Dallas ISD families held the second-most TEFA accounts in Texas. Here's how yours can get one.
By late July, 2,645 Dallas ISD students were funded through Texas Education Freedom Accounts, and the suburbs added thousands more. 202 K-12 schools and 292 pre-K providers in our six counties take the account. We'll show you how it combines with Catholic tuition aid, church pricing, IEP funding and the rest.
Per private-school student, 2026-27. It's the same at every grade. An IEP can raise it to as much as $30,000, and homeschool students get $2,000.
Dallas ISD students funded as of July 29, second in Texas behind Houston ISD. Plano ISD led Collin County with 1,140.
Funded students in Region 10 the service-center area covering Dallas, Collin, Rockwall, Kaufman and Ellis counties. Denton County is counted in Region 11.
Dallas ISD student with a mainstream IEP at a participating school, 2026-27.
TEFA against a Dallas tuition bill
An illustrative Diocese of Dallas parish school in East Dallas: $9,400 K-8 tuition plus $750 in registration, books and technology fees, with a parishioner rate.
Illustrative example. The TEFA amount is the published 2026-27 award. Tuition and discounts vary by school.
Where Dallas families find the money
The state account and its IEP, homeschool and pre-K tiers, the 2027 federal credit, Diocese of Dallas tuition assistance, two workforce boards' child care scholarships, Dallas College dual credit, and school and partner aid.
Texas Education Freedom Account (TEFA)
The state account that follows a Dallas-area child to a participating private school. For 2026-27 it pays $10,474 per student, sent straight to the school in three installments.
Who qualifies →IEP · Up to $30,000TEFA with an IEP (up to $30,000)
A TEFA student whose IEP is on file with the Texas Education Agency gets the $10,474 base plus a special-education add-on set by the home district, up to $30,000.
Who qualifies →Homeschool · $2,000TEFA Homeschool / Other ($2,000)
Children in the program who don't attend a participating private school, usually homeschoolers, receive $2,000 a year in one deposit on July 1.
Who qualifies →Ages 3-5 · $10,474TEFA Pre-K & Kindergarten
Approved pre-K and kindergarten providers receive the full award, but pre-K is only open to 3- and 4-year-olds who meet one of the state's free pre-K criteria.
Who qualifies →New · Jan 2027Federal Scholarship Tax Credit (2027)
From January 2027, taxpayers in participating states can claim a federal credit of up to $1,700 for donations to scholarship granting organizations. Texas said on Dec. 10, 2025 that it will take part.
Who qualifies →Catholic schoolsDiocese of Dallas: Catholic Schools Office Tuition Assistance
The Diocese of Dallas Catholic Schools Office runs a need-based Tuition Assistance Program through FACTS for families at its diocesan schools, alongside a TEFA liaison who helps families apply for state accounts.
Who qualifies →Dallas's learning-differences schools and the IEP add-on
A deep bench of schools
Shelton, The Winston School Dallas, Fairhill, Oak Hill Academy, Vanguard Preparatory and Notre Dame School of Dallas were all in the TEFA finder when we checked.
Learning-differences guide →What the IEP adds
A mainstream IEP is funded at $16,757 for a Dallas ISD resident, $17,051 in Plano ISD and $17,144 in Highland Park ISD.
IEP amounts by district →Mind the gap
Specialized tuition can run two or three times the base award. Ask about aid, and get the IEP on file with your district before the next window.
296 private schools in the Dallas area, checked against state and federal records
Each listing shows grades, affiliation, enrollment, special-education services and whether the school was in the state TEFA finder on our check date.
Parish & Catholic Schools
Diocese of Dallas parish schools from Oak Cliff to Prosper, Catholic high schools such as Jesuit, Ursuline, Bishop Lynch, Bishop Dunne and John Paul II, and independent Catholic schools in Irving.
37 schools →Christian Day Schools
Non-denominational, Baptist, Lutheran, Episcopal, Presbyterian, Adventist and classical Christian schools, from Trinity Christian Academy in Addison to Liberty Christian in Argyle and Heritage Christian in Rockwall.
105 schools →Congregation-Run Schools
Schools whose registered name ties them to a congregation, denomination or ministry, usually run on the church's own campus with small classes.
13 schools →Independent & Nonreligious Schools
Non-religious schools: Dallas college-prep campuses, international and language-immersion schools, Montessori programs, Acton-model academies, and Jewish and Islamic day schools.
154 schools →Montessori Programs
Montessori programs from White Rock and Farmers Branch to Irving, Frisco and McKinney, several running from age 3 into the elementary grades.
39 schools →Learning Differences & Special Education
Dallas has one of the deepest benches of learning-differences schools in Texas: Shelton, The Winston School, Fairhill, Oak Hill Academy, Vanguard Preparatory, Notre Dame School and more.
26 schools →Schools Through Grade 12
Private schools whose grades reach 12.
150 schools →Microschools & Part-Week Programs
Prenda microschools from DeSoto to Allen, Acton Academy campuses in Lakewood and Frisco, and other small-format and part-week programs.
16 schools →By community: Park Cities, Preston Hollow & Love Field · Far North Dallas, Addison & Farmers Branch · Downtown, Uptown, Lakewood & White Rock · Oak Cliff, West Dallas & Southern Dallas · Best Southwest & Ellis County · Irving, Coppell, Carrollton & Grand Prairie · Richardson, Garland, Mesquite & Rowlett · Plano, Allen, Murphy & Wylie · Frisco, McKinney, Prosper & North Collin · Denton, Lewisville & Flower Mound · Rockwall, Heath, Forney & Kaufman County
Partner with Dallas Edu Funding
We send schools families whose funding plan is already worked out. Churches thinking about opening a school get the Texas accreditation requirements and the two-year path into TEFA.
TEFA news for Dallas-area families
Learning-differences schools in Dallas and TEFA: what an IEP adds, and the gap it leaves
Shelton, Winston, Fairhill, Oak Hill, Vanguard and Notre Dame School of Dallas take TEFA. What an IEP adds in Dallas-area districts, why tuition gaps can top $17,000, and a checklist for 2027-28.
Read →Oct 8, 2026Catholic school in the Diocese of Dallas after TEFA's first year: the liaison, the FACTS calendar and the Catholic Foundation
How the Diocese of Dallas approached Texas Education Freedom Accounts, which of its schools were in the state finder, how its FACTS-based tuition assistance works, and where the Catholic Foundation's school grants fit.
Read →Oct 5, 2026Dallas ISD finished second in Texas for Education Freedom Accounts. Here's what the numbers show
2,645 Dallas ISD residents were funded through TEFA by July 29, second only to Houston ISD. How the rest of Dallas County and the suburbs compare, why some awards were returned, and what to do for 2027-28.
Read →See which Dallas-area funding your child can use
Answer a few questions and a School Funding Advisor will phone you with a plan built around your district, your schools and the 2026-27 amounts. It's free, and you're under no obligation.