Memphis coalition pushes back on Gov. Lee’s school voucher program

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) - Some educational advocates across the state rallied Tuesday to call for a stop to Gov. Bill Lee’s controversial bill that allows parents to use taxpayer money to cover their children’s private school tuition—including a coalition from Memphis.

House Bill I is a revised rebirth of Gov. Lee’s universal school voucher plan that failed to pass the assembly last year.

The reintroduced plan would offer 20,000 scholarships worth around $7,000 per student to cover private tuition.

Half of those are reserved for families with low income and students with disabilities. It would also give a $2,000 increase in pay for teachers as well as construction for public schools.

“These programs are designed to help families be able to make choices that a lot of other families already take for granted, but these families need for their kids,” said Shelby Doyle, vice president of Public Awareness at the National School Choice Awareness Foundation.

Currently, three counties, including Shelby, already have a version of the voucher program in place. 707 students were approved during the 2022-23 school year, according to the Tennessee Lookout.

Voucher recipient for the 2024-25 school year Sharda Collier said she took advantage of the Education Savings Account Program in 2024-25, sending her student to an all-girls private school.

“As a product of a public school student, I struggled early on and I didn’t want the same struggles for my daughter,” Collier said. “We were able to receive a little less than $10,000 from the ESA program with the financial aid from her school that covered a significant portion of her tuition, and there were also other local scholarship opportunities here in the City Of Memphis that we came out of pocket about $2,000.”

Although Collier found success, entities like Tennessee For All and the Memphis Interfaith Coalition for Action and Hope (MICAH) argue the voucher program threatens to divert vital resources from public schools and students.

“This bill is not the answer,” said Brittany Williams, the education equity leader at MICAH. “It risks deepening inequities, creating more division, and diverting attention from addressing the systemic challenges that our schools face today. This is why local leadership matters now more than ever.”

MICAH plans to take its fight to the hill in Nashville on March 11t, asking legislators to vote “no.”

To see the state’s approved list of schools in Shelby County, click here.

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