How Texas School Choice Happened
Last Updated: December 28, 2026
The Thirty-Year Campaign That Made TEFA Possible
"Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it." — Proverbs 22:6 (KJV)
Why This History Matters
If you're a church leader considering starting a microschool, you should know: the political ground beneath your feet was prepared over decades by people who share your convictions. The passage of Texas Education Freedom Accounts wasn't an accident. It was the culmination of a thirty-year campaign led largely by Christians who believed parents, not the state, should direct their children's education.
Understanding this history matters for two reasons. First, it shows that the current Texas government is genuinely supportive of what you're trying to do. Second, it reveals the philosophical and theological commitments that shaped the legislation. These are your allies.
The Pioneers: 1989-2010
The modern Texas school choice movement began with James Leininger, a San Antonio physician and devout Christian conservative. In 1989, Leininger founded the Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF) with a specific mission: advance school choice in Texas.12
In 1992, Leininger launched CEO San Antonio, a private scholarship program providing low-income students vouchers to attend private schools.3 This wasn't just policy experimentation. It was a proof-of-concept demonstration that alternatives to public education could work. By 1998, Leininger and his family had personally distributed $4.5 million in voucher-related donations.2
His vision was explicit: create alternatives to secular public education that undermined Christian formation. The public school system, in his view, had become hostile to faith. Parents deserved options.
The Accelerators: Tim Dunn and the Wilks Brothers
The next generation of leadership came from West Texas oil and fracking billionaires who took Leininger's foundation and turbocharged it.
Tim Dunn joined TPPF's board in 1998 and has since donated over $29 million to Texas candidates and PACs. Farris and Dan Wilks have contributed $16 million.45 But these men aren't just donors. They're preachers. Wilks serves as pastor at his family's church. Dunn preaches at his.4
In a 2014 sermon, Wilks declared: "The stones of government are starting to come apart... And it's due to a lack of morality, a lack of belief in our heavenly Father."4
Their goal, according to former colleagues who spoke to CNN, was replacing "a significant portion of public education in Texas with private Christian institutions."4 One former Texas senator stated: "They seek to dismantle public education as we know it and, in its place, promote increased homeschooling and more private Christian institutions."4
Tim Dunn founded Midland Classical Academy, a school offering "Classical Education from a Biblical Worldview" that teaches the Bible should be interpreted literally.6
These weren't detached philanthropists writing checks. They were men with deep Christian convictions who saw education as central to the formation of souls and the health of society.
The Senate Champion: Dan Patrick
Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick became the legislative champion. Since taking office, Patrick ensured the Texas Senate passed voucher bills six times between 2015 and 2025.78 Each time, the House blocked them.
Patrick framed school choice as his "top policy priority" for the 89th Legislature.9 When TEFA finally passed, he declared: "I consider the enactment of school choice one of the hallmark policy victories of my career."10
Patrick's persistence mattered. He kept the issue alive through years of defeat, maintaining pressure on the House and signaling to allies that the Senate would always be ready when the moment came.
The Failed 2023 Campaign
Governor Greg Abbott entered 2023 having made school choice his signature campaign promise. The obstacle was the Texas House, where rural Republicans feared vouchers would hurt their small-town public schools.1112
In April 2023, a test vote showed 21 House Republicans would join Democrats to block vouchers.11 Abbott refused to accept defeat. He called four consecutive special sessions between June and December 2023.1213
During the second special session (June-July 2023), the House failed to reach even a simple majority to allow committees to meet while in session, effectively preventing voucher legislation from advancing.14
The climactic moment came November 15, 2023. The House voted 84-63 to strip vouchers from House Bill 1, the massive education funding package. Representative John Raney (R-College Station), who was not seeking reelection, led the anti-voucher amendment, declaring: "I believe in my heart that using taxpayer dollars to fund an entitlement program is not conservative, and it's bad public policy."12
