When Derrick came to Huntington in Brick, NJ in September 2011, he was struggling in all of his subjects, especially in math, writing and study skills. Historically, in the beginning of the school year, Derrick's grades started as Bs; however, by the end of the year they dropped, in some cases as low as Ds. Although Derrick's mom and dad attributed it to laziness, his academic evaluation told a different story. The gaps in Derrick's basic skills were significant and his writing needed major improvement.

Because Derrick had low confidence in his abilities based on past failures, we immediately set to work building his skills. In the first few months, Derrick's skills have been improving exponentially. As a result, he no longer dreads going to school. In fact, since his attention to instruction has increased significantly, Derrick eagerly embraces school. According to his teacher, Derrick is ahead of his class in math and his increased confidence has enabled him to work more independently. He even helps his classmates in some subjects that they struggle with. Derrick's hard work has paid off with academic success this year. For the first time in his life, Derrick made the honor roll.

FROM: Derrick