🚨 The Window Is Closing
until TEFA applications open
TEFA applications open February 4, 2026 and close March 17, 2026. Families who want Fall 2026 funding need to know about your microschool before the window opens. Church leaders need to decide now.
The ideal church: Hundreds of families, dozens with K-8 children, and families who would pay for Christian education even without winning the TEFA lottery. TEFA is a bonus. Committed families are the foundation.
95% of Christian kids in Texas are not in Christian schools. TEFA makes Christian education accessible to ordinary families for the first time. But only if there are schools to choose.
Read: Why Year One Matters → | Start Here: Church Microschool Guide →
Why This Exists
Spiritual formation, intellectual formation, and vocational formation cannot be separated. They are one integrated work. This conviction drives the need for educational environments where faith is not compartmentalized but woven through every aspect of learning.
Texas presents a historic opportunity. A thirty-year campaign by Christian conservatives culminated in TEFA's passage in May 2025. The door is open. This playbook exists to help church leaders walk through it—starting now, before the February 4 application window.
Start Here
The Case for Church-Based Microschools
Why churches are the right institution for this moment. They have the buildings, the community, and the pastoral authority. TEFA makes it financially possible.
How Texas School Choice Happened
The thirty-year campaign that made TEFA possible. The players, the money, the political battles. Why the current government is on your side.
⏰ Starting a Church-Based Microschool
For church leaders considering Fall 2026. Timeline, staffing, funding, curriculum, the ideal church profile. Decision framework for whether to move now or wait.
Finding the Right Guide
The Guide is everything. Not funding, not curriculum, not venue. How to recognize the person in your congregation who's been waiting for this moment.
⏰ Church Leaders: Promote TEFA Now
Even if you're undecided about a church microschool. Help your congregation apply for TEFA before March 17. No commitment required. Zero downside.
⏰ Securing TEFA Funding for Your Family
For parents considering Christian microschools. What TEFA is, how to apply, and why you should apply even if you're not 100% sure yet. The Feb 4 deadline is coming.
🧮 Microschool Funding Wizard
Interactive calculator for potential microschool founders. Estimate costs, revenue, break-even enrollment, and fundraising needs for a Fall 2026 launch.
Why Texas?
Texas is the critical test case for school choice nationally:
- Scale: 5.7 million school-age children. Largest first-year ESA program in the country.
- National influence: "When Texas comes, the rest of the dominoes fall."
- Favorable policy: Strong homeschool/private school freedom + TEFA funding
- Christian infrastructure: Churches everywhere. Built-in communities ready to act.
If TEFA succeeds in Texas, school choice expands nationwide. If it fails, the movement stalls. Church leaders who act now shape that outcome.
Principles of This Repository
Cite Primary Sources
Every claim should be traceable to its source. Prefer primary sources over secondary reporting:
- Legislative text first: Link directly to bill text on congress.gov, legiscan.com, or capitol.texas.gov
- Official government sources second: Governor's office, Texas Comptroller, agency guidance
- Reputable reporting third: When primary sources are unavailable or need context
Contributing
This is an open resource. If you have knowledge that would help others in this work, contributions are welcome.
To contribute, DM garysheng on LinkedIn or X.
About
This playbook is maintained by Gary Sheng. The goal is to lower the barrier for faithful people to create educational environments where the next generation can be formed spiritually, intellectually, and vocationally as one integrated work.