This is my son, Ian. He started school at Compass Academy in 2019 for his 5th grade year. Ian has Autism, ADHD, Dysgraphia, a Chromosomal Microdeletion, Cognitive delays, low IQ, and so on. He also has several health problems and currently sees seven specialists at Arkansas Children’s. While none of these diagnoses define who my son is, they definitely affect (and have long affected) his life.
One aspect of his life that was significantly affected was school. While in public school, Ian did have an IEP and received intervention, but he was still falling behind. There is no way he would have succeeded in a public school environment for much longer.
We had heard of Compass Academy a few years ago and felt it would be a perfect fit for him, but we could not afford to send him there. So we waited out public school for another year.
At the end of his 4th grade year, we knew changes needed to be made. That is when my husband and I decided to take a tour of Compass. It was amazing! We felt God had led us to the place Ian needed to be. But, there was still the aspect of being unable to afford tuition. Then the director told us about the Succeed Scholarship program. For the first time in a while, we felt hopeful. We prayed and prayed.
In the meantime, we applied to the school and Ian was accepted! We continued to pray that God would make a way if Ian needed to be there. We applied for the scholarship as soon as it became available. Not long after, we were ecstatic to find we were chosen to receive this scholarship. Our son was finally going to get the education he needed and deserved. Ian is in his second year at Compass and has made huge strides. We have no doubt that Compass is where Ian needs to be and are so thankful for the Succeed Scholarship, which has allowed him to get the best education possible.
– Shonda, parent