Final rules for Texas’ private school voucher program recently clarified that families interested in sending their children to private pre-K could receive an estimated $10,800 per year, the same amount designated for most other participants.
But the benefit may not radically transform Texas’ early childhood learning landscape, as the students eligible for private pre-K services through the program will be limited to those who already qualify for free public pre-K.
The state law that created the program earlier this year established that virtually any school-age child can apply for an education savings account, a form of vouchers that will allow families to access public taxpayers’ dollars to fund their children’s private or home-school education. But a lesser-known part of the law also granted certain families the option to use state funding to send their children to an accredited private pre-K provider as long as they do not simultaneously attend a public program.
