The Gardiner scholarship program is a unique scholarship that assists parents whose kids have exceptional needs, the program helps parents in customizing different educational plans for their kids that require extra attention due to a disability.
The Gardiner scholarship program was established by the Florida senate under the watch of senate president Andy Gardiner.
Andy Gardiner led the struggle for this unique scholarship program to Carter for the needs of unique children, the Gardiner scholarship program was formerly called the personal learning scholarship account but was renamed in 2016, as an honor to Florida senate president Andy Gardiner.
Andy Gardiner and his wife Camile are blessed with three kids, two girls, and a boy Andrew, with Down syndrome. The Gardiners for many years has led the struggle for this unique scholarship program.
Gardiner Scholarship Program 2023
Here, we would be divulging into specific details about the personal learning scholarship account (PLSA), the former name of the Gardiner Program, and details like eligibility, requirement, and application deadline would be discussed below.
The Gardiner scholarship program is a very unique kind of scholarship program, it doesn’t only provide funds for academic purposes but also provides funds for special packages like therapists, experts, technology, and also a college saving account.
Eligibility For The Gardiner Scholarship Program
Not all kids are allowed to participate in this unique scholarship program, for you to be chosen you must meet some specific eligibility criteria, the criteria for eligibility of the Gardiner scholarship program are listed below.
Most importantly The scholarship is only open to Florida students who are between ages 3 to 12 and would run until they are age 22.
Students eligible for the Gardiner Scholarship Program must be diagnosed with one of the disabilities listed below.
- Anaphylaxis
- Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
- Being a child at high risk
- Cerebral Palsy
- Down syndrome
- A behavioral or emotional deficiency
- Hearing loss, including deafness
- Homebound or in the hospital
- Identification as having a dual sensory impairment
- Disability of the mind
- Impairment of language
- Dystrophy of the muscles
- Orthopedic deficiency
- Other health issues
- Phelan-McDermid syndrome
- The Prader-Willi syndrome
Rare diseases
- Specific learning disability
- Impairment of speech
- Spina bifida
- TBI (traumatic brain injury)
- Blindness, as well as visual impairment
- Williams syndrome
The Scholarship Program is also available for students who are in the the12th grade, kids applying for this scholarship must clock three or four years old on or before 1st September, kids in kindergarten should be five years old on or before 1st September while students entering first grade must be six years old.
Also note that kids who are enrolled in The Gardiner Scholarship Program would not be eligible for any Florida state-sponsored scholarship program, like the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship and the McKay Scholarship.
For you also to be eligible for The Gardiner Scholarship Program, you must have in your possession an official diagnosis from a Florida licensed Physician or Psychologist and must have a Florida school district individualized education plan (IEP).
Also Read: How To Apply For The Smart Scholarship 2022, Tips And Ideas
Scholarship Application And Deadline
The Gardiner’s scholarship program is a program that is renewed yearly, so there are basically two types of applications new families and renewal families.
- New Families: Application for the Scholarship program for the 2023 academic year is ongoing for new families and would close by June 30th, all interested applicants are supposed to create an online application: before proceeding to create an online application you should Create an active email account where updates about your application would be sent to. After which you would create a profile where you would choose a unique username and password (always choose an easy-to-remember username and a strong password for security purposes). Priority would be given to families already placed on the waitlist. All applications must be submitted on or before June 30th, families who sum a bit before the deadline should be having an extra edge to receive funding for the Gardiner scholarship program.
All first-time applicants should click on the link below to start their Gardiner Scholarship program application.
Gardiner Application Form
- Renewal Families: If your kid is already a beneficiary of the Gardiner scholarship program in the previous year, you can click on this link to apply for the 2023 school year.
You are meant to log in with your already existing username and password.
Gardiner Scholarship Login
If you applied for Gardiner’s scholarship program in the previous academic year or you have started the process as a new applicant for the new academic year, you can click this link to have access to your account or update or add more documents, check the status, and more.
If you forget your password, use the forget password button a link to reset your password would be sent to the email address you provided while registering.
How Much Does The Gardiner Scholarship Program Pay?
There is no fixed payable amount for Gardiner’s scholarship program, the amount paid depends on many factors such as the country of domicile, type of disability, and grade.
The scholarship amount payable also depends on the school to which the child is enrolled to.
Gardiner Scholarship Providers
The scholarship program isn’t only a monetary scholarship but there are also special packages assigned together with it, providers of these specialized services must be one of the following.
- An organization that has been approved by the agency for persons with disability (APD) as a provider.
- An individual who possesses credible health certifications and is licensed by the Florida Department of Health.
- An individual who works for an organization that has been designated as a provider for persons with disability. The organization must be approved by the Office of Early Learning for Specialized Instructional Services Provider (SIS).
- An individual whose name is listed on the website of BACB and is still practicing.
Conclusion
The Gardiner’s Scholarship is meant to ease the stress patent go through in raising children with specific disabilities, it assists them with funds and also other special packages that can help the child scale through the four walls of an educational environment.
Florida parents are meant to utilize this opportunity to give their disabled kids a better opportunity of learning.
