Atkinson Academy

Even before I moved to Louisville from Chicago, schooling had been one of my biggest anxieties. Right from the time I interviewed for my current job, my number one question used to be- How does the schooling work here in Louisville? Certainly the level of your children's performance does not exclusively depend on which school they go to; parents remain the vital part of their education at every moment. But, a great school with motivated principal, teachers and other supporting staff plays a critical role on how your child performs. Right from the first glance, you can sense how a school will treat your child, as enthusiasm is hard to fake if you do not have it.

Schooling is not about being formal and musical while you communicate with the children and their parents and certainly not about mailing gist of papers full of legal language. It is about how you care and how you connect to a child and to the parents.

Since I am relatively new here in Louisville, and probably since I was late making a request for transfer, my son did not get to go to a school close to my home. What I did get is a school 13+ miles away from my home, right at the Portland area- JB Atkinson Elementary School. I quickly jumped to schooldigger.com and found that this school scored 1 star out of possible 5. Soon afterwards I received a letter from the school. I hesitantly opened but curiously read the letter written by Dr. Dewey Hensley. It did not take too long for me to realize that Dr. Hensley believes on what I believe as a parent. His letter made a great promise for the success of my child's education. I felt better; my eagerness and enthusiasm to work with Dr. Hensley and his team increased from that moment.

Next day, I decided to drive round the school area. Relatively indigenous part of the city, small streets, and stop signs not very clearly posted, and overall, this place looked substantially different from the place I live in. Then I remembered what Dr. Hensley wrote to me. He realizes the most precious thing of my life is my child. He thanked me for sending my child to his school. He showed a strong determination to help my child learn, improve and advance. I then decided to give a try and see how the school actually looks inside her walls and see how motivated and well-behaved the teachers and staff look like.

Getting education may be a right for a child, but getting to have my child to a public school is a matter of privilege for me. The first day, on august 17, I drove my son to JB Atkinson. I joined the big crowd of parents, grandparents, students and their siblings. I greeted the school staff; they did the same!! While I was walking to the second grader's classroom, I used the moment to view the educational contents, graphics and pictures posted on the wall. I looked into many other classrooms. I was so pleasantly surprised that my eyes even did not believe what I was seeing. Every single inch inside the classroom meant something at JBA. What a passion, what a determination, what a creative mind.

Then came a humble, well-dressed middle-aged lady and introduced herself as Miss McKinley and stated that she is my son's teacher. She appeared highly educated, soft-spoken, respectful and determinate. Again, I remembered enthusiasm is hard to fake. But, she has a real one.

Sure there still are issues with a distance of 13+ miles. Sure there are some obstacles with the transportation. But, I found a school I was looking for. This school believes on what I believe for my child's education. Understand, JBA resides at the relatively poor part of the city, but also realize that we do not need a sophisticated suburban setup to run a great school. School is for education and JBA will educate my child as well as, if not better than, any other schools in the United States.