MaggieThe New Kid In School

During recess on a breezy autumn day in the Midwest, a fourth grader named Maggie runs with a football tucked under her arm. When a friend playfully tackles her, she collapses in laughter. Her cheerful confidence and athleticism make her the first pick when classmates choose teams. “I don’t think all that often about Maggie’s deafness,” said her mom, Neile. “But sometimes when I see her playing at recess, it kind of hits me of just how cool it is that she’s able to be at a mainstream school and have the relationships that she has despite her profound deafness.” 

“I remember learning that LSL would be a possibility for Maggie and not believing it at first,” said Neile. “I thought, ‘oh that must be an extreme case or one of the very lucky children diagnosed with profound deafness.’ But soon I learned that it was a very likely outcome for Maggie and that was extremely refreshing.”

While Maggie was wrapping up third grade, she and her younger sister and brother, Claire and Hank, heard their parents say the dreaded words: “we’re moving.” Due to a work relocation, the family of five would soon leave their lives in Denver, Colorado for a new beginning in another state. Among the many decisions Neile and Matt had to make during the big family transition was which school their three children would attend.

Because Maggie's parents had chosen LSL for her as a baby, she could listen, speak and read on par with hearing friends and wouldn't require any special accommodations. This allowed them to make choices based upon what was best for all their children. They chose a tight-knit parochial school for all three of them.

On the first day of fourth grade at Maggie’s new school, her cochlear implants served as a conversation starter. Her new classmates asked her questions about how they worked and Maggie’s warmth and charisma shined as she explained. Since then, she has become an important part of the community, playing on the soccer team, practicing flute in the school band, and hosting karaoke parties for her new group of friends with typical hearing.