Thursday, June 17, 2010
Special-needs scholarships passed a key hurdle in Oklahoma today, after the final version of House Bill 3393 passed the Senate by a vote of 25-22. The bill recently passed the Oklahoma House with a bipartisan vote of 54-46. The bill will now head to Gov. Brad Henry, who is expected to sign it into law.
The House measure—named the Lindsey Nicole Henry Scholarships for Students with Disabilities Act after Gov. Henry’s infant daughter who died of Werdnig-Hoffman Disease—redirects dollars spent on a participating child at his current public school to the public or private school of his family’s choice. Five percent of the funding amount will be retained by the child’s school district for administrative purposes.
“Supporters of this program should be lauded for advancing this new opportunity, this choice, to Oklahoma’s children with special needs,” Robert Enlow, president and CEO of the Foundation for Educational Choice, said. “Soon, a tremendous burden could be lifted on parents who want nothing but a quality, safe education for their children.”
Specifically, the scholarship amount would be the same state and local dollars that would have been spent to educate the child in his public school or the amount of private school tuition—whichever is less. After a child receives a scholarship, the child would continue to receive a scholarship each year through high school graduation or until such time as the child would return to a public school.
This bill applies to all children with special needs who have an existing Individualized Education Plan (IEP). There is no income or geographic restriction. The child must have spent his prior year in public school.
HB3393 is sponsored by state Rep. Jason Nelson (R). Its co-sponsors are Rep. Anastasia Pittman (D), Rep. Jabar Shumate (D), and Rep. Sally Kern (R). Its Senate sponsor is Sen. Patrick Anderson (R). Oklahoma would join Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Ohio, and Utah as states that offer school choice opportunities for students with special needs.
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