Taxpayers are funding private school tuition. It's helping classical Christian schools expand

HURST, Texas (AP) — Keith Castello spends a lot of time praying about available real estate. Driving in his white pickup under a glaring Texas sun, the classical Christian school administrator points out empty office parks, a shopping mall, and an old church — all locations he is scouting for new Christian schools.

Demand is booming, he says. And part of that demand comes from a new state incentive: taxpayer money for kids who attend Christian schools.

This summer, Texas began rolling out $1 billion in public funding that eligible families can put toward private education expenses. Republican-controlled state legislatures around the country have approved a cascade of similar programs in the past six years, alarming public school advocates.

These programs mean half of school-age children in the United States are now eligible to apply for state money to attend private schools. In the U.S., most private schools are religious. Securing public money for them raises issues over church-state separation but fulfills a longstanding goal for Christian conservatives, who lobbied for this funding.

“I have been praying for 28 years for things that are coming to fruition right now,” said Castello, who is launching three classical Christian schools this fall under his Kyrie Christian Academy brand.

Those suburban Texas schools are part of a larger network, the Association of Classical Christian Schools, which has ties to the Trump administration and was founded by Doug Wilson, a conservative Idaho pastor and writer. The schools offer a liberal arts education, with an added emphasis on virtue and a biblical worldview.

The annual ACCS conference in June in Atlanta buzzed with talk of the historic shift in school funding, which bolsters a conservative Christian push to remake the education landscape. Critics worry it will drain public schools, which educate students of all religious backgrounds and political persuasions. When students leave their public school, state money allocated to educate each student goes away too.

Conservatives are banding together to leverage these expanding taxpayer-funded scholarships. Last year, ACCS formed a coalition with some powerful conservative groups, including Turning Point Education and the Heritage Foundation. Their goal is to convert or create 5,000 new classical Christian schools in the next decade with 1.5 million students nationwide.

The aim, according to ACCS President David Goodwin, is to take a share of public funding and educate future leaders through Christian schools. “It sounds like a very ambitious goal, but this money has never been there before,” he said.

The Association of Classical Christian Schools calls its campaign the “Battle for the American School.” It’s a riff on the 2022 bestselling book Goodwin co-wrote with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who sent his children to ACCS schools before joining President Donald Trump’s cabinet. Their book, “Battle for the American Mind,” extols classical education and critiques the prevailing public school model.

Hegseth remains a booster: The Pentagon recently introduced a form of classical education into government-run schools on military bases.

The ACCS version of classical Christian education is proudly erudite: The Oxford-educated Christian writer C.S. Lewis is a lodestar, and students study the “great books.” Its teaching methods draw from ancient and medieval sources with a strong focus on Western Christian history.

The schools have their roots in a radical source. Wilson, the founder of ACCS, is a self-described Christian nationalist who has made headlines for preaching at a Pentagon worship service and advocating for the repeal of women’s voting rights. For more than four decades, he has also been a pioneer in classical Christian education.

In 1981, he helped start the Logos School in Moscow, Idaho, one of the first in the modern classical Christian movement. He founded ACCS in 1994.

At the June conference, Wilson told a packed ballroom of 1,000 ACCS leaders they can’t opt out of the culture wars.

Education is “the central cultural battle,” he argued. He repeated for emphasis the refrain: “Classical Christian education is a hot center of the conflict of our time.”

On a Wednesday in August, the school year begins at Covenant Christian Academy, an ACCS school in the Dallas-Fort Worth suburbs. Well-behaved children in lower grades file into chapel in the cafeteria, all wearing blue oxford shirts, the girls in blue-and-white plaid skirts and dresses. The principal gives a talk on the virtue of prudence.

By the time these students are in fifth grade, they will study Latin, in a building where bulletin boards now feature quotes from Cicero and St. Augustine. In their final year, they will present a senior thesis. Most will go on to college, many at public universities, some at Christian colleges.

Castello was at Covenant Christian Academy for 20 years. While he was headmaster, the academy expanded its campus and grew from 275 students to more than 600. Though he is a product of public schools — good ones, he’s quick to note — he is now a foot soldier in this battle for private education.

