Finding The Right School For Your Child With Learning Disabilities

In this inspiring episode of The Writing Glitch, Cheri Dotterer sits down with John Munro, Head of School at the GOW School—an internationally recognized boarding and day school transforming the lives of students with language-based learning disabilities. John shares the school's rich history, rooted in the work of Dr. Samuel Orton, and details the school’s signature Reconstructive Language (RL) curriculum that empowers students to master reading and writing through neuroscience-backed methods. Discover how small classes, structured literacy, a robotics program inspired by BattleBots, and deep staff-student relationships make GOW a hidden gem for students from around the world.

https://www.gow.org/

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TIME STAMPS

01:00 GOW’s mission to transform life trajectories for students
02:00 The meaning behind “ignite learning” at GOW
03:00 John’s background and motivation for joining GOW
04:00 The school’s 99-year history and founding story
06:00 From boys-only to co-ed and its current demographics
07:00 International student body and cultural representation
08:00 Supporting English language learners with dyslexia
09:00 Overview of GOW’s academic structure (6-day school week)
10:00 Athletics and extracurriculars at GOW
11:00 Outdoor education and unique enrichment offerings
12:00 Day student experience mirrors that of boarders
13:00 Faculty’s intensive involvement in student life
14:00 Teacher commitment and long-term retention
15:00 Academic calendar with built-in recharge breaks
17:00 Handling breaks and student housing during holidays
18:00 Personal boarding school connection and perspectives
19:00 Transition to discussion about Reconstructive Language
20:00 What is RL and how it originated at GOW
21:00 Structure of the RL deck and how it builds reading skills
23:00 Integration of RL with writing instruction
24:00 Enrollment capacity and class sizes
25:00 Robotics program and BattleBots championship success
27:00 Admitting students who are a mission fit
28:00 GOW as a college-prep school, not a therapeutic school
29:00 Summer program overview: academics + camp fun
30:00 How summer school feeds full-year enrollment
31:00 Structured literacy benefits all learners
32:00 Website and open house details
33:00 The school’s four pillars: Honesty, Hard Work, Respect, Kindness

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Creators and Guests

Host

Cheri Dotterer

Cheri is an international speaker, author, and consultant who helps teachers, therapists, and parents build clarity, community, and competency around the barriers to writing success. Her book, Handwriting Brain-Body DisConnect, has remained in the Top 100 on Amazon since publication in Handwriting Reference and Learning Disabilities. It was also a Top 10 Finalist in the Author Academy Awards in 2019. In addition, she was nominated the USA 2022 Dysgraphia Expert of the Year by Global Health and Pharma Magazine. She has worked in many concentration areas as an occupational therapist for 30 years. However, it wasn't until starting her private practice that she found her passion for helping others understand this disability. In addition, she has been an adjunct instructor at several universities. She lives with her husband of 32 years. They have two adult children. Her heroes are Evelyn Yerger, her grandmother, and Esther, Queen of Susa. Together, we can grow 110 million leaders and hack dysgraphia by building skills, applying knowledge, and transcending futures.

Guest

John Munro Jr

Head GOW School

What is The Writing Glitch: Hack Dysgraphia No Pencil Required?

The Writing Glitch is brought to you by Dotterer Educational Consulting. Our Founder and Owner, Cheri Dotterer, is the host.

Build courage, compassion, and collaboration to help students thrive and grow leaders that transcend a lifetime, regardless of dyslexia, dysgraphia, and dyscalculia, using sensory-motor processing and neuroscience-based instructional interventions. No Pencil Required!

We interview teachers, therapists, and parents about how they have seen a transformation in children having these disabilities and co-morbid conditions such as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) or Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). They share how they help students grow and prosper.

We believe we can grow 110 million leaders together by building skills, applying knowledge, and transcending futures. Join us to hack dysgraphia. No Pencil Required.

