Shownotes
Are you a Texas homeschooling parent leaving thousands of dollars in free education funding on the table?
The Texas Education Freedom Account (TEFA) is the largest first-year school choice program in American history — with $1 billion set aside for Texas families — and most homeschooling parents have no idea how to maximize every dollar available to them.
In this episode, Crystal and Anthony Obey break down exactly how TEFA works, who qualifies, and the critical moves that separate families who get the most from this program from those who miss out entirely. Applications close March 17th — and the decisions you make right now will determine how much homeschool funding lands in your family's account.
🎧 Listen now so you don't leave money on the table.
👉 Apply Now: educationfreedom.texas.gov
In This Episode, You'll Discover:
- What the Texas Education Freedom Account (TEFA) actually is — and why it's unlike any education program you've seen before
- The funding amount your family may qualify for — and why it might be much higher than you think
- The single most important application strategy most homeschooling parents don't know about — and what skipping it could cost you
- A little-known sibling rule that could change the entire outcome for your household with just one lucky break
- A counterintuitive application choice most homeschool families get completely wrong — and why the "obvious" selection could quietly cost you thousands
- A special funding tier many families don't know they qualify for — with a hard deadline that cannot be undone
- Six pro tips that separate families who maximize this program from those who walk away with far less than they could have received
Perfect for You If:
- You're a Texas homeschooling family looking to reduce out-of-pocket education costs
- You have a child with special needs requiring expensive therapies or specialized curriculum
- You're tired of feeling like elite-level education funding is out of reach for your family
Texas just made $1 billion available for families to choose how their children learn. Don't let the March 17th deadline pass without understanding exactly how the Texas Education Freedom Account (TEFA) can transform your family's financial picture.
👉 Apply Now: educationfreedom.texas.gov
👉 Apply Now & Get Full Details: educationfreedom.texas.gov
📞 Odyssey Support Line: 737-379-2362
🌐 Odyssey Support Site: support.withodyssey.com
Application Deadline: March 17, 2026 | Funding Start: July 1, 2026
If you know a Texas homeschooling parent who needs to hear this, share this episode right now. You could literally change their family's financial future.
Transcripts
did you know the state of Texas
just launched what is being called
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:the largest day one school choice
program in United States history?
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:We're talking about $1 billion set aside
specifically for Texas families to take
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:control of their child's education.
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:And if you're a Texas parent and you
haven't heard about this yet, you're
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:going to wanna stay with us for the next
20 minutes because today we are breaking
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:down exactly how to get your hands on
this money, and more importantly, how
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:to spend every single dollar without
leaving any of it on the table.
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:A fast growing number of parents are
starting their homeschooling journey while
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:others have been homeschooling for years.
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:All of these parents are asking one big
question, how can I afford to homeschool?
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:We are here to answer that
important question once and for all.
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:Hi, I'm Crystal Obby.
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:And I'm Anthony Obby.
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:We've been homeschooling our five
kids for 13 years and we funded it.
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:Through our online consulting business
that we've been running for over 17
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:years now, we're combining Crystal's
financial coaching expertise with my
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:digital marketing background where I help
entrepreneurs launch and sell online.
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:We're here to help fellow homeschooling
parents self-fund their homeschool
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:journey and create lifestyle businesses.
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:For financial freedom without a nine to
five job, are you ready to start living
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:life on your own terms and make your
homeschooling experience a lot more fun?
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:Well then sit back, crank up
the volume, and enjoy this
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:episode of Homeschool Money.
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:Hey guys.
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:Welcome to the Homeschool Money podcast.
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:I'm your host, Anthony Obby.
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:I'm your host, crystal Obie.
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:All right, let's get into it.
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:So let's start at the beginning.
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:What exactly is this program?
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:It's called the Texas Education Freedom
Accounts Program, or TIFA for short.
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:It's administered by the Texas
Comptroller's Office and it gives
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:eligible families a dedicated account
with real money to spend on their
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:child's education outside of the
traditional public school system.
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:Think of it like a debit card
for your kids' education.
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:The state loads money onto it, and
you get to decide where it goes within
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:the approved categories, and we'll
get into what you can actually spend
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:it on in just a minute because there
are some really interesting options.
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:Now, who qualifies?
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:This is important.
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:Your child needs to be a Texas
resident eligible to attend a Texas
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:public school, which basically
covers most kids and a US citizen
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:or lawfully admitted to the country.
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:That's it at the baseline.
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:No complicated income test.
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:Just to apply,
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:and here's the detail a lot
of families will want to hear.
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:This includes pre-K.
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:If your child qualifies for the state's
free pre-K program, they can participate.
