The P.A.W.S. Tuition Assistance Fund is an annual assistance fund to support preschool aged Wellesley resident children whose families have demonstrated financial need.  

Criteria:

  1. Annual application is required – one per family for all eligible children in the household;
  2. Children must meet the P.A.W.S. eligibility guidelines for acceptance;
  3. Demonstrated financial need is based on the Wellesley Public Schools P.A.W.S. Financial Assistance guidelines; and
  4. Scholarships are available for each year a child is eligible and attends P.A.W.S. provided a family reapplies each year with demonstrated financial need and maintains residency in Wellesley.  Kindergarten eligible children are not eligible for a P.A.W.S. scholarship.

Scholarship applications will be submitted to the Assistant Superintendent for Finance and Operations who will ensure the application is complete.  Once the applications are complete, the Director of Early Childhood Education and the Assistant Superintendent for Finance and Operations will meet to select the recipients.  The number of annual recipients will be based on several criteria, including but not limited to meeting P.A.W.S. eligibility criteria (i.e. age of child); availability of scholarship funds; and availability of space in desired program (2 Day, 3 Day, 4 day programs, half-day, extended, or full day).   

Donations:

In SY’20-21, the Kiwanis Club made a generous four-year commitment to provide P.A.W.S. scholarships funds in the amount of $12,000 annually.  The purpose of the gift is to provide access to P.A.W.S. for students who need financial assistance to attend.  

Individuals who are interested in making a tax-deductible donation to the P.A.W.S. Scholarship fund should contact Cynthia Mahr, Assistant Superintendent for Finance and Operations (cmahr@wellesleyma.gov) or Kristen Stacy (stacyk@wellesleyps.org). 

Application Form:

P.A.W.S. Tuition Assistance Form (PDF)