Texas creates new national record for most students applying to new school choice program

Texas has created another new national record, this time for the most students applying to a new school choice program on the first day it launched.

Texas’ first school choice program launched on Wednesday with 20,000 students applying by noon.

Texas Comptroller Kelly Hancock announced the successful launch of Texas’ new Texas Education Freedom Accounts (TEFA) stating that nearly 8,000 applications were filed in the first hour. By noon, more than 20,000 students had applied “for the largest year-one school choice initiative in the nation,” The Center Square reported.

More than 35,000 applications had been received by Wednesday evening on the first day of the program’s launch.

By Thursday morning, that number topped 42,000 and is continuing to climb, the comptroller’s office, which is managing the program, said.

“The total represents a nationwide record for most enrollments for day one of a new school choice program, surpassing Tennessee’s 33,000 student applications in 2025,” Hancock said.

“Texas families made history yesterday,” Hancock added. “This record-breaking response shows a powerful groundswell across our state of parents who are excited about the freedom to choose the best possible education for their child, and we’re proud to deliver a program that puts students first.”

The public school system before only served to condemn all the kids but those whose parents could afford private school-or chose to homeschool-to an education that was not only far below minimum standard academically, but did not enforce any kind of meaningful discipline, and indoctrinated kids with inappropriate subject matter-socialist teachings, overt sexuality, and trans and gay-themed videos and books. That is sick and wrong-and the lack of discipline, exposure to inappropriate material, etc is part of the reason kids become the sort you don’t want your cubs around-..

If someone wants to be a snob and keep their cubs sequestered from kids they consider lesser beings, they can homeschool, like many other parents do for all sorts of reasons...

“That is sick and wrong-and the lack of discipline, exposure to inappropriate material, etc is part of the reason kids become the sort you don’t want your cubs around-..”

Lack of discipline and allowing your kids to be exposed to inappropriate material is the fault of the parents. Not one high level school was improved with forced racial integration. This is the same thing.

I was going to middle school when that stupid integration happened, but it was a rural school in remote W Texas, so there was not a racial divide there-no “colored” school or any of that crap-we were all either in the public school or maybe the Christian school for grades 1-6, no matter what color we were or ethnic group we were in-so I was lucky to miss the mess. This new school choice is not forced anything-parents have choices-they did not have that with the mid-60’s integration-you either let your cubs be bussed miles from your area, or you put them in private school-there was no homeschooling allowed back then...

Parents have bitched and complained loudly for decades about the abysmal test scores, inappropriate material shown to kids, the ridiculous and dangerous things being taught, and the lack of discipline in the classroom-nobody listened-not the teachers, not the superintendents, school boards-no one-that is WHY school choice is now finally on the books in Texas-to give parents a choice in what their kids are taught in school again...

I live in a rural area with a tiny public school system-and even here, more parents homeschool or send their kids to the small Christian school in the area than send their kids public school. The school system has been losing enrollment ever since the Christian school opened its doors nearly 15 years ago. I hope the district folds and closes-the taxes saved will go a long way...

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