Third grade was particularly stressful for Addison Dombcik, who was newly diagnosed with ADHD and dyslexia. In the Raleigh school she attended, she was falling behind her classmates.
She struggled to pick out “Addison” from a cluster of names on the front board. Even as one of the oldest members of her class, she was several reading levels behind her peers. She had a hard time keeping up with the classroom maintenance routines, so her teacher relegated her materials to a separate corner of the room.
Like many other children with ADHD and learning differences, Addison was struggling with executive function, social skills, self-confidence, and academics. She felt isolated and overlooked.
Her parents, Jeanne and Jeff Dombcik, wanted a better learning environment for Addison – one where she could lean on her strengths and grow. They dreamed of finding a close-knit school community with knowledgeable, understanding teachers and empathetic peers.
They found the embodiment of that dream at Hill Learning Center.
“Everybody at school is just like me!”
-Addison Dombcik
During the first week of fourth grade at Hill, Addison excitedly told her parents, “Everybody at school is just like me!”
Having only three other classmates in the room “helped her get the attention she needed and feel like she was understood,” her mom, Jeanne, explains.
Her dad, Jeff, remembers having positive expectations for the program but feeling blown away by the amount of holistic support their daughter received.
“We knew it was really small classes and that they worked on strategies to help kids deal with their learning differences. What I didn’t appreciate was the ancillary programs,” including executive function skills embedded into the daily curriculum and MoneyWorks, the middle school financial literacy program.
“Hill is constantly focused on all the issues that orbit a learning difference,” Jeff says with admiration.
As Addison’s academic skills improved, so did her confidence and ability to identify and advocate for her own needs.
In fourth grade, Addison’s personal integrity and community-oriented attitude led her teachers to elect her as the Hill Hero, a peer role model who represents Hill at special events and assists with some regular school activities.
Addison remembers, “I love people and I felt like the center of attention and I loved that. Plus I was so excited because I got to wear a cape!”
As time went on, Jeff and Jeanne’s dreams for their daughter began to expand.
Jeanne remembers, “At the time we didn’t know how far she would be able to go with her education, or how independent she would be as an adult. College was definitely a dream, not necessarily an expectation.”
Asked what she remembers about how Hill changed her academic outlook, Addison explains, “I was ‘done’ with school. I wanted to drop out and did not want to finish high school or even elementary school, much less go to college.”
Now wrapping up her freshman year at the University of Alabama, she dreams of becoming an elementary school teacher.
“She saw the difference a teacher can make in your life,” her mom smiles.
With dreams for their daughter clarified and in reach, Jeanne and Jeff have turned their energy back to Hill’s community.
Says Jeff, “We felt lucky to have a world-class institution like Hill in our back yard, and thankfully we were able to afford for Addison to attend. But we know not everyone can. We want to give back to help other families have the same opportunity. The more kids that attend Hill, the better.”
By donating to student financial aid, the Dombciks hope to lower access boundaries to Hill’s world-class, research-based academic programs, so that other families can achieve their own dreams for their children’s futures.
With pride and gratitude, they have witnessed their daughter’s transformation.
“She didn’t want to tell anybody she was different but now she has no trouble owning who she is and knowing there’s nothing wrong with that. Instead of being ashamed, she can just state it as fact and own it,” Jeanne explains.
They’re supporting Hill’s dream to empower many other learners and families to feel the same way.
We are chasing a dream that all children with learning differences and attention challenges can access Hill Learning Center, regardless of their family’s financial circumstances. Please join our Chasing a Dream campaign and make a gift to support Student Financial Aid.