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PHOENIX — With colorful backpacks hanging along the hallways, this north Phoenix school has the feel of most others as Arizona kids head back to classes after a summer break.
Yet, this place is quite special for students with special needs.
Welcome to the Autism Academy for Education & Development.
“One of the reasons why we started is to really give our students a place to grow socially, academically, and behaviorally, and we really focus on those things,” said Executive Director Shannon Mitchell.
Mitchell said Autism Academy is also a place where children with social and communication disorders can learn academics in small, tailored classrooms while also learning music and life skills. Students also compete in sports and have social events—such as proms.
Above all else, students are encouraged to develop lasting friendships, while families know they have a safe haven for their autistic kids, Mitchell said.
“We really help walk them through with curriculum that’s designed for social interactions and helping support them so they can make those long-lasting friendships,” she said.
It’s all made possible through Arizona’s Empowerment Scholarship Accounts or ESAs.
A 12News I-Team investigation found that ESAs—funded with state education tax dollars—have been used to subsidize family vacations while primarily helping wealthy private and homeschool families the past few years under the universal voucher expansion.
The ESA program, projected to cost $1 billion this school year, has drawn the ire of Democrat Gov. Katie Hobbs and several Democrat lawmakers.
They have blasted the cost and questionable purchases, such as high-end Lego kits, personal kitchen appliances, and musical instruments that ESA families get to keep at taxpayers’ expense.
But even some of the harshest critics said they support ESAs for special needs families, which was the program’s intent when it began in 2011.
That year, Arizona became the first state to use public tax dollars for a student’s private education.
“That’s how it started,” said Rep. Nancy Gutierrez, D-Tucson. “I do know there are some students who just can’t be served in a public school setting.”
The Autism Academy was one of the pioneers in the ESA movement.
It was founded in Gilbert in 2013 with just 22 kids.
“When we first opened, families did not have any idea that ESA existed,” Mitchell said. “What ESA did for the special needs community is to give them options for their students who have such diverse needs.”
Over the years, ESAs slowly grew to help those attending underperforming schools and military families. Three years ago, it was expanded to all Arizonans regardless of income, and students didn’t need to be disabled to qualify.
Mitchell said that as ESAs have become more popular, so has the Autism Academy.
Today, there are 850 kids from kindergarten to the age of 22 on five campuses.
In addition to north Phoenix, the other schools are in Gilbert, Tempe, Glendale, and Tucson. There’s also an online program.
But the small classes with intensive instruction are expensive.
Annual tuition for full-day, in-person learning for K-12+ is $34,000 a year, according to the school’s website.
ESA dollars provide funding for nearly all—99 percent—of the students, according to Mitchell.
“Empowerment scholarships really support the family so they can afford to go to a school that has the specialization that their student needs,” she said.
State records show that ESA dollars have helped families send their kids to the Autism Academy, as children with special needs get the largest scholarships under a state funding formula.
State records show more than 8,500 ESA students across Arizona receive at least $30,000 a year.
Public records, obtained by 12News, show the Autism Academy was the largest recipient of ESA funds each of the past three years.
Last school year, it received $26.5 million.
In fiscal 2024, it received $23.6 million. And in fiscal 2023, it received nearly $20.3 million.
Mitchell said those dollars provide opportunities for families with disabled children.
“The school is not just for the elite, not just for families that have the means to get their kid the best education,” she said. “So, ESA gives kids, all kids, the opportunity. It doesn’t matter what their socioeconomic status is. They can come to the best school for their child.”
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