Twenty-one Republicans broke with their governor, including representatives like Gary VanDeaver (R-New Boston), who said his constituents had made clear they opposed vouchers despite intense pressure.1115
Abbott's response was swift. He vetoed bills passed by voucher holdouts and announced he would "do my part in having new members" elected.12 The Family Empowerment Coalition PAC immediately pledged to mount primary challenges.12
The session ended December 5, 2023, with no voucher bill passed, marking the 227th day the Legislature had been in session that year, tying the single-year record in Texas history.1312
The 2024 Primary: Political Retribution
What followed was unprecedented in Texas politics. Abbott and his allies spent approximately $35-40 million targeting anti-voucher Republican incumbents in their own primaries.16
Jeff Yass, a Pennsylvania billionaire, co-founder of Susquehanna International Group, and TikTok investor, became Abbott's most significant financial backer. On December 18, 2023, just thirteen days after the failed special session, Yass wrote Abbott a $6 million check. The largest single campaign donation in Texas history. He followed with another $4 million in April 2024.171819
Yass, with an estimated net worth of $29 billion, had spent more than $209 million nationally over the previous decade promoting school choice. His motivation was ideological: "School spending has doubled in real terms over the last 30 years and results have gotten worse, particularly in urban districts. The time for choice and competition is now," Yass stated.17
The American Federation for Children (AFC) Victory Fund, the Super PAC arm of AFC, launched in February 2024 with a pledge to spend at least $10 million nationally on state legislative races. AFC spent approximately $2 million in Texas runoffs alone.202122
The Club for Growth reserved $4 million for TV and radio ads targeting anti-voucher Republicans in Texas. Club for Growth President David McIntosh declared: "If you call yourself conservative and oppose school freedom, retire or expect to lose your next primary."2320
Abbott's own campaign spent nearly $8.8 million during the primaries, targeting Republicans who had voted against vouchers.2120
The March Primary Results
The March 5, 2024 primary delivered stunning results. Six anti-voucher Republican incumbents lost outright, including Rep. Steve Allison (San Antonio) who lost to Marc LaHood.2021
Additionally, four anti-voucher Republicans chose not to seek reelection, and their seats were filled by pro-voucher candidates.2420
The May Runoffs
The May 28, 2024 runoffs sealed Abbott's victory. Three more anti-voucher Republicans fell:2521
- Rep. DeWayne Burns (Cleburne) — Lost to Helen Kerwin, former Glen Rose Mayor
- Rep. Justin Holland (Rockwall) — Lost to Katrina Pierson, former Trump spokesperson
- Rep. John Kuempel (Seguin) — Lost to Alan Schoolcraft, former state lawmaker
One anti-voucher holdout did survive: Rep. Gary VanDeaver (R-New Boston) defeated his challenger despite representing a district Trump won by 50 points.2125
The Final Tally: Nine out of 16 anti-voucher Republicans who sought reelection lost their primaries, plus four retirements yielded pro-voucher replacements and one additional open seat. This netted Abbott at least 14 new pro-voucher votes.242021
By Abbott's count, the House now had 79 "hardcore school choice proponents"—three more than the 76 needed to pass legislation in the 150-member chamber.2624
The National Christian School Choice Movement
The Texas campaign connected to a sophisticated national infrastructure built by Christians over decades.
Betsy DeVos, the former U.S. Education Secretary and Michigan billionaire, has spent decades advancing vouchers explicitly to "advance God's kingdom." In a 2001 interview, she told Christian philanthropists: "There are not enough philanthropic dollars in America to fund what is currently the need in education... Our desire is to confront the culture in ways that will continue to advance God's kingdom."27
Her husband Dick DeVos added: "As we look at many communities in our country, the church has been displaced by the public school as the center for activity... it is certainly our hope that more and more churches will get more and more active and engaged in education."27
The DeVos family foundation gave $8.6 million to private religious schools between 1999-2014, compared to $5.2 million to charter schools. They've funded organizations like the Foundation for Traditional Values (which pushes to "soften the separation of church and state"), Focus on the Family (James Dobson called public school curriculum "godless and immoral"), and the Acton Institute (whose advisory board member wrote "No real progress towards improving American education can occur as long as 90 percent of American children are being taught in government schools that ignore moral and religious beliefs").27
Final Passage: 2025
The 89th Legislature convened January 14, 2025 with leadership aligned behind vouchers.
