Getting Started With IEP Services & the Ohio Autism Scholarship.

A simple guide to two pieces of paperwork that open the door to a coordinated day at FEATS.

Before your child can start at FEATS, two things need to be in place: an active IEP through your resident school district, and Ohio Autism Scholarship funding directed to FEATS as your provider. Neither one is as complicated as it sounds, and our team can walk you through both.

Here's what each step actually involves.

Step 1: Get an IEP in place with your district

If your child doesn't have an IEP yet, this is where things start — and it starts with your district, not with us.

Contact your resident school district and request an evaluation. If your child isn't yet enrolled in a public preschool program, you can still request this directly.
The district has 30 calendar days from your request to begin an initial evaluation.
If your child is found eligible, the district will develop an IEP outlining their specific goals and the services needed to meet them.
This IEP must be current and finalized before a scholarship application can move forward — and it gets updated annually for as long as your child uses the scholarship.

Step 2: Apply for the Ohio Autism Scholarship

Once the IEP is in place, the scholarship application is the next piece.

Request an application through the Ohio Department of Education's Office for Exceptional Children, or download it directly from ODE's website.
Your district completes a district assurance form as part of the application — this confirms your child's eligibility on their end.
Submit the completed application to ODE. Applications are accepted year-round, though timing can affect which program year your award applies to.
ODE reviews the application and sends an award or denial letter, typically within a matter of weeks. If approved, the letter states the scholarship amount.
You'll sign an acceptance form indicating how much of the scholarship you want directed to FEATS. Funds are paid directly to us — not to you — for the services outlined in your child's IEP.

Step 3: Start the day at FEATS

Once your scholarship is directed to FEATS, we build your child's day around what's already written into their IEP — so the goals your district team identified are the same ones we're teaching toward, all day, in one place.

We'll walk through your child's IEP together and map it against our daily structure.
You're welcome to visit and see a day in person before anything is finalized.
We help with the scholarship paperwork along the way — you're not navigating this alone.

A few things worth knowing

The scholarship covers services listed in your child's IEP — not tuition — so what's written into that IEP matters.
Ohio Autism Scholarship funding is renewable annually, but it does require your family to re-confirm and resubmit paperwork each year.
Choosing the scholarship means your resident district is no longer responsible for providing your child's education directly — FEATS becomes that provider for the services funded.
Every family's timeline looks a little different depending on where they're starting from. If you already have a current IEP, you may be closer to starting than you think.

Ready to start? Contact us today to schedule a consultation.