NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Tennessee's inaugural school voucher program saw an overwhelming response on its first day, with approximately 33,000 applications flooding the portal within hours of launch.
Many families experienced wait times between two and three hours as they attempted to secure Education Freedom Scholarships for their children.
The high volume of applications led to some technical issues. On our Facebook page, a parent reported receiving a confirmation email with someone else's name, highlighting the glitches in the system.
I reached out to the Governor's office and Department of Education about these technical problems. Officials acknowledged a temporary issue with the email server due to the "enormous interest," but stated they've already sent correction emails and no one's data was compromised.
Debbie and Ross Boudreaux successfully completed applications for their three eligible children despite receiving the erroneous emails.
"Ross had a computer set up next to me, and I had my computer set up, and we both attempted at the same time, and I think 20,000 other people did across the state," said Debbie Boudreaux.
The Boudreaux family expressed gratitude for getting through the process, as sending four children to Catholic school next year will cost nearly $50,000.
"It's a huge financial sacrifice. Our vacations look a little different than a lot of people. The dividends come in other ways," Ross Boudreaux said.
Both public school students and students currently enrolled in private schools can apply for the Education Freedom Scholarships. Selected students will receive $7,295 in taxpayer dollars to put toward education.
Of the 20,000 vouchers available, half will go to low-income families.
A Wilson County mother who contacted me shared how the voucher program could benefit her family.
"We’re a middle-class, blue-collar family who owns a small business, and every year we’ve been scraping together what we can to cover tuition," Victoria Owen said.
The state says they'll review applications within 30 business days. Families who have applied can log back into the application portal at any time to see their status.
How does the school voucher program impact your family's educational choices? Share your perspective or questions with me at Hannah.McDonald@newschannel5.com.
This story was reported by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