House Speaker Dustin Burrows (R-Lubbock) won the gavel after a contentious speaker race. He appointed Rep. Brad Buckley (R-Salado), a voucher proponent, to chair the House Public Education Committee.282930
Senator Brandon Creighton (R-Conroe), chair of the Senate Education Committee, filed Senate Bill 2 on January 24, 2025. In his filing statement, he declared: "This session, we are fully committed to passing universal, comprehensive school choice legislation, ensuring every Texas family has access to the educational opportunities they deserve."31
The Senate moved with remarkable speed. After committee hearings on January 30-31, 2025, the full Senate passed SB 2 on February 5, 2025.323334
Patrick celebrated: "The Texas Senate's passage of SB 2 is the biggest launch of any universal school choice program in American history, with $1 billion in funding for 100,000 students."8
The House took a methodical approach. Burrows announced a "Texas Two Step" strategy: pairing SB 2 with House Bill 2 (HB 2), a sweeping $7.7 billion public school funding package.3536
The Floor Fight: April 16-17, 2025
On April 16, 2025, the House took up SB 2 in what would become a nearly 10-hour floor debate extending past 2 a.m. on April 17.3738
House members filed approximately 44-50 amendments to SB 2, including proposals to send vouchers to voters in a November referendum (led by Rep. James Talarico, D-Round Rock), cap the program permanently at $1 billion, limit eligibility to only low-income families, and require participating private schools to accept all students.363839
House leadership, determined to pass the bill intact, tabled (killed) 43 of the 44 amendments. Only Buckley's own amendment, which made technical adjustments and added eligibility for military families, was accepted.384041
At approximately 2:00 a.m. on April 17, 2025, the House passed SB 2 by a vote of 85-63.423738
Abbott immediately celebrated on social media: "Ready to sign this bill into law."43
Senate Concurrence
On April 18, 2025, Lt. Gov. Patrick made a surprise announcement: he urged the Senate to accept the House version as-is, bypassing conference committee negotiations.4443
"I have championed school choice throughout my legislative tenure," Patrick posted. "I am advocating for the Senate to agree with Senate Bill 2, which represents the most significant expansion of school choice in American history."43
On April 24, 2025, the Texas Senate voted 19-12 to concur with House amendments, sending SB 2 to Governor Abbott.454644
Governor Abbott Signs TEFA Into Law
On May 3, 2025, Governor Greg Abbott held a ceremonial signing at the Governor's Mansion. "When I ran for re-election in 2022, I promised Texans that we will bring education freedom to every Texas family," Abbott declared. "Today, Texas delivers on that promise."7
Abbott was joined by key allies including Dan Patrick, Speaker Burrows, and Senator Creighton. Also present was Joel Enge, founder of Kingdom Life Academy, a Black school founder and former public school teacher who said: "As a Black school founder, I've seen firsthand the urgent need for this change. In the low-income and minority community where I live and teach, too many students have fallen through the cracks of a system that couldn't meet their needs."7
Christian Organizations Currently Active
Several explicitly Christian organizations continue working on school choice in Texas:
Texas Homeschool Coalition (THSC): A Christian advocacy group that explicitly frames its mission in biblical terms and works the Texas Capitol on "school choice that protects homeschool freedom." THSC testifies on bills, mobilizes Christian homeschool families, and negotiates with legislators around program design.47
Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI): A global Christian school network whose U.S. public policy arm actively lobbies for vouchers, ESAs, and tax-credit scholarships. ACSI's government affairs director explicitly calls on Christian schools to "partner with ACSI in the school choice cause" and highlights Texas as a key front in the movement.48
Texas Private Schools Association (TPSA): Though officially nonsectarian, TPSA's membership is dominated by religious schools (Catholic, evangelical, classical Christian, Lutheran, etc.). It has functioned as a de facto Christian coalition in TEFA negotiations to preserve autonomy on doctrine, admissions, and curriculum. San Antonio Christian School credits TPSA with working to ensure "religious protections in the law."495051
Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF): Founded by Christian conservative James Leininger and later led by Tim Dunn, TPPF has been the central policy and organizing hub for the school-choice push for three decades.1552 Abbott himself said, "We would not be on the threshold of success if it were not for TPPF."52 In 2023-25, TPPF organized "Parent Empowerment Nights" in private Christian schools and helped organize a teleconference with pastors where Abbott urged them to promote vouchers from the pulpit.5352
EdChoice: This national school-choice think tank published "How Churches Can Lead in School Choice" in 2025, laying out theological and practical reasons for churches to engage, including teaching on parental authority, helping congregants apply for ESAs, and even starting church-based schools.54
What This Means for Church Leaders
The current Texas government is genuinely supportive of church-based Christian education. This isn't rhetorical. The people who passed TEFA want to see classical Christian schools, faith-based microschools, and church-centered education expand.
Governor Abbott has addressed groups of pastors statewide, urging them to "get into the school choice fight."53 In September 2023, TPPF organized a teleconference where Abbott urged pastors to "promote vouchers during Sunday church services."52 The legislation includes strong religious liberty protections allowing schools to maintain their admissions standards, curriculum, and hiring practices.4443
You're not operating in hostile territory. You're operating in an environment shaped by decades of work by Christians who share your convictions about education, formation, and parental rights.
The door is open. The question is whether church leaders will walk through it.
For practical guidance on launching a church-based microschool, see Starting a Church-Based Microschool.
For the theological case for church-based microschools, see The Case for Church-Based Microschools.