When he began his teaching career after seminary, he loved how academics came alive at schools like Covenant: “Every class was grounded on the word of God, it was rooted in truth, it was meant to be transformative in the lives of students.”

But private schools can be financially out of reach for families. It was a struggle for Castello and his wife to afford Covenant for their two sons. He knew most members of his Southern Baptist church could not pay the tuition, now around $20,000, so he helped raise scholarship money and ramped up financial aid.

Now that Texas offers money for private school tuition, he encourages parents to use it.

When Gwen Albaugh’s husband died from cancer three years ago, Castello secured a scholarship for her two children to attend Covenant. She said, “I know that they are somewhere that they are being taught the foundational work, whether that be academics or faith-wise, and I’m able to now provide for our family.”

After Texas launched its education savings accounts this year, Albaugh’s children were among at least 78 Covenant students who qualified for the program.

For years, Democrats and rural Republicans in Texas blocked efforts to create education savings accounts.

“They were worried, I think rightfully, about what it would do to public schools in rural areas,” said Douglas Harris, an economist at Tulane who studies school choice.

Advocates also warned these programs entwine government and religion by diverting taxpayer money to Christian schools.

“It’s an abject violation of religious freedom to force a taxpayer to fund a school that discriminates against their faith,” said Rachel Laser, head of the advocacy group Americans United for Separation of Church and State.

Classical education, popular among conservatives, was already on the rise before more taxpayer funds became available. It exists in many forms, in religious schools outside ACCS, homeschooling groups, secular and charter schools. Many classical Christian schools go a step further in their focus on reclaiming and promoting Western Christian culture.

ACCS is an accrediting body and the oldest network of classical Christian schools. Its membership includes about 500 schools, but it has grown by nearly 200 schools since 2019. Goodwin, its president, credits a pandemic-era mistrust of public education, when debates ignited over school closures, books, race, sexuality and gender identity.

Not all ACCS schools accept government money, but many that do now advertise state funding options on their websites.

“What we’re trying to do is take enough of the public school share that we can change the country’s direction with powerful leadership coming out of these classical Christian schools,” Goodwin said in a promotional video.

Wilson echoed that idea. “We are training and educating leaders,” he told The Associated Press. “We teach them how to analyze, how to take arguments apart, how to understand what your opponent is saying and represent it accurately.”

Wilson can be a provocateur, suggesting homosexuality should be criminalized and criticizing Muslim immigration to the U.S. His Idaho church prefers heads of households, usually men, to vote. He describes his politics as “slightly to the right” of Confederate Gen. J.E.B. Stuart.

Castello labels some of Wilson’s statements as “vilely offensive.” He compares Wilson to a family elder, one who deserves respect, but also has some reprehensible views.

ACCS is less pugilistic than its founder. It includes socially conservative Christians across denominations and hasn’t adopted Wilson’s more fringe beliefs. Schools agree to a statement of faith, including that same-sex relationships and gender transitions are off-limits, but families may not be aware of Wilson’s teachings or influence. He still advises the ACCS board, though, and his books are required reading in some of its schools.

Wilson is part of the reason three mothers pulled their children this year from a San Diego-area Christian school, which pursued an affiliation with ACCS. They opposed his patriarchal, controversial views and were concerned when students received humanities coursework Wilson wrote.

In one of the texts students read, a commentary on C.S. Lewis, Wilson defends the author’s “historic Christian understanding of the relationship of men and women.” He calls Islam and Hinduism “false religions.”

Sarah Stankorb, an author who covered Wilson in her book “Disobedient Women,” said ACCS schools are “definitely a mode of transmission into the Doug Wilson pipeline.”

At Coram Deo Academy, an ACCS school where Castello served as vice president of operations until last year, more than 360 students out of 2,000 have been approved for Texas Education Freedom Accounts, or TEFA.

Coram Deo could potentially receive $3.5 million in TEFA funds this year, equal to nearly 17% of its budget, according to Scott Head, the school’s chief financial officer. The taxpayer funds are also on track to cover half of the school’s financial aid budget.

The Texas program prioritizes low-income students and those with disabilities, but its income limits this year go up to $165,000 for a family of four, opening the door to middle-income families. Eligible students can receive at least $10,474 for private school, which covers Coram Deo’s average tuition. The school’s hybrid model keeps costs lower because students are homeschooled part of the week.