Each episode contains one intervention to help you support students with writing challenges the next day you are in your classroom. These interventions are explicit, systematic, cumulative, and multisensory. They are designed to support ALL students through targeted, daily visual-perceptual, visual-motor, and memory interventions. These interventions benefit all students and harm none.

All students have access to writing regardless of their status in the classroom. The interventions were created to take up to 30 seconds to 2 minutes of your classroom time. Strategic lesson planning increases classroom engagement.

All interventions can be adapted for students with physical disabilities because they support the Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) and well-being of all students. In addition, these interventions impact all subject matter classrooms. Whether you are teaching English language arts, mathematics, social studies, science, music, or art, these interventions will benefit your classroom atmosphere across ALL grade levels.

You have put your blood, sweat, and tears into investing in your education and children. Don’t let a misunderstanding about this disability stop you from providing best practices.

In case you don’t know me. I’m Cheri Dotterer, 2022 Dysgraphia Expert of the Year. This honor was bestowed on me by Global Health and Pharma Magazine. In 2023, they awarded my company the Best Dysgraphia Professional Development Program.

It took challenges at home and on the job to wake me up to the impact dysgraphia has on all students. Struggling my entire life with communication issues, I was mistaken that only students with learning disabilities could have dysgraphia.

My thoughts shifted when my gifted daughter asked for help with spelling. My son struggles with handwriting. Then, a parent asked me why her child could read and have trouble writing. Finding answers became the drive that gets me out of bed in the morning.

It’s a big shock when you discover how pervasive writing difficulties are and how little people know about how to help–even OTs. I used to think I was the only OT who struggled with understanding dysgraphia. It turns out many have questions.

Occupational, physical, and speech therapists are not trained to teach. Teachers are.

Occupational, speech, and physical therapists are trained in neuroscience. Teachers are not.

Let this podcast be your first line of defense to help your students transcend their learning disabilities. Show your school district how much you genuinely care about all of your students by sharing it with your colleagues.

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Join The Writing Glitch Community. https://thewritingglitch.com/
Connect with Cheri at www.cheridotterer.com or [e-mail]

. Welcome to the Writing Glitch.

I'm Cheri Dotterer your classroom coach.

Today we have John Monroe.

He is the head of the GOW
School in Buffalo, New York.

The GOW is a primary, no, it's not.

It's a premier.

The GOW is a premier boarding
and day school for students

with learning disabilities in
grades five through postgraduate.

Just about 20 miles outside Buffalo, New
York, and I've gotta say it's a little

on the envious side of me because I
absolutely fell in love with Niagara when

I was there, and you're not that far away.

So welcome to the show.

Great.

Thank you Cheri.

I appreciate you taking time this
afternoon to have this conversation.

It's a terrific school and I know
it's in your wheelhouse in terms of

the work that you're doing, so I look
forward to a productive conversation

and hope to share more details
with you about the GOW School, it's

mission and the work that we're doing
to transform the life trajectories

of so many wonderful children.

Fantastic.

Before we get started, I'm gonna.

Read a word from our sponsor at
Disability Labs, we are committed

to impact the journey of.

200,000 teachers by 2030 so they can
reignite their passion for learning.

Our professional development series
focuses on math and learning strategies

to help all students in your classroom.

These interventions improve students
with and without disabilities.

All students have access to the
mathematics and the writing skills.

But now let's find out a little
bit more about the GOW School.

Tell us a little bit about yourself
and what is the GOW School?

Great.

Thank you Cheri.

And I just have to say, I love the
phrase in your spot, ignite Learning,

and that's a motto that we use quite
often here at the Go School because many

of our learners arrive at Go as broken
learners and have been knocked down

to the mat a number of times in their.

Previous educational settings
and they discover a program with

extremely small classes with expert
teachers that, that, that instill

confidence and indeed ignite learning.

So I'm excited to dig into
that topic with you today.

I. A quick background.

Again, my name is John Monroe and
this is my second year serving as

the head of school at the Goo School.

Prior to serving Goo, I led a small
K through nine independent school

in Fairfield, Connecticut called
Fairfield Country Day School.

