When Teresa Lyman and her husband accepted the responsibility of raising their now-13-year-old granddaughter, they chose to enroll her in a private Christian school, starting in Kindergarten, due to their faith. But by third grade, the child was diagnosed with learning challenges.

Fortunately, the Lymans found Trinity School at Edgemere, a private school devoted to children with special needs. However, because Trinity specializes in serving those children and employs highly trained staff, the school’s tuition can be nearly $18,000.

“The resources they’re using for these children are expensive, but it’s just been a perfect fit for her, and she has just flourished under Trinity’s program,” Lyman said.

Even so, the higher tuition was a financial challenge for the couple. But the state of Oklahoma offers support for families like the Lymans through the Lindsey Nicole Henry Scholarships for Students with Disabilities (LNH) program, which allows families to use state tax dollars to pay for private-school tuition for children with special needs, as well as foster children, adopted children, and the children of military families. The scholarships range from $4,196 to $22,236 per child, based on a child’s diagnosis.

But there was one catch: To qualify for the LNH program, the Lymans would have to enroll their granddaughter in a local public school for one year.

“Basically, what I was going to be forced to do was put her in a public school for one year, just to kind of waste a year,” Lyman said.

She said that didn’t “seem like a good plan,” especially since officials at many public schools “pretty much tell you that they don’t have the resources to address those needs.”

Cara Locke, a single mother with an 11-year-old adopted daughter who has two diagnosed learning challenges, came up against the same hurdle.

Locke also enrolled her daughter in a private school because of her religious faith and later learned the child had learning challenges. Fortunately, the private school the child attended could still serve her, but the extra services also involved a higher tuition rate that increased the financial strain for Locke. And the child’s diagnosis meant Locke also needed to pay for additional educational services outside the school system.

“In addition to paying private tuition, I was paying extra tuition costs and tutoring costs for the last several years,” Locke said.

Locke’s daughter has received tutoring since first grade, at least once a week, including summers. Locke has also paid a private child psychologist for learning disorder testing and therapy.

“It’s just me and my daughter,” Locke said. “My daughter’s adopted. There’s no other responsible party in the picture besides myself.”

The LNH program offered hope to Locke, but the requirement that a child attend public school for one year meant she would either have to forgo much-needed financial assistance or remove her child from a school that was serving the child well.

Because her daughter was not adopted through the state foster-care system, Locke’s daughter did not qualify for an LNH scholarship without a year in the public-school system.

In the end, Locke chose her daughter’s well-being rather than taking the easier financial road.

“I was not going to pull my daughter out of her current school just to satisfy some nebulous period in public school in order to qualify for the Lindsey Nicole Henry Scholarship,” Locke said.

This year, state lawmakers voted to eliminate the one-year requirement so that parents and guardians like Lyman and Locke will not have to choose between their personal financial stability and their child’s educational stability and well-being.

Senate Bill 105, by state Sen. Julie Daniels and state Rep. Chad Caldwell, eliminates the one-year requirement for Oklahoma children to receive an LNH scholarship.

On Aug. 12, Lyman and Locke were among those present for the ceremonial signing of SB 105.

“I think people underestimate the financial impact that things like this have on our community, for middle-class people who really sacrificed for the last several years to send their kids to a school that really meets their needs educationally and, for me, for spiritual reasons,” Locke said.

While the LNH program directly eases the challenge of paying her daughter’s tuition, Locke said it also indirectly frees up funds to pay for her daughter’s private tutoring or future occupational therapy.

“When a scholarship like Lindsey Nicole Henry comes along, and they can take care of part of her tuition, that just frees up money for me to do the extra things I want to do for her to keep her on task and keep her on grade,” Locke said. “She’s an extremely bright young lady. We just have to do a few extra things in certain areas to help her stay on level.”

At a recent event, Locke’s daughter chose to speak, describing how school choice has benefitted her life. Among other things, the girl noted that, thanks to Oklahoma’s school-choice programs, “My mom doesn’t have to work overtime anymore just so I can stay in my school.”

Lyman had a similar reaction as she watched the bill signing.

“It meant the world to me,” Lyman said.

Now age 63, Lyman said much of her paycheck has gone to cover the costs of properly educating her granddaughter and, by necessity, other needs have gone unaddressed.

“That’s the top priority is her education,” Lyman said. “While I’ve been able to do it, I haven’t been able to save for my retirement as I would have liked.”

Daniels, R-Bartlesville, heard similar stories from many families who can now access the LNH program.

“The families who gathered for the signing of SB105 were euphoric,” Daniels said. “Their children won’t have to wait a year to attend the school their parents have chosen for them. The LNH scholarship is an incredibly impactful program. I am grateful to the legislators who came before me who had the vision and backbone to put it in place. This latest reform was years in the making, but so worth the effort. I thank my Senate and House colleagues from the bottom of my heart for freeing these special children to get on with their education and fulfill their God-given potential.”

In a recent post on X, Gov. Kevin Stitt touted the LNH reform, writing, “We have the best education freedom plan in the country, and this year, I signed legislation to give students more options to chase their American Dream.”

Locke agreed.

“It makes me tell my friends that don’t live in Oklahoma, ‘You’re missing out. You are missing out,’” Locke said. “This is a parent-forward state.”