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:We're talking about kids as young as
three years old, military families, foster
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:kids, families receiving SNAP or tanf,
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:there are several categories that
open the door for pre-K funding.
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:One thing that's really important to
understand is that your child cannot be
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:currently enrolled in a public or charter
school and receive TEPA funding at the
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:same time, but you absolutely can apply
while they're still in public school.
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:You would just need to make the
switch before the funding kicks in.
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:Okay.
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:Let's talk about numbers because
this is where it gets really
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:interesting for families.
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:if your child is going to attend
an accredited participating private
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:school, your account is funded
at $10,474 for the school year.
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:That is a significant chunk of
private school tuition covered,
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:But here's the number that I
really want every parent to hear.
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:If your child has a qualifying
disability and you have their IEP,
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:their individualized education program
on file with the Texas Education,
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:agency, by March 17th, your child could
qualify for up to $30,000, $30,000
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:for one child in one school year.
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:That is a life changing amount of
money for families who are currently
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:paying out of pocket for specialized
therapies and private placements.
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:And we're gonna talk about how to
make sure you don't miss that window
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:if you're planning to homeschool or use
another non-public education setting.
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:The account is funded at $2,000.
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:That's still a meaningful amount,
especially for curriculum and materials.
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:One critical thing to know, you
need to lock in your educational
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:setting choice by the time
applications ch close on March 17th.
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:If you say private school,
you get the higher amount.
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:If you say homeschool, you
get $2,000 and here's the key.
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:You can switch down from private
school to homeschool after the window
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:closes, but you cannot switch up.
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:So if you're even considering a private
school, choose that option now and you
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:can always change to homeschool later.
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:You just can't go the other direction.
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:Hey, real quick, if you're liking the
show, hit follow so you don't miss a
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:single episode and drop a five star
rating and a review to let us know that
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:you're loving the content and tell us
what topics you'd like us to cover.
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:This will help more people find
the show, and please share this
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:episode with a friend, your
co-op, or anyone who needs it.
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:They'll be glad you did.
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:Now, back to the show.
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:We hope that you heard that really
well, because that is one of
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:the most important things we're
gonna say in this entire episode.
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:Lock in private school, if there's any
chance you lose nothing by doing that.
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:Alright, let's get to the good stuff.
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:What can you actually buy with this money?
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:Because this is where families can
really get creative and strategic.
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:The program has five main
approved categories, private
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:school tuition and fees.
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:Educational therapies and services,
curriculum and instructional
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:materials, tutoring and supplemental
education services and technology.
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:Though technology is capped
at 10% of your total account,
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:so let's walk through what that
could look like in real life.
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:Say you have a child with dyslexia.
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:You could use TE FFA money for their
private school tuition and also
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:for specialized reading therapy and
for structured literacy curriculum
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:materials at home that is stacking
the program in a way that actually
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:addresses your child's specific needs
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:For families with a child on the
autism spectrum or with other
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:disabilities, educational therapies
and services could be huge.
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:We're talking about the kinds
of interventions that families
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:often have to fight for or
pay for entirely on their own.
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:TFA creates a dedicated
funding stream for that
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:for homeschool families.
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:The curriculum and instructional
materials category is where
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:your $2,000 goes to work.
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:That covers books, learning programs,
hands-on science, kids, and more.
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:Oh, but tutoring is another big one.
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:If your child needs extra support
in math, writing a foreign language.
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:TFA funds can pay for that.
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:And for the tech piece, remember,
it is capped at 10%, so on a $10,474
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:account, you're looking at just over
a thousand dollars for technology.
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:A laptop, a tablet, educational
software that could be covered.
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:The D two detailed list of eligible
expenses will be in the participant
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:handbook that comes after approval.
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:So definitely review that carefully
once you have your account.
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:But the categories give you a really
strong framework to start planning now.
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:Now let's talk about the application.
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:The window is February 4th
th,:
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:Applications are submitted
through a platform called Odyssey.
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:The good news is this thing is
designed to be parent friendly.
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:It takes about 10 to 20 minutes
and you can do it on your phone.
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:And here is something that
trips a lot of people up.
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:This is not a first come
first serve program.
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:I wanna say that again.
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:Applying on day one versus the
last day makes absolutely zero
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:difference to your chances.
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:What matters is your priorities here, and
we're going to break that down right now.
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:Okay, so there are four priority tiers.
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:Tier one is children with a qualifying
disability whose household income is at or
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:below 500% of the federal poverty level.
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:So if you have a family of four
that's roughly $165,000 a year, most
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:Texas families with a child who has a
disability fall into that tier, and that
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:gets you the top spot in the lottery.
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:Tier two is households at or below
200% of the federal poverty level,
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:about 66,000 for a family of four.
