Ashton Chase Memorial Scholarship – Winner Announced

The Learning Disabilities Association of New Brunswick is proud to announce the recipient of the 2018 Ashton Chase Memorial Scholarship – Hunter West. Hunter attended Fundy Middle and High School and this fall began at the New Brunswick College of Craft and Design.

Hunter submitted an honest essay and it caught the attention of the Ashton Chase Memorial Scholarship Committee.

“How a learning disability has affected my life”

Let’s face it, school is hard for most people but add a learning disability to it and it can not only be hard but frustrating, overwhelming and some days just plain impossible. I have been diagnosed with dyslexia since grade 4 – and the teachers and school still can’t remember that fact – I guess it is a good thing I’m graduating. Do they even know who I am? Most of the time NO! Why would they? I’m only a student! I don’t bring the school trophies or awards, but the school has never had a drawing competition or offered anything creative for people that are creative rather than academic.

I feel invisible, a nuisance…my test needs to a different format, I may need to go to a quiet room, I may need a scribe – I can tell they are rolling their eyes at the facet they have to “modify” me or “accommodate” me, but isn’t that part of being a teacher, to teach regardless of how we learn? In all this time it has been the EAs that help me and I have only come across one teacher that understood because he has ADHD, so we could have our “squirrel” moments together.

But here I am graduating, by the skin of my teething, going to the New Brunswick College of Craft and Design to focus on what I can do well, drawing and creating – something I have not been given the chance to do other than one art class in high school, yes they only have one art class! I never thought I would be here looking forward to school and the future of creating. I know there will be days that “normal” school work in College will need to be done and this will not be covered through the school, one more hurdle to overcome when I get there, and thank goodness for technology, otherwise would have had to figure out my spelling and writing throughout this letter and trust me it would have been a challenge.

I want to take this time to thank you in advance for your time and consideration of me for the Ashton Chase Memorial Scholarship.

LDANB-TAANB would like to congratulate Hunter and wish him great success this year at NBCCD.