Local K-12 leaders call for more voucher oversight after ESA report

Local public school officials are continuing calls for more transparency and accountability in Tennessee's private school voucher program after a recent state report raised concerns about student participation and outcomes. The report, released Monday by the Tennessee Comptroller's Office of Research and Education Accountability, examined the Tennessee Education Savings Account (ESA) program's first three years and found that voucher recipients' state test scores "generally remain below their local public school peers," with ESA recipients also showing less growth compared to public school students. In addition, the report said, 28% of participating ESA students previously attended a public school by the program's third year, with most not coming from low-performing priority schools. The ESA program authorized the use of public funds for private school enrollment in Shelby, Davidson and Hamilton counties. The initiative piloted statewide private school vouchers that were expanded last year under the Education Freedom Act of 2025. Johnson City Schools Superintendent Erin Slater said district officials were "somewhat surprised by the participation data" in the report, given the program's initial expectations. According to the report, application approvals and students using an ESA increased in each of the program's first three years, reaching 3,693 participating students in the 2024-25 school year. However, participation remained below the program's capacity of 5,000 students in that span. The analysis also noted that parent satisfaction survey response rates declined from 96% in the program's first year to 15% in its third year, raising questions about overall data reliability. Slater highlighted the survey decline as "an important data point to consider" when evaluating program effectiveness. "As with any new program, it should be important for policy makers to look closely at how it is functioning in practice and whether it is meeting the intended goals," Slater said. "Strong participation in surveys is critical to understanding how any program is functioning and to ensuring conclusions are based on comprehensive information." Washington County Schools Superintendent Jerry Boyd raised similar concerns about program oversight as state lawmakers get set to consider expanding vouchers yet again in the 2026 General Assembly. "The [state's] recent release of the Tennessee Education Savings Account program review raises important questions about transparency and accountability in one of the three [pilot] voucher programs, particularly when public education dollars are directed to private schools that operate under fewer reporting and oversight requirements," Boyd said. In response to the findings, the report recommended that the Tennessee Department of Education should improve outreach to low-income families, strengthen fraud prevention measures and better align program operations with private school admissions calendars. The report also calls for more consistent data collection, including standardized parent satisfaction surveys and tracking students who leave the program. In addition, the report said lawmakers should consider revising application requirements and award amounts. "The report outlines several recommendations for consideration by the General Assembly, and we believe it's appropriate for state leaders to carefully review those findings and determine what, if any, adjustments are warranted," Slater said. "As policymakers review these findings, it will be important to consider how data is collected and represented over time so that future evaluations accurately reflect participant experiences." Boyd called for consistent standards across public and private education in order to better compare student outcomes. He said "the high expectations of transparency and accountability for funds applied to Tennessee public schools should be no less rigorous for public funds being used for a private school education." Beyond the ESA pilot program, Slater added that local school officials would also still like to see a similar report about where statewide vouchers are going in order to better gauge their true impact on public school funding, following recent calls for more data transparency on vouchers. "This report only outlines the Tennessee Education Savings Account Program that was piloted in just three counties in our state," she noted.