Traditional school very few
students with learning differences.

So this is a new, a new mission for me
and frankly, one that's very inspiring

nothing against some of those traditional
schools out here, but I think I can

speak for myself and our faculty, that
we are highly motivated by the work

we do here because it is meaningful.

We're helping underdogs who have
been knocked down to the mat.

And it's fulfilling and motivating work.

It was really the reason why I came to the
Gow School and now I'm living that mission

and doing my best to advance that mission.

Fantastic.

Tell us a little bit more about the
history, because when we were on the

phone a little while ago, you were telling
me it's been around for many years.

So yeah, thank it's a
very interesting history.

So we are in our 99th year as a
school and obviously very exciting

about excited about celebrating
our centennial next year.

The school was founded in
1926 by two individuals Peter

Gow and Dr. Samuel Orton.

Peter Gow in the early 1920s was
teaching English at a private all

boys school in the city of Buffalo
called the Nichols School in.

He began growing more and more frustrated
with a small handful of students

that he was teaching who were clearly
very bright high intelligent highly

intelligent but struggled mightily with
spelling and with reading, and with

writing, and he didn't understand why.

So he took it upon himself to start
a small school, as you said, 20 miles

outside of Buffalo in South Wales, New
York, that would focus on supporting

these students and teaching them the
skills necessary for them to be successful

academically in college and beyond.

And so as he was getting this school off
the ground in its infancy in 1926, he had.

Recently started
conversations with a neuro.

Scientist Dr. Samuel Orton, who was
one of the early pioneers in, in,

in understanding the connections
between neurology and learning.

He, at the time, I believe, was
working at Iowa and then moved to

New York City in the mid 1920s.

And Peter Goo and Dr. Orton, Dr. Sammy
Orton, got together on numerous occasions

to discuss this conundrum of how do we.

How do we impact and how do we
teach these students who are really

struggling with their reading?

Peter Gow provided a school and a
wonderful pedagogical philosophy.

And in partnership with Dr. Orton, he
provided the neuroscience behind what

was going on, and he was referring
students to attend the GOW school.

So in 1926, the school got off the ground.

It was the foundation of the
work that they did centered

around dyslexic thinking.

It also led to the development of
our signature curricula, which is

still in place right now, known as
reconstructive language also known

as RL to all of our students and.

We can dive in.

I can certainly talk to you
a little bit about about rl.

But over the last 99 years, the
school has grown to be a globally

recognized boarding school students
from grades five to postgraduate level.

It was an all boys school until about
2012 where we admitted the first girls

to Gau, and right now we are about.

Two thirds boys and one third girls, and
the number of female students is growing.

About 85 to 90% of our students are
boarding students and another 10 to 15%

live locally here in the Buffalo area.

You said international.

You have students from
outside the country.

We do.

We were actually a little stronger
internationally before Covid where we were

probably about 20, maybe close to 25% of
our student population was international.

Today we're at about 15%, and
frankly, we're looking to.

Regain that international population.

But we have we have students
spread out from across the world.

We have students from Oman, we have
students from just north of US in Canada.

We have students from Ecuador, we've
had students from Spain, we've had

students from United Arab Emirates.

You name the country almost all
of them have been represented

over time here at Goo.

And again, typically small numbers from
multiple comp countries rather than a

large number from one singular country.

Bermuda is an interesting feeder country
for us and as part of the culture, I think

in that country regarding students looking
at gout to help support their needs.

Very interesting.

I just wanna sit there a
minute and just absorb that.

We've had students coming here to the
United States from all of these outside

areas and they're learning English,
but they probably were coming because

they were struggling with their own
language to begin with, I would imagine.

So how did you bridge that?

Gap between their native
language and English.

So that's a good question.

So I would say most, almost all of our.

International students
are fluent in English.

We do not provide a formal,
separate ESL program.

We have support in that area for students
that need it, but really the work that

we're doing is on their remediation.

