Jon Peterson Special Needs Scholarship
Achievement Advantage Assessment & Services is proud to be approved by the Ohio Department of Education as a Jon Peterson Special Needs Scholarship (JPSN) intervention provider. We are currently accepting students receiving the JPSN Scholarship for Wilson Reading System instruction.
What is the Jon Peterson Special Needs Scholarship (JPSN)?
The Jon Peterson Special Needs Scholarship (JPSN) was established in 2012 to provide scholarships to eligible students with special needs. The JPSN provides parents of children with disabilities the choice to send their children to special education programs other than the one operated by their school district of residence to receive the services outlined in their Individualized Education Program (IEP).
Who is Eligible to Apply for the Jon Peterson Special Needs Scholarship (JPSN)?
Students eligible to participate in the scholarship are in grades kindergarten through age 22. They must be determined eligible for special education services through an Evaluation Team Report (ETR) conducted every three years and have a finalized Individualized Education Program from their home district that is completed annually. Scholarship students must also comply with compulsory attendance rules by attending a chartered non-public school, private provider, or registering as home-schooled. Students must also participate in the required state assessments for their grade level.
Are All Students on IEPs Eligible for the Jon Peterson Special Needs (JPSN) Scholarship?
The JPSN Scholarship is an educational choice program. Students who attend public schools are not eligible for the scholarship.
Additionally, students can only receive one state funded scholarship through the Ohio Department of Education (ODE). You cannot combine the JPSN with other scholarships offered by ODE.
If you have any questions, please visit ODE’s website or contact their scholarship office by email or phone.
What Might the Jon Peterson Special Needs (JPSN) Scholarship Cover?
Scholarship amounts range from $7,500 to $27,000 based on the primary disability condition identified on the student's Evaluation Team Report (ETR). The more significant the needs associated with a disability category, the larger the amount of the scholarship that is awarded. The majority of students that we provide intervention services to are children with Specific Learning Disabilities or Other Health Impairments, who are awarded $10,025 in JPSN funds.
The scholarship amount awarded pays for services outlined on the child’s IEP. Parents/legal guardians are responsible for any costs exceeding the amount of the scholarship. Although the scholarship will only pay for services on your child’s IEP, services and goals can be modified from the child’s original IEP if the parent and the provider agree and the modification is approved by ODE; however, the modification does not amend the IEP to provide additional funding.
How Do I Apply for the Jon Peterson Special Needs (JPSN) Scholarship?
If you are interested in utilizing the JPSN Scholarship to meet the needs of your child with a disability, the first step is to research all approved scholarship providers and determine which service provider or providers are going to be the most appropriate fit for your child. Click Here for the full list of approved scholarship providers.
The next step in the application process is to apply to the school or provider. If you are interested in pursuing Wilson Reading System tutoring using the JPSN Scholarship, contact Achievement Advantage’s office by phone or email to discuss individual needs and schedule an appointment for Wilson Assessment of Decoding and Encoding (WADE) to be administered. The WADE is a curriculum-based measure that specifically assesses a student’s decoding and encoding skills correlated to the word structures taught in the Wilson Reading System. It is used to determine whether or not the individual’s needs can be appropriately met through participation in the Wilson Reading System.
If your child is accepted by the school or provider, the next step is to apply for the JPSN Scholarship. The school or provider will supply the JPSN Scholarship application which is to be completed by the parent. Once the application is complete, it is submitted to your chosen primary provider, and the provider submits the application to ODE for approval. If the application is approved, the parent receives an award letter, accepts the scholarship, and allocates the appropriate amount of funds to each provider. Applications are accepted year-round.
Please contact us today to set up Wilson Reading System intervention through the Jon Peterson Special Needs Scholarship.
