INDIANA – Indiana’s K-12 special needs students will receive increased support through The Indiana Education Scholarship Account (ESA), put forward by Treasurer of State Daniel M. Elliott.
The program allows parents to customize their child’s education and is accepting enrollments through Sept. 1, 2023.
“As school choice parents, my family knows firsthand the importance of being able to choose what’s best for your child’s educational experience,” says Treasurer Elliott. “Our Indiana Education Scholarship Account gives parents with children who have their own ways of learning the ability to find the tools to best fit their needs.”
Options for ESA students include:
- Private school tuition and fees
- Home-based education services
- Testing and evaluation services
- Tutoring
- Therapies
- Educational camps
- and other services provided by approved vendors
“Ella is complex,” says her mother, Erica Hunt of Elkhart County. “Finally, we have a solution. ESA has opened doors we never thought possible for her.” Ella is just one of an estimated 180,00 Hoosier students affected by special needs.
Lauren Loewen of Robson Academy has created a school for “outlier kids.” Approximately half of her students use the ESA program and would not have otherwise been able to afford the needed services. “I’m beyond grateful a program exists that can help these families with students on the fringe,” says Loewen.
The Indiana ESA is enrolling qualified service providers, including schools, therapists, tutors, and more. Both prospective vendors and parents of prospective students can find more information and start the enrollment process at www.in.gov/tos/inesa.
“My team and I believe that the future of education is not forcing a child to fit into the system but giving parents the instruments to build around the individual needs of their child,” says Treasurer Elliott. “Our ESA program is guided by that principle, and we believe in the mission.
