Tennessee Education Voucher Program Lacks Data on Existing Private School Students

Tennessee's new Education Freedom Scholarship program, which provides $7,295 vouchers to eligible students for private school tuition, is facing criticism for not tracking whether recipients were previously enrolled in private schools. Lawmakers and critics argue that without this data, it is impossible to assess if the vouchers are expanding access to private education for public school students or primarily subsidizing tuition for those already in private schools. Fiscal projections estimated that 65% of the vouchers would go to students already attending private schools, but Tennessee's Department of Education has not explained why it is not collecting prior enrollment data, unlike other states with similar programs. The lack of transparency has been called a 'betrayal of public trust' by Rep. Caleb Hemmer, who emphasized the importance of data to ensure accountability for the $125 million taxpayer investment. The Tennessee Department of Education and Governor Bill Lee's office have noted that the legislation does not require collection of this data, while the state's original Education Savings Accounts program continues to collect previous enrollment information. This absence of data collection leaves the public uncertain about the voucher program's true impact on educational equity in Tennessee.