Richelle Aries
Dyslexic and still unable to read in 8th grade, Richelle Aries had begun to struggle so much that she couldn't go to school. That was five years ago. Today she is a recent graduate of The Winston School and is headed for Humboldt College in the fall. Richelle's parents, Del Mar residents Bonnie Dunnum and Phillip Aries, were relieved and enthused to find the college prep program for students with learning differences in their own community. Looking back, Richelle said, "They would probably tell you that The Winston School saved my life."
Things began turning around for Richelle almost immediately when she enrolled in The Winston School. By taking stock of Richelle's strengths in the classroom and as a person, the school created a customized program that included a new foundation for learning as well as a safe haven in which to flourish...
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While she said part of this curriculum meant that she needed to spend "a long time" in elementary reading language classes, she was never self-conscious. "I do struggle with dyslexia but The Winston School had exceptional services to help me. And I was never embarrassed by having to start at a very rudimentary level as all the kids made me feel included. Everyone knows there is a reason they are here and it doesn't matter what the reason is."
Richelle said her teachers at The Winston School helped build her confidence and ability to learn because they listen. She said her speech therapist Miss Kiel stands out as one of her favorites. "She was most influential in my school years as she really took time to listen to me and to understand my problem so we could move forward to solve it. I really felt heard."
The school also proved a boost to Richelle's social life. "The part I love the most about The Winston School is the community because I feel like we are a family. For example, at lunch I can sit at any table and know everybody's name. Everyone is my friend and I have a couple of great friends that I'm going to talk to after I graduate."
As she leaves for Humboldt this fall, she said she is very excited for college and feels she is well- equipped to do what she need to do. "I would encourage anyone who learns differently to check out Winston - it's made all the difference for me."
Taylor Horowitz
Eighteen-year-old Taylor Horowitz already has a career designing surf boards and is on his way to the California College of the Arts in San Francisco this fall after winning a $35,000 scholarship in a portfolio contest. His future, by all accounts, is very bright. Taylor says none of this would have been possible, however, if he hadn't attended The Winston School, a college preparatory program for students grade four through 12 with learning differences and whose needs are not generally met within traditional school settings.
His teen years had started off a bit rough when he earned the reputation as a trouble-maker in middle school. He said it was just "boy stuff" - talking and playing pranks, nothing serious but nevertheless an issue that threatened his enrollment and opportunity for success in school. His eighth grade teachers not only labeled him a trouble-maker, they couldn't figure out why he was disruptive and why he wouldn't listen even though he was obviously intelligent...
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Taylor's parents Judy Goldberg and Artie Horowitz knew there had to be a better option for their son. When they researched schools, they sought a smaller community and a more customized approach to education. That's when they found The Winston School.
It turned out to be a good fit for Taylor who as he and his parents discovered, was a tactile/hands-on learner. "Teachers at The Winston School are insightful about you and your background. Unlike other schools, The Winston School gave me the opportunity to express myself through art and drawing. I wasn't pushed into changing or conforming into another society of small classes with rich kids. At Winston, it's more about small classes led by teachers who customize the program to match to the student's strengths and not the other way around."
"Any goal that you set your mind on, the teachers at The Winston School will help you reach it. Art, marketing, printmaking, computer graphics - it's all here for the asking. The school let surf boards be a part of my art curriculum. You have to take the basic courses of course, but the school emphasizes your talents and helps you express them to the fullest."
One of the teachers Taylor credits with his success is Dan Peragine, a 20-year veteran teacher at the school. Dan is a nationally known artist and sculptor and Taylor said from the very beginning, he was inspired by his teacher's art and work in the community. "He impressed upon me that if I want to be distinctive and want to do what I love, I must do it correctly. He let me know that I could bring my art to school - but it's not like you can bring your surf board to English and start painting on it." To this day, Taylor says, he goes to Dan with ideas and the teacher helps him look at the big picture and helps him break it down into actionable steps.
As he heads off to college this fall, Taylor said he is proud to have graduated from The Winston School and is thankful that his teachers gave him the tools to set goals and achieve them. "I've learned at Winston not to get scared or doubt my talent. I'm just going to proceed and push this to the fullest and get my art in the new direction. It's obviously time to make a career doing what I love."
Joseph Reed
Joseph Reed, an 18-year-old graduate of The Winston School, a college preparatory program for students with learning differences, is headed to Lewis and Clark in Portland to study international relations and political science this fall. While a great achievement for any high school graduate, Joseph's accomplishment is all the more impressive as he has a learning disorder that at one point had threatened to derail his education and possibly his plans for life after graduation.
The trouble started while he was attending a small private school of 15 students near his home in Newport Beach. He said he was expelled for disciplinary issues after the teachers tried to treat symptoms rather than the underlying cause. "I have a nonverbal learning disorder and was frustrated by the environment and not being challenged in the right ways. Nobody understood my learning challenges and pushed me to do things that were extremely difficult for me. For instance, the manual act of writing is very tough for me and while I had a laptop, the teachers didn't make it easy for me to use because it wasn't convenient for them. It was also a generally low-functioning classroom so I wasn't intellectually challenged."
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At a loss for options when trying to find a school in Orange County, Joseph and his parents Carolyn Reed and James Reed of Newport Beach considered The Winston School in Del Mar after one of Joseph's friends encouraged them to visit the school. That was all it took. The college prep school for students in grades 4 through 12 was a perfect fit as it tailored curriculum to students like Joseph who have learning differences and whose needs are not generally met within traditional school settings.
After five years of twice-daily 50-minute train commutes, Joseph graduated from Winston this spring and in spite of the distance from home, said the school was the best choice he and his family ever made. "I started in 8th grade and while I initially didn't like the commute, I immediately liked the school. The teachers allowed me to use alternative methods of learning like typing and dictation as well as writing in a constructive way."
Joseph said the school also proved beneficial from a social standpoint. "There aren't any cliques at Winston. I was able to get to know students that I wouldn't have been privileged to talk to in some cases because of my experiences in public schools - there are very defined social roles that aren't even present at Winston. Some people may tend to hang with others more than others but most people tend to hang out with everyone."
In the end, Joseph said he even grew to like the train - calling it a godsend. "The school was such a good fit that it made the commute tolerable and then even enjoyable. My fellow commuters basically saw me grow up in high school and actually gave me a going away party on the train. I've even had some networking opportunities that I wouldn't have otherwise had if not for my commute." It was one of those connections that lead to his involvement in The Costa Mesa Center for Spiritual Living's Malawi school project for which he spent part of the summer building schools.
He added, "Winston allowed me to broaden my horizons to become interested in the world as a whole rather than in just the people I know directly and fostered an interest in helping people that wouldn't have developed otherwise. I'm helping build schools in Malawi this summer and I have to say my success in Winston socially and academically provided me with the ability to participate in a foreign project that I don't think I would have developed independently from the school."
For more stories, visit the Parent Testimonials section.