The Necessity of the ACLab

Gilman is a competitive community. Whether in athletics, the classroom, or clubs, the community is always looking to improve and stay ahead of the curve. To maintain and nourish this atmosphere of hard work and excellence, it is no surprise that Gilman strives to ensure its students have the resources and executive function to excel in all aspects of their lives. One of the most important manifestations of the school’s goal to educate boys is the Academic and Learning Support Center (ACLab). 

Due to a plethora of factors, some remain skeptical of the necessity of the learning support center at Gilman and associate ACLab participation with being “less smart.” At first glance, this view doesn’t seem unreasonable and, arguably, follows a logical path; it is natural to assume that someone who needs help with something, for example, learning, would be less competent than someone who can do the same task independently. If these boys are less competent, it would naturally follow that there is no need for an academic support program, since they simply cannot perform better.

However, as the ACLab directors, Dr. Stephanie Harris, Alicia Brady, Denzell Walker, and Mickey Watson, explained, this belief is flawed and incorrect. In most cases, the primary obstacle for those with learning differences is not that they cannot learn well because they lack the mental faculties, but rather that they cannot learn well in the way most people do, requiring additional support. It is this exact need from many of our students, almost a quarter, that makes the ACLab a necessity.

Further supporting the necessity of the ACLab is the wide range of operations it conducts to support boys. On the ACLab’s functions, Dr. Harris stated, “We do Canvas checks daily. We help them plan… so we do a lot of executive function building, for sure, [and] we teach boys how to be self-advocates. I think most of all, we're building relationships with them so that they feel comfortable and secure enough to be vulnerable… it is at the crux of who we are. It's building relationships with boys.” Besides teaching boys executive function and building their confidence in their own abilities, ACLab also provides an excellent study environment, works with teachers to better accommodate students, and hosts evening study halls to support students' study. 

While words and actions can provide a strong case for the ACLab, perhaps no better argument exists than the results it has achieved. Almost all participants in the ACLab achieve exceptional outcomes, performing above national averages and, on average, achieving the same grades as those not in the program, demonstrating that the ACLab is effective at helping boys to overcome learning differences. In grades 9-12, roughly 75% of students in the ACLab have GPAs of 90 or higher, with around 45% having GPAs of 95 or higher. Perhaps more conclusively, older students working with the ACLab have earned higher average grades over time, suggesting that a longer duration of support leads to better outcomes. Perhaps even more encouraging are the admissions outcomes, with many ACLab students going to prestigious schools such as U-Chicago, Columbia, Cornell, Northwestern, and Vanderbilt, just to name a few. 

Although these results are impressive, one must ask the question: Is this the ACLab’s doing? In many cases, the answer is yes. Dr. Harris gives an excellent example of the ACLab’s impact on one student's college admissions journey, “We had a student who wasn't formally tested to see if there was a diagnosed learning disability, but we knew that there was something there… And so we started giving accommodations diagnostically. We said, ‘Let's see if we give some of these accommodations on a diagnostic basis. How will they help?’ And they did…We met with the parents, that boy got evaluated, and then all of his college list had to be changed because, when he took the SAT with accommodations after being tested and diagnosed, his scores actually went up by over 200 points. Wow. So that kicked him up into a whole other bracket of colleges.”

While the ACLab has proved itself, its leaders have expressed the need to spread the message of the importance of learning support. Ms. Brady explained that one of the major steps in increasing the program's positive perception was getting parents on board, ”I say to parents when I meet with them, however you embrace this diagnosis will determine how your son is going to embrace it for sure… So it's about how you, as a parent, help your child to embrace the fact that they're not perfect, like none of us are.”  

Fortunately for the ACLab, things appear to be swinging in its favor as of late. Mr. Walker said that students in the ACLab show high enthusiasm, both signaling the success of the program and the change in the school's culture. “Some students will embrace it. You have students who aren't even technically in the ACLab who want to be here, seeing the benefits. You have students who are here who fully embrace it. You have students in here who are like, ‘I'll take this. But, not this.’ And then you have students who are like…‘Oh, I don't need it,’” he commented. Ms. Brady also explained that the ACLab has become more accepted as a result of a cultural shift, “As children, what you see growing up is what you end up [thinking]... You see social media and television shows and all of it, pop culture. It's almost like it is becoming more widely accepted, almost cool, if you will. Like, back in the day, I had friends who had glasses. They would never wear them. Now you have people wearing glasses just for fashion. So same thing, the more celebrities, influencers who come out and discuss anything to do with mental health, disabilities, whatever it might be that you can't see. The more they talk about it, the more normalized it becomes, and the more accepted.” 

However, by far the most encouraging feedback loop for the ACLab educators is the gratitude of their students, as Dr. Harris explains, “And I think the coolest thing is, every year, whether it's that winter break time or at the end of the year, we are inundated with students saying thank you… when the alums come back. At the start of this year, I had a boy, and I remember how challenging freshman year was for him and having some hard conversations with him... Now he's working with JP Morgan.” Clearly, between its encouraging outcomes, rigorous support program, and widespread accessibility for the entire Gilman community, the ACLab has become a necessity, allowing Gilman to truly educate students in mind, body, and spirit.