“Georgia’s Special Needs Scholarship saved my oldest daughter’s life.”

Yet another compelling story about how the Georgia Special Needs Scholarship impacted a family, and why it’s awesome SB 386 passed the house, and now we need it to pass the Senate.

We have so many similar stories with our families that we completely understand their plights and advocate for these types of scholarships.

“Vivian was diagnosed with ADHD and a deficit in working memory in fourth grade. We obtained a 504 plan in fifth grade. This is a blueprint for supporting students with disabilities that allows them to continue learning alongside their peers, but our local public schools lacked the resources to provide that support when she entered middle school…
“…Our once extroverted, tenderhearted child who was endlessly optimistic became angry, sullen and withdrawn. What she admitted to us later was alarming and heartbreaking: She had begun to have suicidal thoughts…
“…We decided we could not wait any longer and paid out of pocket for a private evaluation with a psychologist to help speed up the process.
“Once her results were evaluated, the psychologist found several learning differences that would require an IEP. Unfortunately, it would be five months before an IEP would be written and by that time, Vivian had already failed sixth grade…
“…With the aid of the Georgia Special Needs Scholarship, Vivian began private school at the beginning of seventh grade.
“The difference was seen within the first three days of attendance. She began to thrive in an environment that taught subjects in multiple formats and gave individualized attention to her needs. They not only met the requirements of her evaluation but, in many ways, exceeded them.
“…But not all families have those resources. Senate Bill 386, which passed the Senate today, would strengthen the scholarship and break down barriers that families of special needs students face.”
Julia Mitchell Rohan

Read more about Vivian’s Story HERE. We have so many similar stories at Brookwood. You can read Mellie’s Story (our 2019 Valedictorian) in our 2018-2019 Annual Report, as well as HERE, and Blake’s Story in our 2017-2018 Annual Report, both are compelling, and the statistics for students who do not get appropriate reading instruction are grim, and outlined in the Progress Reports in both stories. You can also see the statistics regarding the success of our programs HERE.

Please CONTACT YOUR REPRESENTATIVE and ask them to support SB 386 so that all Georgia students with special needs have access to a school where they can thrive, and tell them your story if it applies!

Get to Know Families Impacted by Georgia’s Special Needs Scholarship.

#SayDyslexia #UntilEveryoneCanRead #1in5

SB 386 Passed the Senate!

Senate Bill 386 passed! Please take a moment to thank the senators who voted to support this legislation! Click HERE to find your senator.

You can read the full bill HERE.

Thanks to all of you who reached out to your senators! 🙂

SB 386 Update

From Steven Quinn, Special Education Advocate and Advocate for SB 386:

What a day at the capitol! The senate could vote as early as tomorrow on the bill. Thank you to everyone that has advocated so far. We need calls and emails from all corners of the state. There is still time to do so.
Here’s a quick email to send: https://p2a.co/f8IDMZm. If you can please share on your pages.

This bill would do the following to improve the Georgia Special Needs Scholarship (SB10):

make it easier for families to enter the program by
- allowing students with 504 plans to be eligible,
- moving the one year requirement back to special needs pre-school,
- creating a waiver for students adopted from foster care, and
also make it easier for families already in the program
- would base scholarship on most recent IEP–instead of Oct,
- would give parents an appeal process, and
- would allow students who leave the program to enter back into it without having to repeat the one year!

This would ensure the Georgia Special Needs Scholarship reaches more eligible students by raising awareness for families, cutting red tape, and lowering barriers that frustrate efforts to enroll.

Ms. Noelle went to the capitol to tell her story about her daughter, Charlotte, to the Senate Education & Youth Committee. You can read her story HERE.

Many of our families at Brookwood Christian rely on this scholarship to ensure their child receives the services they need, as dyslexia, and many other language processing concerns, are not adequately addressed, if at all, in public school.

SB 386 Update

SB 386 passed the Senate Education & Youth Committee 6-4 and now awaits scheduling for a vote by the full Senate.

Ms. Noelle spoke before the committee last week and you can read her story HERE.

Many of our families at Brookwood Christian rely on the Georgia Special Needs Scholarship to ensure their child receives the services they need, as dyslexia, and many other language processing concerns, are not adequately addressed, if at all, in public school. Several other families need this scholarship but because they could not wait an extra year to address their child’s needs, they are ineligible. Passage of this bill may allow them to receive the scholarship. You can read more about it HERE.

Please CONTACT YOUR SENATOR and ask them to support SB 386 so that all Georgia students with special needs have access to a school where they can thrive, and tell them your story if it applies!

You can read Mellie’s Story in our 2018-2019 Annual Report, and Blake’s Story in our 2017-2018 Annual Report, both are compelling, and the statistics for students who do not get appropriate reading instruction are grim, and outlined in the Progress Reports in both stories. You can also see the statistics regarding the success of our programs HERE.

Get to Know Families Impacted by Georgia’s Special Needs Scholarship.

If you have any questions, feel free to email Ms. Kim for clarification.

Read about other legislation that may impact our school HERE.

Financial Aid

To be considered for financial assistance other than the Georgia Special Needs Scholarship (SB10) for the 2020-2021 school year, there is a 2 step process:

The Brookwood Christian School Financial Aid Request should be printed, completed, and returned to the Admissions Office, and
the FACTS Grant & Aid on-line application must be completed, including submission of all financial aid documents from all custodial, non-custodial and step-parents (including uploaded 2018 Federal Tax Returns, all supporting schedules and forms, and W-2’s or 1099’s).

You can complete the Grant & Aid application through the application/ enrollment process OR you can complete it HERE. You do not need to complete it twice. There is a $35 charge to file the Grant & Aid request that is a one time fee for all FACTS schools for the academic year. Visit our Financial Assistance Page for more details.

THIS MUST BE COMPLETED NO LATER THAN APRIL 1, 2020.

Financial aid is reviewed annually, requiring all recipients of past aid awards to re-apply for the 2020-2021 school year. Please note this is NOT necessary for the SB10 Scholarship but is required for the Georgia Tax Credit Scholarship (APOGEE) or other available assistance.

It is the responsibility of the parent(s) to track the financial aid application from start to finish. Failing to provide the required information, not following the guidelines, or missing the April 1, 2020 deadline may result in not be considered for assistance.