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NEADS Accepting Applications To Summer 2024 Financial Assistance Program

Friday April 19, 2024
Algonquin Anishinabe Territory / Ottawa, ON

Deadline: Friday June 14, 2024 at 11:59 pm EST.

The National Educational Association of Disabled Students (NEADS) is pleased to announce it is now accepting applications for the Summer 2024 semester of the NEADS Financial Assistance Program. The NEADS Financial Assistance Program, which launched back in January 2024, is a new, exciting merger of the previous NEADS National Student Awards Program and the NEADS Accessibility Resilience Program.

This program is intended to offset the high costs of education for students living with disabilities and encourage full access to post-secondary education for students living with disabilities enrolled in undergraduate, graduate or professional degree programs at recognized Canadian universities, or in certified diploma programs at Canadian colleges or CÉGEP.

Emphasis will be placed on students living with disabilities who belong to one or more systemically disadvantaged groups, including but not limited to: Indigenous Peoples (First Nations, Métis, Inuit), Black Canadians, racialized communities, members of the 2SLGBTQI+ communities, Women and gender diverse people (in relation to STEM fields), or a first/second generation Canadian.

With intakes semesterly, the new NEADS Financial Assistance Program will distribute 54 grants each semester, including:
    •    14 grants of $3,000 for Tuition Fees
    •    5 grants of $2,000 for Assistive Technology (e.g. braille display, screen reader, voice recognition, prosthetics)
    •    5 grants of $2,000 for Computers & Tablets
    •    5 grants of $2,000 for Ergonomic Equipment (e.g. office chair, sit/stand desk, wheelchair seat cushion)
    •    5 grants of $2,000 for Rent Support
    •    5 grants of $2,000 for Food Security
    •    5 grants of $2,000 for Mental Health & Wellness Services (e.g. counselling, massage therapy)
    •    5 grants of $2,000 for Learning Supports e.g. Psychological Assessments, ADHD coaching, tutoring
    •    5 grants of $2,000 for Medical Supplies (e.g. medications, wheelchairs, walkers, shower chairs).

These grants are made possible through generous support from funding sources such as Employment and Social Development Canada’s Supports for Student Learning program.

There will also be partner-funded scholarships available in certain semesters of this program. ***There will be no partner funded scholarships available in the Summer 2024 semester***.

About Our Partner Funded Scholarships

Annually one outstanding applicant will be awarded $10,000 to cover tuition fees from Canada Post. The Canada Post Student Award recognizes contributions made to Canadian society through community development and knowledge sharing and will be given to a student with a disability who demonstrates leadership, innovation, respect and integrity in their research, studies and community involvement.

Two other outstanding applicants (one Francophone, one Anglophone) will be eligible for a $5,000 AMI Sir Robert Pearson Memorial scholarship funded by Accessible Media Inc. In its 14th year, this scholarship is named in honour of Accessible Media Inc.’s Accessibility Officer, who passed away in December 2015. Robert Pearson was a long-time employee of AMI and fervent supporter of accessibility in Canada and around the world.

Another applicant who displays community leadership, and who is enrolled in a three+ year program in business, economics, computer science/technology or engineering will receive the Connor Clark & Lunn Financial Group Scholarship valued at $5,000.

Finally, three $1,000 memorial awards will be offered in the 2024-2025 school year. One eligible applicant will receive the Holly Bartlett Memorial Award, and another will receive the Christine Nieder Memorial Award. These two awards were established in memory of Holly and Christine who were both past NEADS board members. The Christine Nieder Award will, be awarded to a student pursuing a graduate program. The third memorial award is the Memorial Award for the Visually Impaired. Funded by a group of private donors, this award will be given to a applicant who identifies during the application process as being blind, visually impaired or deaf blind.

How To Apply

You can apply for these grants and scholarships through one central application on the NEADS website until Friday, June 14,  2024 at 11:59 pm ET, Eastern time at this link: Summer 2024 NEADS Financial Assistance Program Application  

Want To Learn More About The Financial Assistance Program?

If you are interested in learning more about what to expect during the application process, the specifics around eligibility criteria etc. Check out our Financial Assistance Program Info Session webinar recording available with close captioning and ASL/LSQ on our YouTube channel click here. This recording also includes a presentation from Sarah Szumlanski, NEADS Researcher on NEADS’s DisabilityAwards.ca webpage. NEADS' disabilitawards.ca webpage is the world's largest directory of hundreds of disability specific scholarship opportunities. A feature rich resource, the website is an additional one-stop place to find other potential funding opportunities as well as obtain information on Federal and provincial/territorial grants and loans programs for students with disabilities.

For inquiries related to the application process, contact the NEADS’ Financial Assistance Programs Team at etes@neads.ca

For further information:

Frank Smith, National Coordinator, National Educational Association of Disabled Students (NEADS)
Rm. 514 Unicentre, Carleton University
Ottawa, Ontario, K1S 5B6

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