Give Every Child the Opportunity to Thrive
Families raising children with special needs face extraordinary financial challenges. Tuition for specialized schools, therapy services, and supportive programs can cost $20,000–$100,000 per year, and most insurance plans cover only a fraction of these expenses. Many families are forced to make impossible choices—foregoing therapies, delaying interventions, or pulling their child out of a program that could change their life.
Why This Matters
1 in 36 children in the U.S. is diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder.
Source: CDC, 2023Special education and therapy costs can exceed 4 times the cost of general education.
Source: National Center for Education StatisticsEarly intervention dramatically improves long-term outcomes, yet many families cannot afford these critical resources.
Source: National Institutes of Health
Without financial assistance, these children risk falling behind academically, socially, and emotionally—despite having the potential to thrive with the right support.
How Education Aid Makes a Difference
Our Support a Special Student Scholarship Program ensures that children with special needs can access:
Specialized K–12 school tuition tailored to their learning needs
Therapeutic services, including speech, occupational, and behavioral therapy
Assistive technologies and supportive resources
Unlike traditional scholarships, funds are paid directly to schools and providers, ensuring 100% of your donation goes toward life-changing educational and therapeutic support.
How the Scholarship Works
Each scholarship provides $12,000 per year ($1,000 per month) in direct financial support for a child’s education or therapy needs.
These funds help offset costs such as:
Speech therapy ($100–$250 per session; evaluations $200–$500)
Intensive therapies such as ABA, which can exceed $60,000 per year without insurance
Assistive technology, including mobility devices and communication tools
Consistent access to education and therapy allows children to remain enrolled, supported, and progressing toward their full potential.
Support the Scholarship
Join the Education Aid Circle (Monthly Giving)
$10/month — sustain essential support through monthly giving
Small monthly gifts combine to provide steady, reliable funding for children who depend on uninterrupted educational and therapeutic services.
One-Time Gift Options
$25 — Helps cover education or therapy expenses
$50 — Helps provide learning tools or therapy materials
$100 — Provides direct educational or therapeutic support
$250 — Supports specialized services or adaptive equipment
$500 — Provides meaningful tuition or therapy support
$1,000 — Helps sustain a significant portion of monthly educational and therapeutic care
$6,000 — Funds half of a one-year Special Needs Scholarship for one child
$12,000 — Fully funds a one-year Special Needs Scholarship for one child
Every contribution—monthly or one-time—helps remove financial barriers for a child with special needs.
The Impact of Your Gift
Your support helps children with special needs remain enrolled in the educational and therapeutic programs that are critical to their development.
Research consistently shows that early and sustained access to specialized education and therapy improves communication, learning outcomes, and long-term independence for children with developmental and learning differences.
By helping remove financial barriers, your gift supports consistent participation in these services—providing families with stability, continuity of care, and the ability to focus on their child’s progress rather than financial uncertainty.
INTERESTED IN FUNDING A SPECIAL NEEDS SCHOLARSHIP?
Education Aid partners with individuals, companies, and organizations to help students with special needs remain enrolled in school and receive critical educational and therapeutic support.
Scholarships provide direct funding for specialized tuition, therapy services, and adaptive educational resources. Programs can be fully funded, partially supported, or structured as named scholarships aligned with a donor’s values.
If you are interested in supporting this scholarship or learning more about partnership opportunities, please contact Karyn Balfour at kbalfour@educationaid.org.