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Educator Deluxe
Jacque Digieso, executive director and co-founder, The Cottage School
by Joyce Jankowski
January 23, 2007
"
E
very child can learn" is Jacque Digieso's belief, and she has put her philosophy into
action by devoting her life to educating learning disabled and at-risk students. While
teaching, Digieso imagined a school exclusively for special needs students and those who were
struggling in the traditional classroom setting. In 1985, her vision became a reality when she and
her husband co-founded The Cottage School in Roswell for middle and high school students.
What motivated you to start The Cottage School?
My motivation was frustration knowing we were losing talent by not appropriately educating
our children. My husband Joe, also an educator, and I had countless discussions about the
problems many capable students were experiencing in traditional school settings. We could see the
lack of opportunity for students who were failing, depressed and tuning out to school, yet they had
unlimited potential for being successful and happy. We decided to quit whining and complaining and
instead, began planning.
What behavior might children exhibit that would prompt parents to consider The Cottage
School?
Consistently poor academic performance, poor social skills, impulsivity, lack of
organization, mood swings, depression and low frustration level.
Most of our parents come from special education programs in the public schools where they
find the expectations for their children are too low. They want their child to receive a high
school diploma, not just a certificate of attendance, and they are also looking for a school where
their child will be successful in learning academic, social and work skills.
How is The Cottage School unique?
Our 23-acre campus affords students a calm environment, which is important to the learning
process. Our academic program is a simulated work environment. Students clock in every day,
wear casual business dress, participate in community service and learn using a time management
system that includes working on a production schedule. Students complete assignments in
two-week blocks with mock money as the incentive, and at the end of the block, students may use
their money to pay for field trips.
Also essential is assessing the strengths of each student and exposing him or her to people
and activities that will develop these strengths. One hundred percent of our students have a
post-secondary plan. Every one of our graduates goes on to post-secondary settings with at least 80
percent going on to two- or four-year academic colleges and 20 percent going into the military or
to technical, art or culinary schools.
How has The Cottage School evolved and what are your future plans?
Our school is much bigger now. Our facilities are better since we now have science
labs, media centers, a cafeteria and biking trails. In addition, our community involvement
has increased. We have more community service projects and more partners in the community.
As for our future plans, we need sports facilities on campus. The Cottage School has a
full sports program, but we must bus students to fields, gyms and courts. We are also looking into
opportunities for teacher training programs for teachers not currently at The Cottage School. We'd
also like to expand our life skills program through shadowing and corporate partnerships and build
on programs that create further awareness of what the working world offers.
Have you had any philosophical re-evaluations?
What I didn't expect was the role that athletics plays in the lives of students. We
now have an extensive athletic program, and the self-confidence and pride athletics provides makes
students more successful in the classroom. At The Cottage School, there are no cuts, tryouts
or bench warmers. If you want to play, you can.
Also, when we started, we looked for experienced teachers - those who were well established
in their careers. We have many of these, but we found that for some teachers, changing
methods after 20 years of teaching was difficult. We needed a diverse staff and found that
teachers who have been in business and brand new teachers make the best educators.
What are some subtle learning disabilities that often get overlooked?
ADHD: if it's severe, it's obvious, but many students have it so mild, they don't realize
they're not paying attention. Also, there are subtle auditory or visual confusions. Some
children may have 20/20 vision, but they look down at the paper to write and the operation is
difficult for them, so it affects their ability to study. The more we learn about the
brain, we see how intricate the act of learning is.
What are the major issues facing our schools?
We need to create, support and respect our educational system. There is a dichotomy between
respect for teachers and pay. Teacher salaries are too low, and we don't pay teachers enough
to keep those who are talented. Another major calling for me and my peers is to educate society
about the child who learns differently.
There are a lot of stereotypes - negatives that go with neurological characteristics.
Much of what I do is aimed at trying to get the general public to understand that having a learning
disability does not mean that success is denied. Just take a look at how many of our leaders
had trouble in school; they were not on the honor roll.
Today, the work society rewards courage, risk taking and impulsivity, yet these are
considered negative characteristics in students. If you are successful when you think
differently, why suppress students who learn differently? We should do everything we can to
help them, and we should not pre-determine who's going to be successful. We look for leaders
who have many of the qualities of the kids we are failing.
What advice would you give to parents who are struggling with school choice?
Do as much research on a child's school that you would do when buying a car.
What tips do you have for parents with teenage children?
Be careful about the battles you pick, but if you pick a battle, win it. Also, don't be
afraid to seek out a professional. It is very effective to have a third person help with
communication.
Something else that works is to make a list of your child's characteristics before problems
arise. Put that list where you can see it, and when battles occur, look at the list and remind
yourself of your child's positive traits. Remember and foster the strengths and qualities that we
treasure about our children.
