2021 Gala – Max Brooks

Personalized approach

Frequently referring families to Park Academy, I count on Park's remarkably ignited, highly qualified staff for positive personalized approaches to assessing and re-assessing each student's strengths and challenges followed by innovative educational techniques drawn from many disciplines.

Dr. Judith Belk

2019-02-04T22:00:31-08:00

Dr. Judith Belk

Frequently referring families to Park Academy, I count on Park’s remarkably ignited, highly qualified staff for positive personalized approaches to assessing and re-assessing each student’s strengths and challenges followed by innovative educational techniques drawn from many disciplines.

Thank You

Having teachers and staff that actually cared about me and challenged me to set and achieve goals made all the difference. I was lost, they helped me find my real self.
Malachi Simnitt

Malachi
Graduate, Class of 2018

2016-03-14T15:19:08-07:00

Malachi
Graduate, Class of 2018

Malachi Simnitt
Having teachers and staff that actually cared about me and challenged me to set and achieve goals made all the difference. I was lost, they helped me find my real self.

Positive Impact

As soon as Malachi started at Park we began to see positive changes in him, his confidence began to grow.  For the first time, he actually like going to school. His academic and reading performance greatly improved after just one year. Park helped him recognize his potential by highlighting his strengths and encouraging him to keep trying.

Angie,

Parent of Graduate

2016-03-14T15:19:18-07:00

Angie,

Parent of Graduate

As soon as Malachi started at Park we began to see positive changes in him, his confidence began to grow.  For the first time, he actually like going to school. His academic and reading performance greatly improved after just one year. Park helped him recognize his potential by highlighting his strengths and encouraging him to keep trying.
Park Academy Gala welcome stage 2021
Photo courtesy of The AV Department
Park Academy Gala 2021 with Sasquatch theme
Photo courtesy of The AV Department

In June of 2021, we welcomed 150 online and 54 people in person to our first-ever hybrid event. While this year has been anything but “normal”, An Evening with Max Brooks brought the Park Academy community together to support our amazing students and their families, raising over $285,000 for our scholarship program!

split screen at the hybrid Park Academy Gala 2021

Whether you watched virtually from home or were able to join us in person, we hope that you too were inspired by Max Brooks’ story of growing up with dyslexia in the 1980s.  Like many of our students, it was one of his parents who moved heaven and earth to ensure that he received the accommodations he needed to complete school.  Max shared a powerful message with our students and our community; “It gets better”, and in fact, those navigating life and learning with dyslexia just might have a “leg up” in many situations because they know how to adapt, survive, and thrive.  Themes he knows well from both his novels and his lived experiences.

 

Speaking of thriving, you heard from one of the graduating members of our Class of 2021, Soren.  His story solidified all of the things that we have learned through this past year:

  1. We are better together.
  2. We are resilient and powerful.
  3. What we do at Park Academy is essential and lifesaving.
  4. We can and must do more!

On behalf of the entire Park Academy community, thank you!


Thank you to our Sponsors

Presenting Sponsor

Corporate Sponsors

Patron Sponsors

Anonymous
Cheng Family Foundation
Click to listen highlighted text!