(The Center Square) – Tennessee teachers looking for the $2,000 bonus that is part of the bill that created Education Freedom Scholarships could see it in the next two months.
The Tennessee Department of Education is reviewing the roster of eligible teachers and calculating what each local education agency will receive, Brian Blackley, director of media for the department, told The Center Square in an email.
“The funds will be distributed to LEAs in July following this review, and it will be up to each LEA to determine when bonuses will be paid to eligible teachers,” Blackley said.
LEA is an acronym for local education agency.
The bonuses were part of a sweeping bill that established the $7,295 school choice scholarships. The bill required local school districts to pass a resolution accepting the funds.
Some school systems opposed to the Education Freedom Scholarships grappled with accepting the bonuses as they felt it would mean they supported the plan.
The Grundy County School Board voted to reject the bonuses, according to a report from WTVC. Sen. Janice Bowling, R-Tullahoma, said she would introduce a bill during the 2026 legislative session that would give Grundy County teachers a bonus.
The Education Freedom Scholarships drew criticism from both parties as it moved through the General Assembly. Recently, lawmakers have questioned why data on where students attended school previously is not available.
“The Department of Education has intentionally, I think, omitted that question or that data point so they don’t have to answer that question or that data point so they don’t have to answer that question from members of the Legislature or the media or the public as to where this money is going and if it’s actually providing, any ‘educational freedom’ to the kids that are ‘trapped in a failing public school,'” Rep. Jody Barrett, R-Dickson, said in an interview with The Center Square. “Taxpayers deserve to know where their money is going and whether this program is doing what it promised, not just writing blank checks.”
The bill did not require the information, Gov. Bill Lee is quoted as saying in an article from WTVF.
