Bridge the Gap is a Special Needs academic fund that was created to help meet the needs of students accessing special education services.  This money will go directly to applicants across the district as needs arise to help solve challenges that create barriers to learning and participation. 
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Process:
  1. Teachers, therapists, paraeducators, parents, students will submit a Bridge the Gap Application Form online here. 
  2. A committee will review the requests immediately after three set deadlines per academic school year: 
  • January 1*
  • April 1
  • October 1
   3.    After committee review and Board approval, the requestor will be notified by the TSNPTA President of the committee’s decision. 

Criteria:
  • This fund must benefit students with special needs in Tacoma.  
  • Bridge the Gap is intended to be a place to go when other attempts at funding have failed and/or been denied, thus creating a barrier to learning.
  • If approved for the fund assistance, requestor must provide documentation of use within three months of receipt. 
  • Has to directly support student academic enrichment in and/or out of the classroom. 
           --Toys, games, sensory materials, technology, etc.
           --Assistance for other domains such as social/emotional/behavioral, adaptive, etc. 
           --Field trip or home settings in home school environments 
  • We will not support snacks for the classroom, income for a paraeducator, etc.

Tacoma Special Needs PTA is budgeting $300 for each application period.  Applications exceeding this amount will be considered and awarded if criteria are met and sufficient funds are available.  TSNPTA reserves the right to offer partial or full support.

*The January 1, 2019 deadline has been extended thru February 1, 2019.
Pictures from our October 2017 Lap-a-thon, where our kids raised over $3,000 to fund our Bridge the Gap program!