Special Educational Needs Student Assistant – pilot program

for the bodies running schools and kindergartens to employ ASSISTANTS FOR STUDENTS WITH SPECIAL EDUCATIONAL NEEDS

Ladies and Gentlemen,

On August 16, 2021, we will begin accepting applications for 16 provincial competitions. In these competitions, school governing bodies can apply for grants to finance the costs of employing assistants for students with special educational needs, including disabilities [ASPE] in schools and preschools.

The competition rules are the same in each province.

In each voivodeship, the amount allocated for grants is PLN 1,168,897.

Entities eligible for a grant

The competition is open to local government units and other natural and legal persons from all over Poland who are the governing bodies of:

• kindergartens,
• primary schools,
• first-degree vocational schools,
• high schools,
• technique,

having mainstream departments , excluding special schools .

Detailed information about entities excluded from applying for a grant can be found in the Grant Project Implementation Procedures available on the project website www.asystentspe.pl

Application deadlines

We have planned two calls for proposals:

-the first recruitment period runs from August 16, 2021 to September 10, 2021;

-the second recruitment will be announced in November 2021.

Information about the second recruitment will be posted on the website www.asystentspe.pl, at least two weeks before it begins.

In the first call for proposals, we plan to spend 75%, and in the second call for proposals, 25% of the funds allocated to a given voivodeship.

Attention!

If in the first call for proposals the evaluators recommend for funding applications with a total value equal to or exceeding the total funds allocated in the project for grants for a given voivodeship, the Grantor may resign from conducting the second call for proposals in that voivodeship.

The type of activities for which support is intended

1. The grant can only be used to cover employment costs at an ASPE school and/or kindergarten for a period of 10 months;
2. Only those students can receive ASPE support under the competition
   and students who, due to their special educational needs:

• have difficulties:

• in independent functioning at school (movement, hygiene, understanding content, organizing learning, etc.),
• in communication,
• resulting from low social competences,

• exhibit aggressive and/or auto-aggressive behavior,

• demonstrate behavior that makes the work of the rest of the class difficult (obsessions, uncontrolled shouting, behavior, etc.);

3. One school governing body may implement a grant project in a maximum of 5 schools it manages;
4. Each school may employ a maximum of two people in ASPE positions under the grant project;
5. A grantee may only receive one grant under the project.

Support implementation period

The 10 months of ASPE work must be completed by the end of December 2022 at the latest.

Amount of support

The applicant determines the grant amount applied for based on the number of ASPEs to be employed at the school(s) run by the applicant and participating in the grant project. A single grantee may receive support for the employment of ASPEs in a maximum of five schools and/or preschools. A maximum of two ASPEs may be employed at a single school or preschool.

The grant amount for one Grantee cannot be higher than the product of PLN 29,222.44 and the number of ASPEs employed by him.

General information

The competitions are carried out as part of the project "ASSISTANT FOR STUDENTS WITH SPECIAL EDUCATIONAL NEEDS – PILOT".

The project is implemented under the Operational Programme Knowledge Education Development 2014-2020, Priority Axis 2 Effective public policies for the labor market and economy
and education, Measure 2.10. High quality of the education system.

The project is implemented by the ODiTK Educational Foundation in partnership with the "Sztuka Włączania" Association, the Cooperation Fund Foundation and the University of Warmia and Mazury
in Olsztyn.