Merit-Based Scholarship Application

Our full scholarships are merit-based and cover 100% of a student's tuition! If you are applying as an 18-year-old or you are applying for someone under the age of 18 as their parent or legal guardian, please complete the questions below. Your responses will remain confidential in accordance with our privacy policy.

General Information

Continuity of Support

At Once Upon a Voice, we recognize that artistic growth requires stability and consistency. As a trauma-informed and neurodiversity-affirming learning space, we are committed to ensuring that scholarship recipients can continue their education without disruption—even as they grow and transition into new age groups.

Scholarships are awarded for 12 consecutive months from the date of acceptance. They remain valid even if a student ages out of their original service during that time.

Grace Periods by Age Group

Because students develop at different paces, we provide grace periods to make transitions smoother. These grace periods allow students to finish their current stage of learning before moving up, while still ensuring that their scholarship follows them into the next age group. The length of the grace period depends on the service:

• Ages 0–6 (Group Classes): Because these services are aligned with typical developmental milestones (0–18 months, 18–36 months, 3–6 years), scholarships include a one-month grace period once a child reaches the next age milestone. Families must transition into the next age group within that month for the scholarship to continue.

• Ages 6–18 (Weekly Workshops and Private Lessons): Scholarships include a one-year grace period after a student reaches the upper age of their current group. For example, a student turning 12 may remain in the 9–12 service until their 13th birthday or transition earlier into the 12–15 service. Once that grace year ends, families must transition into the appropriate next age group to maintain their scholarship. Scholarships automatically transfer to the new service, ensuring uninterrupted support for the full 12-month term.

Our goal is to support students as they evolve, providing a stable and nurturing environment where they can grow into their artistry with confidence.

Health and Safety

At Once Upon a Voice, we prioritize vocal health and provide a supportive, trauma-informed, and neurodiversity-affirming environment. We welcome speaking and nonspeaking students, including those who use American Sign Language (ASL) or other forms of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). Services are tailored to honor each student’s expressive style and support meaningful engagement, with caregiver collaboration as needed. Our services promote sustainable voice use and creative exploration through early musical development, singing, and songwriting. However, we are not medical professionals and cannot diagnose or treat physical or mental health conditions. We encourage students and families to consult licensed healthcare providers, such as pediatricians, laryngologists, or psychiatrists, for assessment and care. For students in speech or voice therapy, we are happy to collaborate with their speech-language pathologist to support their progress in music.

Students may be unable to participate if any of the following apply at enrollment or during their time with us:

1. Recent Vocal Surgery: Medical clearance is required. We are happy to coordinate with healthcare providers to ensure a safe return.

2. Throat Infections: Full recovery from acute conditions such as strep throat or tonsillitis is necessary before resuming participation.

3. Vocal Health Concerns: Persistent voice issues lasting more than two consecutive weeks require medical attention. These include chronic hoarseness, vocal fatigue, or pain while speaking or singing.

4. Respiratory Illnesses: Full recovery from conditions such as bronchitis or pneumonia is required before participation.

5. Allergies: Students must wait until acute throat or respiratory symptoms improve.

6. Post-Dental Procedures: Sufficient healing time after dental work affecting the mouth or jaw is required.

7. Acid Reflux: Students with unmanaged acid reflux that significantly affects their voice should seek medical management before continuing.

8. Feeding or Swallowing Challenges: Students who experience discomfort or difficulty with vocalization due to feeding or swallowing disorders, such as dysphagia or frequent aspiration, should consult a healthcare provider before engaging in singing activities.

9. Sensory Sensitivities: We aim to create a welcoming environment for students with sensory sensitivities. However, those who experience extreme distress from sound, music, or interactive engagement may need additional accommodations. We are happy to discuss options to support participation.

10. Communication Support Needs: Most of our services involve expressive participation—whether through vocalizing or using an AAC system. Students must have a reliable method of communication that allows the instructor (and peers, when applicable) to understand their responses, preferences, and ideas. Early childhood music services (ages 0–6) and songwriting services do not require vocalization for participation, while singing services require students to vocalize words. We welcome students who are nonspeaking; however, real-time interpretation or caregiver support is necessary to help facilitate participation when an AAC system requires assistance. We are committed to providing an accessible learning environment and value partnering with families to ensure each student’s communication needs are fully supported.

11. Emotional Barriers: Students ages 6 and up who struggle with self-reflection or emotional exploration may need additional support. We are committed to helping students who find this difficult due to trauma or neurodivergence by collaborating on appropriate accommodations.

12. Discomfort with Feedback: Students ages 6 and up who are unwilling to accept constructive feedback may not benefit from live instruction.

13. Lack of Commitment: Consistent practice and engagement are essential for success.

14. Social or Performance Anxiety: We offer accommodations to help students participate meaningfully. If anxiety significantly interferes with engagement, we may recommend seeking professional support before continuing services.

15. Physical Limitations: Students with acute or chronic conditions affecting the fingers, hands, wrists, arms, or shoulders should consult a medical professional before starting or continuing. We are happy to collaborate with healthcare providers to support progress in music.

16. Motor Challenges: Significant fine or gross motor skill challenges, such as difficulties with pedaling, may require adaptations we cannot provide.

