DON'T LET YOUR SCHOOL DISTRICT MISS AN AMAZING OPPORTUNITY...
ASPIRE FY22 GRANTS
This grant is an opportunity for your school district to receive funding for adaptedSPORTS® programming through the Adapted Sports Programs In Recreation and Education (ASPIRE) Initiative!
ASPIRE FY22 GRANT APPLICATION DEADLINE: MAY 1, 2022
Background:
The FY22 AAASP A.S.P.I.R.E. Grants are designed to make a significant and lasting impact on participating school systems and their community partners. This initiative is intended to support and expand the services of school districts and their partners who have demonstrated interest and leadership in becoming a member program of AAASP.
Grant awards of up to $40K will be awarded to school districts and their partners in support of adaptedSPORTS® programs for students with physical disabilities or sensory impairments attending elementary, middle and high school, and who meet all eligibility requirements and criteria of the grant process.
The purpose of the FY22 AAASP A.S.P.I.R.E. Grants is to offer assistance to Georgia school districts and their partnering agencies who demonstrate a desire and commitment to implement or maintain existing adaptedSPORTS® programs in their local communities.
Under federal law, including Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act, students with disabilities, attending schools where their non-disabled peers are provided interscholastic sports opportunities, must either be provided reasonable access to those programs or be given comparable access to programs that offer the same or similar benefits as those offered to their non-disabled peers. AAASP has garnered national attention and recognition as a successful model for complying with these federal mandates, safely, cost effectively and by removing administrative burdens to individual schools, school districts or co-ops (a RESA group of partnering districts).
AAASP athletes attend elementary, middle and high school and have impairments that limit or make unsafe their full participation in traditional athletic programs due to a physical or sensory impairment. They generally have average to above average IQs, and are not eligible for Special Olympics, whose eligibility requires an IQ of 70 or below. AAASP programs are also not appropriate for students who have been deemed autistic. AAASP serves over 40 varying types of physical disabilities (a list is provided).
AAASP provides a stable and sustainable sport and administrative infrastructure to a voluntary membership of partnering school systems and agencies, serving too as their advocate and governing body. Researchers at Georgia State University have found that student participation in AAASP interscholastic athletics leads to enhanced health, academic success, a sense of belonging, the acquisition of leadership and team-building skills and leads to a desire for greater independence. AAASP athletes may “letter” in their sport at their school; are held to a “no pass, no play” policy, requiring they maintain a C average in regular education courses or be on track for their IEP goals if receiving special education courses. They may also be eligible for collegiate level scholarships in adapted sports.
AAASP has been honored as a “best practice” by the Governor’s Council for Developmental Disabilities.