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Central Texas school helps local kids learn to learn

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Rawson-Saunders gives dyslexic children an outlet
Bracken Hoyt, 8, used to sit quietly in class at Naumann Elementary, straining to understand the teacher. No matter how hard he tried to pay attention, eventually the teacher's voice would blend in with the noise all around him and fade into a sound his mother compared to Charlie Brown's teacher. He also had trouble reading. After spending all day in class, behaving perfectly, he would come home and unleash his frustration on his family.

“Every time I would come home, I was really frustrated,” Bracken said. His mother, Kristen Hoyt added, “He was like [the child in] ‘The Exorcist.' It was horrible, he was just angry.”

After struggling with numerous disciplinary techniques and being told by friends and family that they just weren't doing enough, the Hoyts had Bracken tested for learning disorders. They discovered he was dyslexic and had problems with auditory processing.

They looked into the dyslexic program in the Leander ISD, which Kristen said was very good, but feared it would not be enough. Then they heard about Rawson-Saunders, a special school in Austin for dyslexic children.

Bracken visited the school for two days to see if he would fit in. Kristen said after the first day, she saw a 180 degree turn in Bracken's behavior.

“He was humming in the car,” she said. “It was like he was a different child.”

Kelly Sanders had a similar experience with her 9-year-old son Jacob at Deer Creek Elementary. She noticed Jacob was having problems in kindergarten, and they continued through first grade. Numerous meetings with teachers and the school principal got her the same answer: you just need to work with him more.

“They made me feel like I wasn't doing enough,” she said. “It's very frustrating to know your child is bright, but isn't learning the way they're teaching.”

Sanders hired a tutor, but Jacob was still struggling. She said just trying to write a sentence with her son would end with both of them in tears. Sanders only needed one visit to know Rawson-Saunders was the place for Jacob.

Pat Sekel, executive director for Rawson-Saunders, said she hears similar - and worse - stories every day. The school is the first in Central Texas meant specifically for dyslexic children, grades one through eight, and Sekel said many kids come in with “emotional baggage” to find a safe haven at the school.

“It's a profound experience for the kids,” she said. “It's a profound experience for the parents as well.”

The curriculum was designed around the most current research, using special techniques to help dyslexic children learn, not just academically, but socially as well. Class sizes are kept small, eight to 10 students per teacher, and the day is filled with various activities, including art, music and physical education for all ages as well as wood shop for students fourth grade and older. Sekel said it is not uncommon for children to come to the school as social outcasts, with few or no friends, but after spending time in a school filled with children just like them, they open up.

“They're like little sunflowers and their heads are down, but within a couple of months their heads are up,” she said.

Sekel, who has her doctorate in reading with an emphasis on dyslexia, was one of 55 founders of the school 11 years ago. She moved on to other things - such as helping the Austin and Round Rock school districts set up dyslexia programs - but came back three years ago to take the helm.

In those 11 years, the school has grown from a small school with 40 students to an educational center with educator services, after-school programs, evaluations and, of course, the school, which has a 100-student capacity.

Jacob said Rawson-Saunders has helped him with more than just reading. “I had trouble doing math,” he said. “I had to use my fingers, but since I came to Rawson-Saunders, I don't use my fingers anymore. I feel really happy.” He also discovered a propensity for art, with clay being his favorite medium.

The transformation of troubled children into successful students comes at a price, though. Sekel said the average stay at Rawson-Saunders is two or three years, and currently, tuition costs $17,000 per year. Sekel said the school does offer some scholarships and would like to offer more, but there will always be more kids than money.

Sanders said the price tag caused her family to pause before sending Jacob to the school, but her son's education took precedence over everything else. She said after seeing the change in Jacob, she would sell her house to keep him at the school, though so far, they have managed with some belt-tightening.

Hoyt's response was the same. She said she could see Bracken using his intelligence for good in the future - or his intelligence could get twisted until he became a statistic. Sekel said children with learning disabilities are five times more likely to end up in the criminal justice system than their counterparts.

“We decided [Bracken] wasn't going to have that route,” Hoyt said. “We kind of paved a new route for him.”

For more information on Rawson-Saunders, visit www.rawson-saunders.org or call 476-8382.

E-mail: amy@hillcountrynews.com

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