Scholarship for students on an IEP: DREAM-Plan Scholarship

One of the most common, and completely understandable, misconceptions that parents of special ed students have is that when it comes time to send their kids off to college (should that be an appropriate course of action), there will be lots of scholarship or even government grant money available specifically for them.  I completely understand why they would think this, but it is sadly untrue.  Of course, disabled youngsters are eligible to apply for all of the scholarships that every other student can apply for, but there is such a scarcity of disability-specific scholarships that it seems as if one must be missing something obvious.


Consequently, I wanted to highlight a new scholarship, specifically for students who have been on an IEP called the DREAM-Plan Scholarship.  Rather than trying to reinvent the wheel, I will simply paste their own program description here:

"The Dream–Plan Scholarship was created by Marc Purchin to honor his 40th birthday. The newly formed scholarship honors high school seniors in the Los Angeles area receiving special education support through an Individualized Educational Plan (IEP) who demonstrates the values and morals of D.R.E.A.M.S. and who successfully complete high school with a diploma or certificate of completion. Individuals receiving this scholarship will use the award money to assist with the continuation of learning in one of the following accredited environments:

• Community College
• University or College
• Vocational or Trade School
• Apprentice Program 

The goal of the scholarship is to award those who have worked through learning challenges, and are continuing advancing to ever-higher pursuits. D.R.E.A.M.S is one of the only scholarship programs in the country that honors and rewards the hard work and potential of special education students; as many as eight Dream-Plan Scholarships will be awarded, each valued at $5,000."

I had the good fortune of meeting Marc Purchin at his 40th-birthday event last July. He explained to me that as he was turning 40, he didn't just want to have a party, he wanted to do something that would make a real impact on the world.  So he whipped up Quad 4 Dreams, which included a special needs resource fair, lots of performers (some of whom were special needs students), and lots of family-friendly activities. He himself was a friendly, gentle, conscientious man--someone I would trust to work with my own students. His dream and effort resulted in this highly needed (and unfortunately unique) scholarship program.  I'd say he definitely has made an impact on the world.

This year's deadline is May 1, 2011.