We will accommodate individual needs whenever possible. If participation is unfeasible, we recommend exploring music therapy for students who still wish to sing, write songs, play the piano, or produce music. The American Music Therapy Association offers resources to help families find a qualified music therapist.

We take every precaution to provide a safe and beneficial learning environment, but no activity is entirely risk-free. By enrolling in our services, you acknowledge and accept the inherent risks of participation, including the possibility of vocal fatigue. Students and families assume full responsibility for their participation. Once Upon a Voice does not accept liability for injuries, vocal strain, or other health-related concerns that arise from participation. In jurisdictions that limit liability disclaimers, our liability will be restricted to the fullest extent allowed by law.

Preferences

Technology Requirements

To participate in our trauma-informed, neurodiversity-affirming services, all students must have:

• A stable internet connection

• A quiet, distraction-free learning environment

• A desktop or laptop computer compatible with Zoom

Students must have all the required equipment for their current age group, as well as all necessary items from younger levels. Recommended items are not required.

✨ Beginner Level (ages 6+)

Required

• MIDI keyboard with at least 61 keys, plus stand, bench, damper pedal, and MIDI-to-USB cable

• Ableton Live Intro as their digital audio workstation (DAW)

Recommended

• Pads on a separate MIDI controller for beat-building

Note: Students may access Ableton Live Intro through Ableton’s 50% educational discount for K–12 students. However, the educational discount does not apply to upgrades. Families who anticipate their child continuing with music production may find Ableton Live Standard or Suite to be a worthwhile long-term investment, as these versions support more advanced creative and technical growth over time.

✨ Intermediate Level (ages 9+)

Required

• For singers only:

  • Semi-occluded vocal tract (SOVT) tool to use with water and without water

• For everyone:

  • Recording microphone with a boom stand, pop filter, and XLR-to-XLR cables (not required if nonspeaking)

  • USB audio interface

  • Closed-back headphones with a 1/4-inch adapter to record

  • Ableton Live Standard as their DAW

Recommended

• Mic preamp if XLR mic has low gain

• Acoustic panels for absorbing high and mid frequencies

• Bass traps to manage low frequencies

Note: Students may access Ableton Live Standard through Ableton’s 50% educational discount for K–12 students. However, the educational discount does not apply to upgrades. Families who anticipate their child continuing with music production may find Ableton Live Suite to be a worthwhile long-term investment, as it supports more advanced creative and technical growth over time. Ableton Live Suite is available through Ableton's rent-to-own program, as well.

✨ Advanced and Professional Levels (ages 12+)

Required

• Open-back headphones with a 1/4-inch adapter to mix and master

• External or cloud-based storage to save projects

• Ableton Live Suite as their DAW

Recommended

• Studio monitors with stands or isolation pads and balanced cables

• Splice for loops and one-shots

• Waves Ultimate for beneficial plugins

Note: Students may access Ableton Live Suite through Ableton’s 50% educational discount for K–12 and college students, as well as teachers. It is also available through their rent-to-own program.

Accessibility

Students who use augmentative or alternative communication (AAC), are Deaf or hard of hearing, or benefit from visual, tactile, or sensory supports may need additional music-specific aids. Because these needs differ from student to student, we offer guidance individually. Examples may include visual beat or tempo trackers, vibration-based tools to feel rhythm, LED sound-level indicators, gesture-based conducting tools, enlarged or high-contrast notation, tactile or color markers for keyboard navigation, raised or braille overlays for specific keys, simplified DAW templates, alternative ways to monitor vocal input (such as waveform or pitch-tracking displays), adapted mic positioning aids, or camera angles that support visual monitoring during singing or recording. If you or your child requires accommodations like these, we will help you.

Nail Length

At Once Upon a Voice, all weekly workshop and private lesson students are expected to develop piano proficiency on the MIDI keyboard as part of their musical instruction, regardless of their primary focus. To support safe, effective technique, youth students must keep their nails short enough to allow proper hand position, comfort, and dexterity when playing.

Youth students’ nails may extend slightly beyond the fingertip but must not exceed approximately 1/4 inch (about 6 millimeters) past the fingertip. Nails longer than this interfere with safe playing technique and may lead to discomfort, tension, or injury.

If a youth student arrives at a session with nails that exceed this limit and cannot play comfortably or safely, we will ask them to trim or file them before the next session. If nail length continues to interfere with progress, we will meet with the student and their parent or guardian, if the student is under 18, to discuss whether our services remain the right fit at this time.

In keeping with our trauma-informed, neurodiversity-affirming approach, we respect that youth students may have personal, cultural, sensory, or medical reasons for maintaining longer nails. However, participation in weekly workshops or private lessons require adherence to physical and technical standards necessary for safe and successful MIDI keyboard training. We are committed to supporting each student’s growth with care, respect, and clear expectations that foster musical success while honoring individual needs.

Personal Statement

Audition Video

Scholarship Responsibilities

Our scholarship namesakes—and, when applicable, their families—love receiving private updates about the students who benefit from the scholarships created in their honor. If the applicant accepts a scholarship for one of our trauma-informed and neurodiversity-affirming services, we will share their name, photos, and audio or video clips from their instructional time, assignments, or performances with the scholarship’s namesake or their family. These updates are private and will not be used in newsletters, on social media, or in any public materials.

Contact Information