Every year thousands of students cannot receive a quality of education that they deserve due to their family’s income status. The AAA Scholarship can help low-income students in Arizona, Georgia, Florida, and Nevada receive an education, whether they are in kindergarten or seniors in high school.
Each year there are thousands of students throughout Arizona, Georgia, Florida, and Nevada, that aren’t able to receive a high-quality education or go to the school of their choosing due to financial limitations.
While there are often countless scholarship opportunities for students who are seeking a post-secondary opportunity, it can be more difficult to find some that geared towards younger students or to a specific area of the country.
We will tell you more about the AAA scholarship, who’s eligible, how to apply, and other features that make it a unique scholarship.
The History of the AAA Scholarship
The AAA Scholarship, which is well-known for “We Make Academic Achievement Accessible,” was created by a core team in 2002. The team worked together in the Florida School Choice movement to administer the Florida Tax Scholarship Program.
In 2010, the AAA Scholarship Foundation formed so that low and middle-income families could receive scholarships in Georgia. Two years later the foundation expanded to include families in Arizona and in 2015, scholarships became available in Nevada.
While the foundation does work in helping families in Alabama and Pennsylvania, the scholarships are currently available to eligible families in Florida, Georgia, Nevada, and Arizona.
The Mission Behind The AAA Scholarships
When the scholarship foundation was formed over 15 years ago, the main purpose was to provide educational opportunities to students regardless of what school district they lived in or their income. Since the foundation began, the primary goal is to help as many eligible children as possible.
The foundation works with parents who are seeking better education opportunities that include positive challenges and reversing the negative impacts that are often related to school failure or a poor-quality of education.
The foundation is an approved 501(c)(3) nonprofit scholarship organization that receives funding from corporations that redirect some of their state tax liability to the foundation for a tax credit.
Who’s Eligible For The AAA Scholarships?
The scholarships are only available to children, between the ages of 5 to 19 (or grades K-12). Students may qualify as low-income, disabled, and/or displaced. According to the AAA Foundation, more than 85 percent of scholarships are given to students that are at or below 185 percent of poverty.
While children who are eligible for the scholarship may come from diverse backgrounds, a majority of the scholarship recipients are below their grade level or were failing before they received the scholarship.
AAA Scholarship Information
Although the deadlines for most of the scholarships for the 2018-19 school year have passed, here’s some general information about each scholarship and for complete details, visit the Parent page on the AAA site.
Alabama
There are currently no income-based scholarships available for the 2018-19 school year due to a lack of funding, but families are encouraged to check back later in the year.
Arizona
Eligible students in Arizona may apply for the income-based scholarship or the disabled-displaced scholarship (Lexie’s Law). Both deadlines have passed for the 2018-19 school year, but you can learn more by looking at the AZ FAQ page.
Florida
There are three scholarships in Florida, which include The Gardiner Scholarship (formerly known as PLSA), an income-based scholarship, and the foster/out-of-home care scholarship. The deadline for The Gardiner Scholarship has passed, but there is no submission deadline for the foster/out-of-home scholarship.
The income-based scholarship deadline is passed, but by law, there is no deadline for members of the United States Armed Forces. It is important to note that there may not be funding available past the deadline.
Georgia
There’s an income-based scholarship in Georgia, but the deadline has passed for the 2018-19 school year. You can view the GA Scholarship Handbook to learn more information about the scholarship.
Nevada
There is an income-based scholarship for eligible students in Nevada, and even though the deadline has passed for the current school year, you can learn more about the scholarship by viewing the Nevada Scholarship Handbook.
Pennsylvania
Like Alabama, Pennsylvania has an income-based scholarship, but due to a lack of funding it is not available to PA students this year.
Applying For An AAA Scholarship
If you believe that your child is an eligible candidate for the AAA scholarship, you must complete an application and provide all the proper documentation by the deadline (deadlines for the 2018-19 are passed, but Florida foster and income-based are still technically open). When proving your eligibility, it’s important that every member of the household has proof of income.
The AAA foundation cannot rely on or base a decision on a household that receives state food assistance or TANF. Residents in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Nevada, and Pennsylvania must apply every year, but in Arizona, scholarships may be renewed automatically (unless there are changes).
Once you apply for the scholarship, you will receive notice if the foundation has all the required documentation to make a decision on eligibility. Parents can check the status of the application on the site (under the appropriate scholarship). The whole application process takes approximately twelve weeks.
If your household is eligible and your child has received funding for the school year, you will receive a Scholarship Award Letter and a School Commitment Form. If you do not qualify, you will receive a denial letter from the foundation.
Using The Scholarship
It’s important to note that you should not enroll your student in a private school until you have received your award letter and commitment form. Failure to wait can mean that you are responsible for tuition and fees at the private school and you may not be eligible for future funding.
Once you receive an AAA scholarship, you cannot postpone using it, and you are responsible for finding an eligible private school as soon as you receive notice of the scholarship. The AAA Foundation strongly recommends that parents should make a copy of the blank School Commitment Form before taking it to the private school (just in case they transfer later).
The school and the parents/guardians must agree and follow the terms of the AAA Parent/School Handbooks.
Failure to follow procedures or missing important deadlines may affect current or future funding opportunities.
If you are eligible and placed on a waitlist by the foundation, it’s important to understand that you do not have a scholarship until you receive official documentation in the mail.
If you have missed the deadline or were denied for funding for the school year, you can try to apply for the following year. You may want to contact the foundation directly to get specific details about deadlines or if you need to send in additional information.
How Are Scholarships Disbursed?
During a school year, the AAA Foundation sends a verification form to the family four times throughout the year. Parents must return the filled-out form to the foundation by the deadline and then they will receive one-quarter of the scholarship award in a check. The check is made payable to the parent or guardian but can only be deposited by the school.
Here are the current scholarship values and how they are disbursed:
- 100 percent for families with incomes of 185 percent (new applicants) or 200 percent (for renewing applicants)
- 75 percent for families with incomes of 201 to 225 percent of poverty
- 50 percent for families with incomes of 226 to 250 percent of poverty
- 25 percent for renewing or transferring Nevada families with income between 251 and 300 percent of poverty
The funding you receive from the scholarship is only designed to be used for your child’s education and to cover the costs associated with tuition and fees. It’s important to remember that if you make plans with a school before receiving the scholarship, you may be responsible for some of the costs.
Contacting the AAA Scholarship Foundation
If you are interested in applying for the scholarship or need more information, you can check out the various FAQ sections on the scholarships we listed above.
If you still have questions or want more details that were not listed on AAA’s website, you can send mail to:
AAA Scholarship Foundation
PO Box 15719
Tampa, FL 33684-0719
You can also contact them by phone: 888-707-2465 for through a fax. You can send an email to [email protected] or fill out the online contact form on the website. If your concerns or questions are time-sensitive, it’s best to contact the foundation via phone.
