Special Needs Parents Scooping Up Vouchers
At the Georgia Board of Education meeting this month, officials gave approval for almost 1,600 Georgia special needs students to earn scholarships to attend private schools– an 80 percent surge over the 2007-08 school year. While this is only the second year of the Georgia Special Need Scholarship Program, 1,596 parents from throughout the state – including a few in Cherokee County -- voted with their feet for more school choice. When a neighborhood school cannot do the job, parents snapped up scholarships and found a school more tailored to their child is learning style. During the initial year of the program last year, most of the private schools that chose to participate were in metro Atlanta.
But this year, there are 145 schools statewide from Winder to LaGrange from Dalton to Albany. Even here in Cherokee County, two schools have joined the list to accept children with the state-funded scholarship. One is Kaleidoscope School and the other is Lyndon Academy. In nearby Cobb County, there are 20 private schools accepting children with such scholarships. To qualify for a special needs scholarship, a student must have been enrolled in a public school during the prior school year and have an individualize education program. Then a parent can go to the state Department of Education website and learn the amount of the scholarship for their child. That scholarship follows the student until he or she graduates or turn 21 years of age. Brett Sommer, a seven-year old with autism, is one of the fortunate children who has benefited from the new special needs scholarship. He earned a scholarship to attend Kaleidoscope in Canton. “He has only been going two months and he has made more progress than he did all last year,” said Brett’s grandmother, Lucy Sommer. “Last year was the school year from hell. All he could do was sign language.
The public school had him in the wrong classroom. He even got suspended three times for behavior problems even though he is a special needs child!” Mrs. Sommer says her grandson now wants to learn and doesn’t fight going to school. Brett’s scholarship is $9,679 which covers about half of the tuition. She says her son lives with her so he can afford the rest of the tuition. “Now Brett is starting to talk,” Mrs. Sommer said. “We are thrilled.” As word spreads about the success of this program, I am sure we will see more private schools in Cherokee begin to participate and accept children with these scholarships. The Sommers experience is not the norm when it comes to public schools. Public schools do a good job of providing a free education for many children with disabilities. But every special needs child deserves the best education possible.
We must always keep in mind that some children just can’t get what they need in public school. It can be very damaging to their lives if they are in the wrong place. That’s why we will continue to see school choice programs flourish such as the Georgia Special Needs Scholarship. It gives all parents – not just those of means – options and a gateway to hope. To find out more about the Georgia Special Needs Scholarship go to www.specialedoptions.com Thank you for giving me the opportunity to serve you in Georgia’s House of Representatives. If I can ever be of assistance to you, please do not hesitate to contact
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