Nathanael Wydner graduated from Coram Deo, but he and his wife Candice could not afford to send both of their children on his salary alone. They cried when they got off the TEFA waitlist.

“This year and probably for years to come, it’s everything. It’s the only way that this works for us,” Wydner said.

At one of Castello’s startup schools, 22 out of 25 students are using TEFA this year.

The Rev. Victor Shahat, head of St. Clement Orthodox Christian Academy, said, “I can’t imagine without TEFA we can open the school this year at all.”

The TEFA program is not conducive to startups, since vendor schools must be in operation for two years. Castello qualified because he ran a microschool for seven years at a tennis club for the owners’ children. His Kyrie organization now serves as a TEFA conduit for three new locations.

Castello said the influx of taxpayer money “completely transforms the possibility” of increasing access to Christian education.

“We’re on a massive inflection point in the Christian school movement,” Castello tells a sanctuary full of Christian-school parents one Monday evening.

Standing behind the lectern, cowboy boots under his dress slacks, he predicts Texas will increase the funding for its education savings accounts — an outcome that may hinge on whether the Republican or Democrat wins the governor’s race this November. He tells the audience about a new federal tax credit, which will also send money to private schools.

There are murmurs of approval and “amens” when he mentions how Christian schools will benefit.

Hours earlier, Castello had walked through his newest school, Southlake Christian Academy, located in a church. Supplies crowded an office, and the sound of drilling echoed as contractors installed security cameras.

The campus opened with six students this year, but Castello has big plans for it. A longtime coach, he hopes to add athletic facilities, and he has brought on a real estate consultant.

He plans to talk to lawmakers about making it easier for private schools like his to buy shuttered public school buildings.

He has heard the critiques that these programs will hurt public schools. He counters that he and other private school parents still pay taxes that support public education.

“I’m not against the public schools,” Castello said, though he doesn’t see them as religiously neutral, calling them “secular humanist schools.”

The line between public and private schools is blurring.

“If private schools are being funded by taxpayer funds, then what is the difference between public and private?” he asked.

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

FILE - Pastor Doug Wilson stands for a portrait after Sunday services at the new campus for Christ Church and its Logos School, Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Moscow, Idaho. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson, File)

David Goodwin speaks during an interview in Atlanta, Wednesday, June 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Ron Harris)

Parents Nathanael Wydner, left, and Candice Wydner sit during an interview at Coram Deo Academy in Flower Mound, Texas, Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

Elementary school students at Covenant Christian Academy line a hallway in Colleyville, Texas, Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

Children at Covenant Christian Academy carry flags during chapel in Colleyville, Texas, Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

Parent Gwen Albaugh pauses during an interview at Covenant Christian Academy in Colleyville, Texas, Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

Parents and children walk together on the first day of classes at Covenant Christian Academy in Colleyville, Texas, Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

A high schooler greets an elementary school child on the first day of classes at Covenant Christian Academy in Colleyville, Texas, Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

Keith Castello pauses during a conversation at Coram Deo Academy in Flower Mound, Texas, Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

Children at Covenant Christian Academy pray during chapel at the private school in Colleyville, Texas, Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Doctors have amputated both of Australian federal lawmaker Helen Haines ' legs as she remains in critical condition after being repeatedly hit by a car in an apparent act of political violence, her husband said Wednesday.

The 65-year-old independent politician is receiving treatment in a Melbourne hospital where she was flown by helicopter.

Phil Haines, her husband, gave the family’s first public comments on her condition since she was hit by a Toyota Land Cruiser SUV in her hometown of Wangaratta on Monday, speaking hours after a man accused of running her over made an initial appearance in court.

Haines' husband said her left leg was amputated on Monday and her right leg was amputated on Wednesday after doctors abandoned hope of saving it.

“The good news in all this is that Helen is alive and she’s stable. That is the most important thing for our family,” the husband told reporters in Melbourne.

“We are grateful and thankful that at this stage, both her heart and her mind are in good shape,” he said.

He added that their 40th wedding anniversary will be in November.

Earlier Wednesday, Brendan Nugent, a 43-year-old man from nearby Tarrawingee, appeared in the Wangaratta Magistrates’ Court charged with intentionally causing serious injury, dangerous driving causing serious injury and causing harm to a federal official.

