship Explained

The Education Freedom Act will establish a statewide school choice program - available to all Tennessee families - and make additional significant investments in public education, bringing the Lee administration’s anticipated total investment in public education to at least $2.5 billion in 2025.

  • 2025-26 School Year

    20,000 scholarships will be available to Tennessee students, including:

    • 10,000 scholarships for students at or below 300% of income qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch, have a disability, or are eligible for the existing ESA program.
    • 10,000 additional scholarships available to a universal pool of students entitled to attend a public school

  • 2026-27 School Year & Beyond

    • Universal eligibility for all Tennessee students entitled to attend a public school, prioritizing currently enrolled students, low-income and public school students if demand exceeds available funding
    • 5,000 additional scholarships for each year after applications for 75% of total scholarships are submitted in the prior year

  • New Public Education Investments

    • Ensures state funding to school districts will never decrease due to disenrollment.
    • Provides a $2,000 bonus for every teacher in Tennessee to recognize their unwavering commitment to student success
    • Dedicates 80% of sports wagering revenues to building and maintaining K-12 public school facilities, prioritizing emergency needs as well as at-risk and distressed counties.

    Governor Lee and the General Assembly will maintain their commitment to public schools by investing hundreds of millions of state dollars in TISA next year as well as raising starting teacher pay to $47,000 in FY2025-26—an increase from $35,000 in 2019.

Learn More

\

Strengthening Education for Every Tennessean

Some are concerned that more choices for families could mean fewer resources for public schools, but these two ideas are not in conflict. Tennessee can give parents choice while continuing to support public schools.

Our public schools are invaluable, and over the past five years, the Lee administration has invested historic amounts to strengthen public education.

Key Public Education Investments

  • We’ve increased annual investments in public education by more than $2 billion since 2019 – the most in Tennessee history
  • We modernized the way we fund public schools for the first time in 30 years, with the Tennessee Investment in Student Achievement (TISA) Act
  • We’ve raised teacher pay each year since 2019 and gave teachers the largest pay raise in state history with the Teacher Paycheck Protection Act

Tennessee has a responsibility to deliver a quality education for every child across our state, and our commitment to parents and students will continue with both strong public education investments and education freedom for every family.

Frequently Asked Questions