Their strengthening of skills that will
allow them to be successful academically.

We are a college preparatory school.

99% of our students go on to college
and have successful experiences that

lead them into particular careers.

So that is our, that is our primary
focus, is to build their level.

Of reading and their level of
academic confidence and their maturity

so that they can have successful
experiences in college and beyond.

So those two strands of our
mission go hand in hand.

Now, before we get into the re
reconstructive language, let's

sit in there on the boarding
school idea for a minute.

What extracurricular program do you have?

Because they're not in school 24 hours a
day, they, there's gotta be other things

that are bringing them to your school.

What are some of the other extracurricular
activities that you have provided?

Yeah, good question.

Thank you, Cheri.

Really the number one draw
that is attracting families

and students to our school.

Is our mission to support
dyslexic thinkers and those with

language-based learning differences.

That's our bread and butter.

It's a pretty intensive
structured program.

Our students have classes six days
a week Monday through Saturday.

I. Those classes go from eight 30 in the
morning to three o'clock in the afternoon.

There's a tutorial session that
goes from about three to 3 45.

Then we have our athletic program and
our students are involved in sports.

I. Our boys soccer program is
a very popular and successful

program in, in, in the fall.

Our girls' volleyball program is
growing and finding more success Boys

basketball we receive a lot of snow in,
in, in Western New York, so we have a

robust skiing and snowboarding program.

Offer lacrosse and flag
football and tennis and squash.

So the extracurriculars along with.

Theater and performing arts are all
compliment our academic program very well.

But quite honestly, I don't think many
families are drawn to go because we

have a. Successful soccer program.

Many of them love the fact that we
offer sports and we have competitive

inters, inner scholastic programs.

But it really compliments
what our focus is.

And that's in the area of academic
remediation and again, building

their confidence as readers.

But we are fortunate to have a.

Beautiful, 126 acre campus
with lush fields and hills

and a creek that runs through.

So it's a gorgeous setting.

We try to take advantage of our
outdoors as much as possible.

We do have a very popular outdoor
education program, which is an offering

that, that students can choose if they do
not want to choose an athletic team event.

I'm.

That group of, I think a dozen
students just just got back from

an incredible canoeing trip in
Algonquin Provincial Park in Canada.

We try to find.

Areas where students can find success.

And for a lot of our students
especially our new students, the

first few months are, can be bumpy.

Because typically they're coming
out of programs where they weren't

finding success, or maybe they've
been to two or three schools before

gout and they're a little skeptical.

I went to these other
schools and it didn't work.

By.

By having a program, like our
athletics program or our arts

program, it gives kids some wins.

We want every kid to have at
least a few wins every day.

And some of our new students those
first few weeks of, six days a week,

academics, sometimes there's not
that many wins right out of the gate.

Ultimately there is of course.

It's about striking the right balance.

And you said that you have some kids,
10% of your kids are day students, right?

Are they also coming six days a week?

They are, yes.

Yes.

And typically they are staying through
our dinner and required study hall.

Our day is a full day.

They, they, whether they arrive as
a day student and they're dropped

off at eight o'clock or whether they
get up at seven 30 in the dorms to

get ready for breakfast, they are.

They are structured with a consistent,
predictable schedule that really

goes from 8:00 AM 7:30 AM all the way
through our evening required study hall.

So after a full day of classes,
there's an opportunity for a tutorial.

There's then the academic, excuse me,
the athletic period, which is about.

Four o'clock to five 15.

Little bit of a window of catch your
breath dinner at six, and then mandatory

study hall six 30 to eight if you're
in the middle school, six 30 to eight

30 if you're in the upper school.

So it's a very full day.

It by design.

But your staff.

I'm thinking about like a 24 hour step.

You don't have teachers on, do you
have teachers on staff from six

to eight during that study hall,
or is that study hall very much

independent with not extra support?

No, there are the study
halls are proctored.

There are two separate study halls.

There are multiple proctors
in each study hall.

