podcastED: Scholarship mom shares how Florida’s Family Empowerment Scholarship is helping her son maximize his unique abilities

On this episode, reimaginED Senior Writer Lisa Buie talks with Simone Arnold, whose son, Ayden, is a bouncy 8-year-old who excels at math and spelling. He attends Phyl’s Academy Preparatory School, a faith-based private school in the South Florida community of Margate near Fort Lauderdale.

Arnold shares about the challenges Ayden faced when he was a toddler, including delays in speech and motor skills. Ayden spoke very little and couldn’t hold a crayon to color or a spoon to feed himself even as other children his age were reaching those milestones.

Though he received valuable services from the county’s Early Steps program, Ayden wasn’t diagnosed until several years later as being on the autism spectrum. Arnold talks about the costly therapies that were necessary to help Ayden develop skills and the sacrifices the family made to afford them.

As the time neared for Ayden to start kindergarten, a therapist told Arnold about the Family Empowerment Scholarship for students with Unique Abilities, formerly known at the Gardiner Scholarship Program. The scholarship, which provides flexible spending in the form of an education savings account, allowed Ayden to start his education in a more nurturing environment and helped pay for the therapies he needed to stay on track.

“Starting with Phyl’s at kindergarten was a blessing, and having those small classrooms and the ability to converse with teachers on a very regular basis through email, through Zoom chats, or in person … it was really knowing I would have that greater partnership and smaller classroom sizes, so his voice could be heard, and he wouldn’t be lost in a large group of other students competing for the teacher’s attention … the scholarship was a lifesaver.”

EPISODE DETAILS:

• Ayden’s early challenges and diagnosis
• Arnold’s experience with a neighborhood school and how that influenced her to send Ayden to Phyl’s Academy Preparatory School
• The support the Arnolds received outside the classroom from Florida’s state scholarship program for children with unique abilities
• The difference the scholarship has made in Ayden’s education
• How Ayden’s unique abilities and education influenced a family member’s career decision