Nugent didn’t apply for bail or enter a plea. He will remain in custody until his next court appearance in February. Police have yet to determine a motive.

Nugent's lawyer Chirag Patel told Magistrate Allison Vaughan that his client was suffering from potential mental health issues but had never been diagnosed with any mental health problem.

Patel said Nugent suffered from a neurological condition, idiopathic transverse myelitis, and a concussion. The lawyer did not explain how Nugent had been concussed.

The rare condition damages the spinal cord’s protective myelin sheath and disrupts nerve signals between the brain and body. This leads to rapid muscle weakness, sensory loss, pain, and bladder and bowel dysfunction, according to the Cleveland Clinic medical center.

Witnesses say the driver rammed his victim, pinning her against her own car before reversing and ramming her a second time.

The well-regarded lawmaker's plight has shocked Australians, as political violence is uncommon in the country and politicians are highly accessible to the public. Most lawmakers are not accompanied by security details and go about their work and personal lives on their own.

Senior opposition lawmaker James Paterson on Wednesday called for a review of lawmakers’ personal security in response to the alleged crime.

“The reality is that Australian parliamentarians by global standards are uniquely accessible to the public and that’s a good thing,” Paterson told Australian Broadcasting Corp.

“But we … can’t have a situation where shocking attacks like this take place because that will fundamentally change our democracy forever if it becomes a serious risk to your life to be a member of parliament,” Paterson added.

But Prime Minister Anthony Albanese urged lawmakers to continue to engage openly with the public despite worsening animosity within the community.

“We want to make sure that people can feel as much comfort as possible that everything’s being done to maximize security,” Albanese told News24.

“I think parliamentarians across the board are determined to make sure that we can continue to engage as we need to in this great democracy of ours,” Albanese added. “That interaction is really important in our democracy.”

Lawmakers began online meetings with Australia’s security agencies on Wednesday to discuss their safety. Such briefings are a regular occurrence.

Albanese described the briefings as an “opportunity for people who feel anxious to be able to ask questions” of security agencies.

Australian Federal Police provide personal security only to those lawmakers who are assessed as higher risk, usually because they have attracted the attention of dangerous people. Prime ministers always have personal protection and immigration ministers often do because they anger people with visa decisions.

Paterson said providing police protection to all 226 federal lawmakers would not be practical. But he suggested increased security at electorate offices, such as Haines’ office where she was hit. Paterson said lawmakers were “most identifiable” at their offices. Coming and going could be a “risky moment.”

Federal Police Commissioner Kissy Barrett told reporters providing police protection to all parliamentarians would take an “incredible amount of resourcing.”

Police received 1,067 reports of threatening, harassing, nuisance and offensive communications against high officeholders including federal lawmakers and their office staff in the last fiscal year — a 12% increase on the previous year. Barrett said almost one suspect a week was charged over such threats.

Elsewhere in the world, authorities have warned of growing threats to lawmakers. The United States has seen a rise in political violence over the past decade.

That includes the 2022 hammer assault on the husband of then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi; the 2024 assassination attempt on Donald Trump during his presidential campaign, as well as another on the president at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner in April; and the assassinations in 2025 of a Democratic Minnesota state lawmaker and her husband, and of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk.

In Britain, killings of politicians have also led to tighter security. Labour lawmaker Jo Cox was shot and stabbed in 2016 by a far-right extremist, while Conservative David Amess was stabbed in 2021 by an attacker inspired by the militant Islamic State group.

In July, the former British politician and reality TV contestant Ann Widdecombe was found beaten to death with a hammer at her home. A man has been charged with murder and terrorism-related offenses.

Graham-McLay reported from Wellington, New Zealand.

Brendan Nugent departs from the Wangaratta Magistrates Court in Wangaratta, Australia, Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2026. (James Ross/AAP Image via AP)

Australian independent member of parliament Helen Haines speaks at a press conference at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, Tuesday, May 26, 2026. (Mick Tsikas/AAP Image via AP)

Phil Haines, husband of independent member of parliament Helen Haines, speaks to the media at The Alfred hospital in Melbourne, Australia, Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2026. (AAPImage via AP)