It's opportunities not just to sit down
and study independently, but to seek extra

help and support as well from teachers.

Yeah it's, it's an incredible quality
that I don't think many educators possess

is that, our teachers are going nonstop.

It's one of the strengths of the program
is because often a student who has, Mr.

Smith for math might have Mr. Smith for
soccer and might see Mr. Smith again

during tutorial, and Mr. Smith might
be, and Mrs. Smith might be his dorm.

Parents.

So the relational elements
and the connections that are.

Faculty build with our
students are really unique.

And, the boarding, the residential
environment really promotes that

increased level of connection and
relational learning, which translates

directly into increased performance
and academic and character metrics.

So it's a, again, we call it the
triple threat because so many of our.

Teachers teach they coach and they're
dorm parents and they work extremely hard.

Sounds that way.

It sounds like they have to be devoted
to that program to be employed by you.

It doesn't sound like there's much
time for them to have extracurricular

time during the school year.

It's a challenge.

I don't have the exact statistics,
but there's, we have found that if a

teacher stays with us for three years,
gets through that, again, 24 7 approach

because, the day just doesn't end at 11.

There are things that, happen between
11:00 PM and 7:00 AM someone is ill and

needs to get to the nurse, et cetera.

So if they get through
those first three years.

They tend to stay till, I think
the 10 years, about 16 or 17 years.

So it's remarkable.

But you're right, I, they
don't have a lot of free time.

Our philosophy around our academic
calendar is we have an intense

first six weeks where we start
late August, we get to October.

15th and we take a full week off,
not a long weekend, we take a full

week off, and it's intentional to
allow those teachers to disconnect.

To reenergize as well as our kids.

Our kids are working hard six days
a week for six weeks, and then

everyone disconnects for about a week.

Then we regroup and go late October
to late November, maybe four weeks

until we get that Thanksgiving break.

Take a full week off for Thanksgiving,
and then go about another three or

four weeks to our December holiday.

That's typically two weeks full.

Two weeks, and then another six
weeks to the February break.

We take a week off.

Another four weeks to Easter,
take two weeks off, and then

we graduate in late May.

So we meet our quota of 170 school days.

That's our goal, but we chop it up in
a way where there are those periods

of disconnection and restoration,
if you will, for both our faculty

and our students that need it.

And in those periods of.

Of weeks off, is the
school physically closed?

Like when my daughter went
to Penn State, they literally

kicked them out of the dorms.

They kicked them out of off campus, except
for a very small group of kids, and then

they had to be in like one dorm because
there was no way for them to go anywhere.

Is that the case there, that week
break, they are kicked off campus And

we don't to, we don't like to use
the word kicked off, but we do.

It is important to separate.

But there are always some
issues where that doesn't work.

We, again, having international
students the cost of travel, we

have an expensive tuition and you
layer in, four or five round trip.

Airfare is a year, it adds up.

So if there are students for whatever
circumstances that need to stay on

campus, that during those breaks, we
typically try to partner match them

up with one of our day students.

Or if absolutely necessary,
we will, run a, a skip very

much scaled down program here.

But typically it's.

It's, I can probably count on one
hand or less the number of students.

And we really do try to separate
as most, as po as much as possible.

'cause it's, ideally we don't
want two or three faculty to be

on campus having to use that week.

Supervising kids that couldn't get home.

That is really fantastic
that you are able to do that.

And sorry if I use kicked it off,
but that was the thing that was like

in my head as I felt like they were
under pressure to get off campus

and they were kicking them out.

I have to share a quick movie
recommendation holdovers, if

you haven't seen it, is exactly
what you're talking about.

It's about a group of six or seven
misfits in a boarding school that

have to stay over Christmas break.

So anyways.

Quick plug for a very funny movie and that
tells a lot about boarding school life.

And it was filmed at the boarding
school that I went to, so even better.

Aha.

So you have a history of
boarding schools in your life?

I do.

