Friday, October 14, 2011

Ms. Brooks,

I just wanted to let you and the QEI staff know that after only four weeks in her new school, Chloe’s first grade teacher has nominated her for the AIG program.  I contribute this success to God, and to the staff at QEI.  Please be sure to pass the great news on to Mrs. Stephens and Ms. Gambrell. I just want them to know that their work with her has not been in vain.

Take good care,

Iris Pounds

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What QEI Has Meant to Our Family

By: Tina Bryant-Allen (Bethany’s Mom)

I learned, years ago, about QEI from friends whose children attended the school. I participated in open house and graduation events and was blown away by the academic achievement and high confidence levels of the children.  In my mind, there wasn’t any doubt that when I became a mom, my child was going to be a student at QEI!

Shortly after giving birth to my daughter, I had a friend pick up an application for me so I could be the first person to submit it for the k-4 class the year Bethany was to start school.  I was adamant about getting her into the famous Mrs. Stephens’ class. It worked.

As Bethany progressed, we discovered that she has a developmental learning delay and did not grasp the skill of reading as quickly as we had hoped.  Mrs. Stephens worked with us (over the summer) to provide additional assistance to Bethany in this area.  COMMITMENT to learning and making sure “no child was left behind” is what we experienced (via Mrs. Stephens) during this time in Bethany’s academic journey.

As Bethany entered the first grade, more obstacles became apparent in the areas of math, reading comprehension, and language skills.  As a mother, who wanted to see her child achieve like the other children (if not more), it was heart-breaking to witness my child struggle in school.  Then enters Mrs. Porsch!  Words can’t describe the commitment, patience, and dedication this teacher has when it comes to reaching her students, no matter how they learn!  Mrs. Porsch sought out alternative teaching modalities because she recognized that Bethany had a different learning style (in addition to the delay) than the other children.  Her tactical approach to learning is what helped Bethany grasp the ideas and concepts she needed to learn in order to begin developing the confidence she needed to become more independent and proficient in the skills she was being taught.

This year – second grade, Bethany has soared!  Not only has she become proficient in working in the appropriate grade level in all of her subjects (despite the learning delay), she has progressed into third grade course work in vocabulary and language skills!  She made all A’s and B’s on her 1st quarter report card and continues to make excellent strides in academics!  Mrs. Porsch is truly a QEI champion and we are blessed to have her as Bethany’s teacher for 2 years (1st & 2nd grade)!

QEI is more than a school to us, it’s our family.  Thank God for the caring and dedicated teachers and staff at QEI!