Last verified: October 2026
For a Knoxville child with an IEP, is the IEA or EFS the better pick?
For most students with a qualifying IEP, the IEA is the better fit, because it adds average special-education funding to the base amount EFS pays and it can follow the child to any approved school category or to home schooling. A student can hold only one program per year.
EFS can still make sense when the IEP was not active when the IEA window closed or the window was missed; IEA-eligible students go into EFS Priority 2.
Which Knoxville-area private schools serve students with special needs?
None of the four counties has a school the federal survey classifies as a special education school. The directory does list 7 campuses with TDOE Category I-Special Purpose approval, which the state uses for programs serving students in residential or short-term care, and those are not schools families choose on the open market.
That makes the questions you ask each school more important than any label: how it supports students with IEPs, what it charges for added services and whether it will accept an IEA.
What does a student need to qualify for the IEA in Tennessee?
Two things: a Tennessee IEP that is in effect and lists one of the 11 qualifying disabilities on the day the window closes, and one of the program's entry routes, the most common being a full year in a Tennessee public school beforehand. Household income plays no part.
A second route opens for 2027-28 for young children leaving the TEIS Extended Option with a qualifying Part B disability.
Will a Knoxville private school follow my child's public school IEP?
No, not in the way a public school must. Leaving for an IEA ends public school enrollment, and a private campus sets its own support model, so get each school's plan for your child in writing before you sign a contract.
EFS families keep a different set of rights than public school students; the EFS handbook lists the rights a family waives by participating.
| IEA | EFS | |
|---|---|---|
| IEP required | Yes, in an eligible category | No |
| Amount | TISA base + average special-ed funding | $7,530 (2026-27) |
| Home schooling | Allowed | Not allowed |
| Category IV/V schools | Allowed | Not allowed |
| Devices | Pre-approval; like item once every 2 calendar years | Laptop and tablet, each once every 3 calendar years |
Where does a Knoxville family go from here?
Send us five answers in the funding check. A counselor then tells you, for your child specifically, which Tennessee program to apply for, how much it should pay and the very next deadline.