I attended boarding school and
two out of my three daughters

attended boarding school.

Even though I haven't worked at a boarding
school before, I, I. I can see it through

the lens of a student and as a parent.

So I think that helps in some
of the conversations I have with

prospective families who might not
really feel comfortable about sending

their child to a boarding school.

In some areas, geographic regions,
there's a stigma that don't love your

child, you don't love your child.

Is that why you're sending
them to boarding school?

And that's not the case, especially
with a specialized school like GOW.

Now let's shift gears and talk a
little bit about this reconstructive

language, because I've not
heard it called that before.

But you mentioned that Dr. Orton was
part of the foundation of the school.

Gillingham.

Where did that, yes.

Yeah.

Where did he come in?

Does he later, did he,
is he part of it too?

He came in later.

So sometimes our original academic
philosophy is called Orian after

Samuel Orton, but it was really, I.

Samuel Orton, Dr. Samuel Orton's
partnership with Peter GOW, which

led to the development of a recon
reconstructive language curricula.

And that is the cornerstone of what
we do in our work with dyslexic

thinkers and students that have
serious reading impairments.

And it's essentially a system
that allows students to memorize.

A deck of cards, the RL deck.

If you ask any GOW, alumni, they
will tell you about their RL deck.

It's something that they create.

They take ownership.

And essentially an RL deck is consists
of, I think about 115 or 120 RL

cards, and each card is a phonogram.

It might be a one letter phonogram,
it might be a four letter phonogram.

It's complimented by guide words that
relate to that phonogram, because

dyslexics are unable to make the
visual connection of looking at a

letter, two letters, three letters,
and connecting it with a sound.

That is the weakness of the dysfunctional
or the dis dyslexic mind that

was identified early on by by Dr.

Samuel Orton, so that RL
deck enforces memorization.

Of those connections between
letter combinations and sounds.

Our students receive RL class every day.

RL class is available at
tutorial RL class is available.

Or support is available
during our study hall period.

We have class sizes of
three to five students.

That's small,

right?

And even the RL classes,
I think are even smaller.

So in those sessions, students are
going through reciting those, memorizing

those listening to their other classmate
or two that are in that classroom.

And that's reinforcing
auditory comprehension.

So it's, again, it's RL
reconstructive language.

Orton-Gillingham for that matter.

It doesn't solve dyslexia.

You don't cure dyslexia.

It's something that is part of the
neurological wiring of someone who

has that has that brain wiring.

So this is an opportunity to
create a system that through

the constant memorization.

Implants, that relationship between
a letter sequence and a sound, which

allows them to read and ultimately
strengthens their reading comprehension.

How does RL bridge over to writing skills?

I.

That's a good question.

There, there are elements of
the, certainly of the spelling

piece through those RL cards
that will translate into writing.

But that's, again that's a
significant obstacle that a lot

of our students face as well.

So the, in their, perhaps classes
in reconstructive language.

And other of the humanities classes,
whether it be an English class, a

journalism class a history class,
those writing skills are reinforced

to compliment the work they're doing
in in re in reconstructive language.

So the, what they're learning over
here in the be, whether it's a v

consonant v. Consonant vow consonant.

That is reinforced.

Consonant vow.

Yeah.

Yeah.

What?

Whatever direction it goes.

That's being, those words are the similar
words are being reinforced in the other

subject matters, so you're creating
science questions that revolve there.

You're developing history that.

That supports those words.

So they're seeing them across curriculum.

Yeah.

And students are also supported by
a number of assistive technology

tools, whether that is text to
voice or voice to text work.

And that's, that can obviously help
reinforce some of those skills that

they frankly, really struggle with.

With three to five students in a class.

What is your max level of students
that you can take in a year's time?

So that's a great question.

Our, we find the most success
obviously working in small classes,

especially in the RL curriculum.

I think there are opportunities.

For classes to grow slightly
larger in those courses that again,

they're gonna need to be prepared
for at the next level in college.

