Disabled children of veterans are eligible for a state-mandated tuition waiver. Students should apply for the waiver by completing paperwork with the Kentucky Veteran's Association. Students must provide legal documentation which proves their relationship to the veteran and verifies the veteran's term of service. Stepchildren may also be eligible for this benefit. Once approved, the Kentucky VA will make the payment directly to the school.
All public state-funded community colleges, universities and vocational schools in Kentucky are required by law to grant the tuition waiver to disabled chidren of veterans. There are 24 eligible schools. These include Eastern Kentucky University, Northern Kentucky University, University of Louisville, Kentucky State University and University of Kentucky. A complete list of schools is available via the Kentucky VA (see Resources).
The Kentucky Office of Vocational Rehabilitation may finance the education of disabled Kentucky students. However, students are asked to first apply for grants and to complete the Federal Application for Student Aid. Some general grants available to students wtih disabilities are offered by the American Association on Health and Disability and the Association of Specialized and Cooperative Library Agencies. Grants targetting students with specific disabilities are also available through organizations dedicated to research and advocacy related to those disabilities.
In addition to providing state-mandated tuition waivers to disabled children of veterans, Kentucky law also mandates that tuition waivers be granted to children who are adopted or who have lived in Kentucky foster care. Therefore, disabled students who are also fostered or adopted children may qualify for free tuition in this way. As with waivers for disabled children of veterans, tuition waivers for fostered and adopted children must be honored by all state-funded public colleges, universities and technical schools in Kentucky.