Texas now pays $10,474 a year toward your child's private school.
Texas Education Freedom Accounts are new, and Houston is their biggest market. 291 Houston-area K-12 schools and 496 pre-K providers take them. We show you every source, every date and how to stack them, including what to do if you were waitlisted.
Per private-school student, 2026-27 — the TEFA amount at every grade, K through 12. Up to $30,000 with an IEP; $2,000 for homeschool.
Houston ISD students funded by July 29, more than any district in Texas. Houston-area districts together had more than 19,800.
Houston-area K-12 schools are in the state's TEFA finder, out of 416 in our directory.
Next application cycle. Dates aren't set. If you were waitlisted, you have to apply again, so get ready now.
TEFA changes what private school costs a Houston family.
Here is what the stack looks like at a K-5 church school in Cypress with $10,900 tuition and a $450 registration and book fee.
Illustrative example. The TEFA amount is the published 2026-27 award. School pricing and the partner award vary by school and household.
Funding sources for Houston families
State account, IEP funding, homeschool, pre-K, the 2027 federal credit, Catholic aid, child care assistance and our partner fund. We track all of them and tell you which ones fit.
Texas Education Freedom Account (TEFA)
Texas's new education savings account. A student at a participating private school receives $10,474 for 2026-27, deposited in three installments and spent through the state's marketplace.
Who qualifies →IEP · Up to $30,000TEFA for Students with an IEP (up to $30,000)
A TEFA student with an IEP on file who attends a participating private school can receive up to $30,000, based on the home district and the IEP's instructional setting code.
Who qualifies →Homeschool · $2,000TEFA Homeschool / Other ($2,000)
A TEFA participant who is homeschooled — or otherwise not enrolled at a participating private school — receives $2,000 a year, deposited in full on July 1.
Who qualifies →Ages 3-5 · $10,474TEFA Pre-K & Kindergarten
TEFA pays $10,474 for eligible pre-K and kindergarten students at approved private providers — including hundreds of Houston child care centers and church preschools.
Who qualifies →New · Jan 2027Federal Scholarship Tax Credit (2027)
Governor Abbott announced Texas's intent to opt in to the new federal scholarship tax credit on December 10, 2025. Starting January 2027, donors get a dollar-for-dollar federal credit of up to $1,700 for gifts to scholarship organizations.
Who qualifies →Catholic schoolsArchdiocese of Galveston-Houston Tuition Assistance
Need-based tuition assistance at Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston Catholic schools, awarded through a FACTS application and layered on top of TEFA.
Who qualifies →What a TEFA account can pay for
Tuition and school fees, credentialed tutoring, speech and behavioral therapy, curriculum, dual credit, CTE, testing and transportation. Technology is capped at 10%. We explain the rule for every category.
Private school tuition
Tuition at a participating private school is the first thing most Houston TEFA accounts pay — and the amount m…
Rules →School fees: registration, books, technology, activities
The May 2026 guidelines list which school fees TEFA can pay — and the three kinds it cannot.…
Rules →School uniforms
Uniforms required by the school, provider or course are an eligible expense.…
Rules →Tutoring & teaching services
Credentialed tutoring is one of the largest marketplace categories — and the one with the clearest credential …
Rules →Dyslexia & reading intervention
Dyslexia therapy and structured-literacy tutoring can be paid as tutoring or as an educational therapy, depend…
Rules →Speech-language therapy
Speech therapy is one of the educational therapies TEFA names explicitly.…
Rules →Occupational & physical therapy
OT and PT are eligible educational therapies from approved practitioners.…
Rules →Behavioral therapy & autism support
Behavioral therapy is named among the common eligible educational therapies.…
Rules →How Houston Edu Funding works
Tell us about your child
Grade, the kind of school you like, your part of the metro, your TEFA status (awarded, waitlisted or not applied). Two minutes, no documents.
We build your funding stack
A School Funding Advisor matches you to every source you qualify for and the dates that apply, including ones your school never mentioned.
Enroll with confidence
We connect you with schools that take your funding, help you get ready for the next TEFA cycle, and line up gap funding while you wait.
Every Houston private school we can verify, checked against two public records
416 K-12 schools with grades, affiliation, enrollment, special-education services and TEFA participation. Each record comes from the Texas TEFA finder, the federal Private School Survey, or both.
Catholic Schools
Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston parish and diocesan schools, plus independent Catholic and Jesuit schools.
60 schools →Christian Schools
Baptist, Lutheran, Episcopal, Methodist, Presbyterian, Church of Christ, Adventist, Pentecostal, classical and non-denominational schools.
147 schools →Church-Run Schools
Schools operated by a local congregation — usually on the church campus, often PK-8 with small classes.
29 schools →Jewish Day Schools
Community day schools, Modern Orthodox and Orthodox schools, yeshivas and girls' schools in Meyerland, Bellaire and southwest Houston.
11 schools →Islamic & Other Faith Schools
Islamic academies and Quran schools, Greek Orthodox and other faith traditions.
22 schools →Independent & Secular Schools
Non-religious private schools — college prep, international, bilingual, Acton-model, STEM and arts schools.
176 schools →Montessori Schools
AMS, AMI and independent Montessori programs — Houston has one of the densest Montessori markets in the country.
52 schools →Special Education & Learning Differences
Schools that report special education services, dyslexia programs, speech or occupational therapy, or that were founded for students with learning differences.
47 schools →By community: Inner Loop · West University, Bellaire & Meyerland · Memorial, Galleria & Spring Branch · West Houston, Westchase & Energy Corridor · Southwest Houston, Sharpstown & Alief · South Houston · Garden Oaks, Oak Forest & North Houston · Cy-Fair, Cypress & Jersey Village · Spring, Klein & Greenspoint · Humble, Kingwood, Atascocita & Lake Houston · East Houston, Pasadena & Baytown · Clear Lake, Webster & Southeast Houston · Katy & Fulshear · Sugar Land, Stafford & Missouri City · Richmond, Rosenberg & Southern Fort Bend · Pearland, Alvin & Brazoria County · League City, Friendswood & Galveston County · The Woodlands & South Montgomery County · Conroe, Magnolia & Montgomery · Tomball · Waller, Liberty, Chambers & Austin Counties
Partner with Houston Edu Funding
We send you families whose funding is already lined up. Congregations that want to start a school get a Texas start-up playbook, a two-year path into TEFA and access to our partner's funding.
TEFA news, deadlines and school choice in Houston
Houston ISD families lead Texas in Education Freedom Accounts
The state's first demographic report puts Houston ISD at 3,327 funded students — and the metro at more than 19,800.
Read →Sep 29, 2026TEFA 2027-28: what Houston families should do before the next window
Dates aren't set, but the documents that sank year-one applications are known. Here's the checklist.
Read →Sep 22, 2026What TEFA can — and can't — pay at a Houston private school
Registration, books, uniforms and lunch: yes. After-care and capital campaigns: no. A fee-by-fee guide.
Read →Find out what your family qualifies for
A 2-minute funding check. A School Funding Advisor calls you back — no sales pitch, no obligation.