I would say second to our reconstructive
language program our other signature

curricula that a lot of our
students are drawn to is robotics.

And there is, yes.

So the dyslexic mind for many.

Aligns well in the fields of science,
design, engineering, and we're fortunate

to have a robotics lab that was
funded primarily through one of our

GOW graduates who was the inventor.

Battle bots.

So you might have be familiar with the
battle bots, which is a competition

for school age children, high school
outta high school collegiate, where

teams are building weaponized robots
to battle against one another.

And it's a. Highly competitive activity.

We have a team of faculty that are
devoted to this part of our curricula.

And we have boys and girls
who are extremely motivated.

And it's prestigious to be part
of the robotics team at Go.

I think last year we had two of our
teams qualify and were invited to the.

National High School championships in
BattleBots and, these are teams from

different schools that are, operating
remote controls to basically eliminate

and defeat the competitor robots.

And, don't I think last year our
teams finished out of 60 teams that

qualified for the Nationals as an
annual tournament in Pittsburgh.

Our teams.

The two go teams finished in
fifth and 12th place, I believe.

So congratulations.

And these are against some very high
powered private boarding schools that

have, a very high reputation for academic
strength that are sending majority of

their graduates to very selective high-end
colleges, ivy league colleges, et cetera.

And our group.

Holds their own and then some.

So it's something we're very proud of.

I feel like in our admissions process
it's an element of what we offer.

Again, we're trying to get, find
kids wins and the success they

have in robotics and the and the
community, if you will, around that.

We have the whole school at assembly
watching our, live streaming.

The tournament in Pittsburgh
cheering our squad on.

That's cool, but you never did
answer how many students you have.

So our capacity Cheri with full
every room filled, et cetera,

is probably close to 1 40, 1 50.

Our enrollment is lower than that right
now, so we're making strides to, to

rebuild up to that number partly was hurt.

I think I shared earlier our
international population.

Was impacted during Covid and
we're still regrowing from that.

But we're also, we're also
intent on enrolling the students

that are mission appropriate.

The students that have a have
a learning profile where they

are gonna find success here.

There are at times students who come
to us that have a much more traditional

learning profile that could be quite
successful in mainstreaming public

schools and other private schools.

And sometimes we'd love to have
those students with us, but that

it isn't exactly the right fit.

We are a very academic,
college preparatory school.

We're not, and we're not a therapeutic
boarding school, so there are schools

that are very well suited to serve
children who have a. Therapeutic needs.

And unfortunately those are our families
that we, and students that we can't

serve because that's, we don't have
the, our expertise is in teaching kids

how to read and to be able to master
the reconstructive language curricula

and deliver that to our students.

And what does summer look like?

Great question.

So we finish in the academic school year
finishes in late May, mid to late May.

The month of June is a little
bit of time to, to reenergize

for our faculty and staff.

We just started a tradition of
doing a a June colloquium and

bringing our faculty together to.

Dig in into a a specific topic.

And this past summer we looked into
really assessing and evaluating our

our day-to-day academic schedule as
long as our as well as our academic

calendar with really through the lens
of looking at maximizing the experience

for our students as well as our faculty.

So a lot of good takeaways that will
influence some of the changes we make

in the future around our schedule.

But the heart of our summer is our
five week go summer school program.

It typically enrolls a hundred students
and probably about 75 of those students

are live here on campus for five weeks.

Another 25% or so are local.

It is a camp that has a very
intense morning of academic work.

Centered a lot around our reconstructive
language, curricula and other academic

offerings in the morning, lunch,
and then afternoon, followed by much

more traditional camp activities
and performing arts and sports and

field trips and outside activities.

So it's actually the Go Summer
school program is our biggest

feeder into our full year academic
program, I think this year.

Maybe five or six.

I think six students came from our
GAU summer school program and started

in the fall as a regular student
through the full year program.

So what you just said there was
most of those 75 students were

not year long resident residents?

No.

No.

Very few.

Once in a while, Cheri, we will.

