Texas Gov. Greg Abbott defended the exclusion of certain Islamic schools from the state’s new Education Freedom Accounts (TEFA) school choice program as lawsuits challenge the policy in federal court.
Abbott addressed the issue on X after reports that Islamic schools were not approved to participate in the TEFA program.
“We don’t want school choice funds going to radical Islamic indoctrination with historic connections to terrorism,” Abbott wrote. “I signed laws banning Sharia cities. I designated CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood as foreign terrorist organizations and transnational criminal organizations. And I will pass another law that completely bans Sharia Law in Texas.”
That’s right.
We don’t want school choice funds going to radical Islamic indoctrination with historic connections to terrorism.
I signed laws banning Sharia cities.
I designated CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood as foreign terrorist organizations and transnational criminal…
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) March 12, 2026
As previously reported by The Dallas Express, Abbott designated the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and the Muslim Brotherhood as foreign terrorist and transnational criminal organizations under Texas policy in November 2025.
CAIR has denied the allegations and filed lawsuits challenging Abbott’s designation.
Federal Lawsuits Filed
At least two federal lawsuits have been filed alleging Islamic schools were improperly excluded from the state’s new $1 billion Texas Education Freedom Accounts (TEFA) program.
The first lawsuit was filed on March 1 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division, by Houston attorney Mehdi Cherkaoui on behalf of himself and his two minor children.
The complaint challenges what it describes as the “categorical disqualification of accredited Islamic private schools” from participating in the Texas Education Freedom Accounts program.
The plaintiff, Houston attorney Mehdi Cherkaoui, claims the Islamic school his children attend — Houston Qur’an Academy Spring — was excluded from the program because of its “Islamic religious identity.”
The lawsuit names Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, acting Texas Comptroller Kelly Hancock, and Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath as defendants.
The complaint alleges the state has engaged in what it describes as “impermissible religious gerrymanders” by excluding Islamic schools from the program.
The lawsuit alleges that “not a single accredited Islamic private school has been approved to participate in TEFA,” despite hundreds of other private schools receiving approval statewide.
The filing asks the court to restore the school’s eligibility and issue an emergency temporary restraining order before the March 17 deadline for student enrollment.
Second Lawsuit Filed
A second lawsuit, Bayaan Academy, Inc. et al. v. Hancock et al., was filed March 11 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas by three Islamic schools — Bayaan Academy, Islamic Services Foundation, and The Eagle Institute — along with parents Layla Daoudi, Muna Hamadah, and Farhana Querishi.
The lawsuit names Acting Comptroller Kelly Hancock, the Office of the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, and program administrator Mary Katherine Stout as defendants. The case is listed as No. 4:26-cv-01960 in the Southern District of Texas.
According to the complaint, Bayaan Academy had initially been approved for the program but was later removed from the state’s list of participating schools.
The lawsuit argues the schools meet program eligibility requirements but were denied participation based on perceived “Islamic ties” and associations with organizations the governor has designated as terrorist entities.
State Officials Cite Security Concerns
Texas officials say the state must ensure that taxpayer funds are not directed to institutions affiliated with extremist organizations or foreign adversaries.
Earlier this year, Hancock requested a legal opinion from Paxton regarding whether certain schools could be excluded from the program.
“The people of Texas deserve the highest assurance that no taxpayer dollars will be used, directly or indirectly, to support institutions with ties to a foreign terrorist organization, a transnational criminal network, or any adversarial foreign government,” Hancock wrote in the request.
As previously reported by The Dallas Express, Paxton has also filed a civil lawsuit seeking to shut down operations linked to CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood in Texas.
“Texans’ tax dollars should never fund Islamic terrorists or America’s enemies,” Paxton said after issuing the opinion.
Attorney general opinions are not legally binding but are commonly used as guidance by state agencies.
Texas School Choice Program
The lawsuits come as Texas launches one of the largest school choice programs in the country.
The Texas Legislature approved Senate Bill 2 (S.B. 2) in 2025, allocating $1 billion for the Education Freedom Accounts program.
Most participating families can receive about $10,000 per student annually to use toward private school tuition and other education-related expenses. Students with disabilities may receive up to $30,000, while homeschool families may qualify for $2,000.
Officials say the program is expected to serve roughly 100,000 students statewide.
Applications opened February 4, and more than 160,000 students have applied, while more than 2,200 schools have registered to participate in the program.
The lawsuits could determine whether Islamic schools will be allowed to participate in the program before the first round of TEFA funds is distributed.