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:Tier three is 200% to 500%, and
tier four is everyone above that.
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:So even if you're a higher income
family, you are still eligible.
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:You're just in a different
part of the lottery.
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:Now let's talk about the moves that
separate families who maximize this
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:program from those who miss out.
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:Pro tip number one, if you have
more than one child, put all
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:of them on one application.
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:This is critical if you,
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:if even one sibling gets selected
in the lottery, all of the other
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:eligible siblings who applied at the
same time are accepted with them.
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:One Lucky lottery win can
cover your entire household.
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:Pro tip number two, if your child has a
disability, get that IEP on file with the
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:Texas Education Agency before March 17th.
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:That is the hard deadline.
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:An IEP on file is what unlocks the
additional funding up to $30,000.
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:If your child is currently in
private school and has an IEP, call
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:your local public school district
right now and ask them to upload
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:it into the state Apex system.
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:Do not wait.
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:If your child does not have an IEP
but does have a disability, you
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:can still get priority tier status.
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:The comptroller created a special
disability certification form for tifa.
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:A qualified professional,
like a doctor, psychologist or
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:licensed therapist can sign it.
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:It won't get you the extra funding,
but it will get you into that top
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:priority tier for the lottery.
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:Get it@educationfreedom.texas.gov.
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:Approach it.
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:Number four, select private
school in your application.
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:Even if you haven't enrolled yet,
you have until this summer to
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:actually confirm a school enrollment.
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:But if you don't lock in private school
by March 17th, you cannot add it later.
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:You can always switch to
homeschool for the lower amount.
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:You cannot switch up.
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:Pro Tip number five, gather
your documents before you start.
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:You will need a social security
number for you and your child.
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:A Texas driver's license or state id.
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:And your 2024 or 2025 IRS form 10 40.
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:Having these ready means your
10 to 20 minute application
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:actually takes 10 minutes.
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:Pro tip number six, once you're accepted,
you do not need to reapply every year.
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:As long as your child stays
in good standing with the
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:program, your account continues.
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:That means all the work you do
now pays off for years to come.
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:Okay, let's quickly talk
about the money timeline.
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:So there are no surprises
if you're selected.
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:Notifications go out in early April.
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:You'll then have until this summer
to confirm your school enrollment.
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:The first round of funding at least
25% of your total account hits
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:the Odyssey platform by July 1st.
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:Additional funding comes in two more
st,:
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:So it's distributed across the
school year, not all at once.
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:Funding lives inside the Odyssey
platform, which is also where
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:you'll make approved purchases.
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:Think of it like a dedicated
debit account you manage online.
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:If you need support, you can
-:
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:Again, that's Odyssey
at 7 3 7 3 7 9 2 3 6 2.
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:You can visit support dot with odyssey.com
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:or email help dot tx@withodyssey.com
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:and don't worry about it if
you don't remember any of that.
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:We have all of this information in the
show notes, so please check the show
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:notes for this information as well.
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:Alright, let's bring it home.
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:Texas just made $1 billion
available for families to choose.
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:How their children learn.
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:The application is simple.
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:It's on your phone and it
takes less than 20 minutes.
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:Here's your action plan before we go.
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:Number one, go to
education freedom.texas.gov
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:right now and bookmark it.
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:That's your home base for everything.
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:Number two, gather your social
security number, your child's social
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:security number, your Texas ID,
and your most recent tax return.
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:Number three, if your child has
a disability, contact your school
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:district this week about the IEP.
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:Do not let March 17th sneak up on you.
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:Number four, apply before March
17th and include every eligible
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:child in one application.
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:So the sibling rule works for you.
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:This episode is made to be shared.
226
:If you know a Texas parent who
needs to hear this information,
227
:send it to them right now.
228
:You could literally change their
family's financial picture for education
229
:for years to come, let alone the life
and the future of their children.
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:Thanks so much for listening.
231
:We'll see you in the next episode.
232
:If you like today's episode, make
sure you tap the follow button so you
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:never miss a thing, and if it help
you share it with a friend or your
234
:homeschool group sharing is caring.
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:Do you love free stuff?
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:For tips and strategies to make your
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:go to homeschool money.com
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:and register right now, ready
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:Head over to homeschool money.com
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:to enroll in the full Homeschool
Money Makeover course.
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:You'll get the tools, templates,
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:find your first $1,000 fast.
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:And create 30,000 or much more every year.
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:Each module of this program is designed
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:experience financial abundance, so you
have the flexibility and lifestyle freedom
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:to homeschool your children with a nine
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:And right now we have an amazing limited
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:and bonus gifts you're going to love.
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:Bye.