We will, through the admissions
process, we'll identify a child

who's a good fit for G, but we would
suggest to them or sometimes require.

We really need you to do the five
week program to give you a running

start so that you're gonna be very
successful on day one at gout.

But most of our summer school program
students aren't current students,

but many of them become full-time
current students through that process.

Sometimes it's a couple years
after they do the gau summer.

School program.

But again, I think it's a terrific
balance of academic remediation,

academic support as well as the
traditional fun camp activities.

And we have a lot of students that
attend our summer program that don't

have dyslexia, that might not have a
learning difference, but they I would

suggest all learners will benefit, all
styles of learners will benefit from.

The academic work that
we offer in that program.

Yeah.

Oh yes.

Oh yes.

All students benefit from
structured literacy education.

Absolutely.

So how do we find out
about the Gow School?

I would always encourage
folks to explore our website.

It's under a little bit of a remake
right now, but it's obviously

accessible and it tells a good
story of what GOW is all about.

But of course, nothing
beats a visit to GOW.

We are having a in-person open house,
I believe on Monday, November 7th.

I don't have my calendar on me.

I think that's Veterans Day.

A lot of schools are off, so we will
be hosting an in-person there, but.

Anytime someone wants to visit, we will,
we will individualize an open house

for them that meets their schedule.

But, it's all about finding the right fit.

And so it's a conversation
we have with families.

And for a lot of students who have
been diagnosed with dyslexia and are

not finding success in their current
school, this can be an excellent option.

We are a private school.

We are tuition driven.

We offer significant financial aid.

We don't want finances to be the
reason why a. Qualified student can't

attend, go, and we do our best to
meet the difference between what they

can afford and what our tuition is.

So certainly reaching out to our
enrollment office, they're the

first line of contact and, those,
that, that contact information is

certainly available on our website.

But would always encourage families, to
find time to visit campus, walk campus.

You learn a lot by walking through
a school and sitting down and

having lunch and you get a feel
for the culture of the school.

And I would say something we haven't
discussed much but as important

to our commitment to academic
success is the work we do around

our four character based values.

Our four pillars, which is.

Honesty, hard work, respect and kindness.

And though we don't have
separate courses in those areas.

It's transmitted through
everything we do here.

Whether it's on the stage, on the
athletic field, we have assembly, all

school assembly three days a week.

I like to design lessons for the whole
school community that are centered

around those four values so that
those character elements and those

those qualities are very important.

And when we think of the Ideal GOW
graduate, it's someone who espouses

those values as they go onto there.

Next stage in life as well
as of course their growth in

academic confidence and success.

What's the website?

Www.gow.org.

It's pretty simple.

And you'll be, you'll have the opportunity
to, to navigate that and surf that.

And but stay tuned.

We've got some really cool, but.

Current family and current student
and alumni testimonials and terrific

videos that we're starting to unroll
and roll out for the for the website.

We're making a big effort
to get the word out.

We've been we've been a secret for
too long, so hopefully we can engage

some families and give them the
opportunity to learn more about cow.

Fantastic.

Thank you for your time today.

I appreciate you giving me a little
bit more understanding about what

GOW is, and I'm sure that the
listeners found it interesting.

Most people, like you said,
don't know that GOW exists.

I ran into GA at the International
Dyslexia Association Conference

last year, and then again at
the, everybody reads in Illinois.

And then out of the blue I had gotten
a an email from your assistant.

I'm like, okay, we're supposed to talk.

And so I wanna thank you for your time.

Head of School is a busy place to
be, so thank you for your time.

Ah, you're very welcome, Cheri.

I appreciate you thinking of GOW and
there's a lot of synergy between

the work that you're doing and the
work that we're doing here at GOW.

So I, I certainly look forward to.

Continuing our conversations.

Thank you.

And listeners, remember you were put here
for such a time as this go be awesome.

Go be brilliant.

Teach those struggling students with
the strategies that you learn here.

Thank you for being here.