So if you are a parent of a child with significant cognitive disabilities in Texas you may have heard about the new program launched by Governor Abbott and Texas Education Agency (TEA). On October 21 Governor Abbott and TEA announced the establishment of the Supplementary Special Education Services (SSES) program to connect eligible students with severe cognitive disabilities with additional support for the critical services they require. This student-centered program is to help connect Texas families to high-quality, personalized services through a one-time funding allocation of $1500 that aims to help offset learning disruptions related to COVID-19. Qualifying families will have access to a targeted spending account to purchase services costing up to $1,500 dollars from vendors from an approved list per eligible student. To read the actual press release click the following link: Special Education Services (SSES) Program Press Release.
To learn more about the Supplementary Special Education Services (SSES) program click the following links with FAQ & webpage on the TEA website:
https://tea.texas.gov/sites/default/files/SSES-FAQ.pdf
Special Education Services (SSES) Program
Below are the highlights of the program:
- Supplemental Special Education Services Grants will go directly to families and not local educational agencies.
- Up to 20,000 accounts will be available for families across Texas whose children have eligible disabilities.
- $1,500 per eligible student for reimbursement of qualified services, which will be increased in the event there are fewer
- applicants than available accounts or proportionally reduced for non-low-income families in the event there are more
applicants than available accounts. - Families of students who are enrolled in a Texas public school this year (2020- 2021), were enrolled during the initial COVID-19 school closures (2019-2020), and were identified as having a low incidence disability are eligible.
- Students enrolled in private schools are not eligible. Students must have been enrolled in a Texas public school during the 2019-2020 school year and must also be enrolled in the 2020-2021 school year.
- Only students with an Individual Education Program (IEP) and not a 504 Plan will be eligible. In addition, the students’ IEPs must indicate eligibility for IDEA stemming from a low incidence disability such as
- intellectual disability
- developmental disability
- visual impairment
- hearing loss
- significant physical disability
- multiple disabilities
- or are on the autistic spectrum
- The family application will be made available in late 2020. The application window will remain open for 4 months in total with two 2-month windows to facilitate batched application approval.
- TEA will not send money directly to families. Families will choose vendors & therapy providers from a TEA approved list. As the therapy or service or materials are “purchased”, TEA will pay the vendor directly. There is some flexibility to add vendors to their list, but the vendor would have to apply. The funds can be used to pay for the following:
- Private tutoring
- Educationally related services and therapies from a licensed or accredited practitioner (OT, PT, BCBA, SLP, PT)
- Textbooks, curriculum, or other instructional materials
- Computer hardware, software, or other technological devices that are used for educational needs
- The FAQ does not include details on how families can apply. It is recommended that parents sign up for updates from TEA to learn when the application has been released and the application deadline. You can sign up for updates by clicking here to go directly to the TEA website. Then click on the “Sign Up for Updates” link in red in the upper right corner of the page.