Did You Know?

0.05%

The amount of funding needed to clear the waitlist as a percentage of the state’s current K-12 education spending.

In September of 2024, the waitlist was slashed, nearly in half (from 305 to 157 students), because of a new requirement that parents must submit proof of enrollment to the school they wish to attend. The families who were kicked off the waitlist could not afford to pay for enrollment to the school of their choice without the help of the ESA they were waiting for.

Why It Matters

Mississippi’s children with special needs can’t wait any longer. Every year, they lose valuable time and fall further behind.

ESAs provide financial relief: Caring for a child with special needs is costly with medical expenses, therapies, equipment, and other costs. The ESA allows parents to use a portion of their state tax dollars to enroll their child in a school that best meets their needs, and for most families every little bit helps.

Hundreds of families are waiting for educational access: Over 300 children with special needs were on the ESA waitlist before it was slashed nearly in half in September of 2024 because of a new eligibility requirement. There is a need that is not being met and parents are desperate to take advantage of the program.

Time is running out: Some families have been waiting for years for an ESA and may never get the opportunity to attend the school of their choice because they are stuck on the waitlist.

Lawmakers can help: The legislature can fix the program in the 2025 legislative session and give these kids the education they deserve.

Families Waiting and Hoping

The Robinsons: When is it MJ’s turn?

By Joanna Holbert | December 1, 2024

Markeese Robinson Jr., or “MJ”, has been waiting for a special needs Education Scholarship Account (ESA) for nearly two years. MJ was diagnosed with autism in third grade. When his assigned public school failed to meet his learning needs, MJ’s parents, Kimberly and Markeese Sr., chose to send their son to Canopy School. And while…

Lauren Washington: A Hopeless Fight for an ESA

By Joanna Holbert | November 21, 2024

“If we could get an ESA, it would change our lives. It would mean that we were seen and understood.” Like many other Mississippi children with special needs, Anequa Robinson’s daughter Lauren had been waiting for an Education Scholarship Account (ESA). An ESA allows families to use a portion of their state tax dollars to…

The Nusbaums: How do we live this life?

By Joanna Holbert | November 15, 2024

“Why are you doing this to me?” That’s a question no parent should ever have to hear from a child, but Kelly Nusbaum found herself struggling for an answer as her daughter Sadie asked that very question with tears welling in her eyes. Kelly and Mark Nusbaum spent much of their early married life with…

Waitlisted, Again

By Wil Ervin | November 11, 2024

Many children with special needs in Mississippi are stuck in educational settings that aren’t working, and their parents are spending sleepless nights trying to figure out what they’re going to do about it. Often, their only choices are paying for private school or uprooting their lives and moving to another school district. Many can…

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