The Education Freedom Scholarship or TN Voucher Program, launched in 2025. Clarksville Academy will participate in the program and accept funds from the EFS program. See the FAQs below and visit the website at tn.gov/education/efs for more information.
*NEW* (As of May 2, 2025) A Family Handbook is now available.
A Tennessee state FAQ list can be found here.
Frequently Asked Questions:
- How many scholarships are available and are they all need based? There are 20,000 scholarships available state wide. 10,000 are set aside for need-based families, while the other 10,000 are available for any family.
- When does the application open and where can I find it? The application will open on tn.gov/education/efs on May 15, 2025 at noon. Applications are on a first come, first served basis and will not be processed until the final SUBMIT button is pressed.
- What do I need to apply? Check out the checklist of items needed to apply by clicking here.
- Who is eligible? To be eligible a student must: be a TN resident (2 documentations of proof required), US Citizen or lawful presence in the US, no more than 13 in years in school and entering grades K-12, student must be five years old by September 30, 2025.
- How are applications processed? Applications will be processed in the order received and must be complete at submission. Incomplete applications will be sent back and students will lose their place in line.
- Do we apply for each child in our family? Individual applications must be filed for each child in a family. Applications are processed on a first come, first served basis, so it is possible for one child to receive an award and not another.
- Do we reapply each year? Families must reapply each year for each child, but will be given priority for awards.
- What about the future of EFS system? If 75% of the 2025-2026 are used, then 5,000 more awards will be made available for the 2026-2027 academic year for a total of 25,000 awards. The future award amount will be based on TISA and will be voted on annually by the state legislature. Future scholarships will not be divided equally between need-based and universal scholarship but will instead be awarded in order of meeting a set of criteria.
- Is there a checklist parents could follow? TDOE has prepared this Application Checklist for parents to help gather required information and documentation for the EFS Application when it opens. TDOE has called particular emphasis to ensuring completeness and accuracy of applications before submitting .
- I know I’m not eligible for the need based scholarship–do I still apply? We encourage all CA students to apply. An application that is deemed ineligible to qualify for one of the 10,000 need-based awards but is otherwise complete will remain in the TDOE system queue and will be considered for one of the 10,000 awards for universal eligibility.
- When will we know if we were awarded? TDOE does not yet know when families will find out whether they have received an award; they will not have an answer about how long families will need to wait for award information until they determine how many applications have been submitted. TDOE suggests that once a family submits an application, they check their email regularly for updates and notifications about their application.
You can print this and other information in our informative flyer by clicking here.