Our son, Nicholas, was four when we adopted him from China. We found out he was deaf and decided to proceed with cochlear implants even though we knew we were so far behind.

Laura was diagnosed with bilateral sensorineural hearing loss at 20 months old. Without the daily instruction of and the wonderful therapists at WISE, Laura would not be where she is today. Everyone at the school was so helpful and accommodating to get Laura the services she needed.

Today my daughter speaks her mind. Her vocabulary has increased tremendously and she now speaks in sentences instead of grunting and pointing. We quickly saw her frustration go down and behavior problems improve as a result of the new communication skills she was learning.

Luke started learning on his first day at the Hearing School. I got a video from the teacher after I dropped Luke and sat down in my office. I watched such a simple and short video again and again with tears in my eyes and joy in my heart. I was amazed how good he was in mimicking his teachers with the hearing aids on. I knew I needed to do the same thing at home every day.

The two years of therapy he received at the school optimized the AVT he had already received and, in my opinion, is the single factor that has contributed most to his current day success. Being immersed in spoken language and receiving AVT from certified therapists at WISE was one of the best decisions we could have ever made for our son.

My story with deafness and cochlear implants begins long before I was even born, with my family’s story of hearing loss and my older siblings, Jessica and Jared. My oldest sister, Jessica, was born with severe to profound sensorineural hearing loss, and after a series of misdiagnoses, hearing aids, and various trials, she received her first cochlear implant at the age of 33 months old.

Bella Grace Brady was born February 22, 2012.  While at the hospital, Bella’s newborn hearing screens were normal. 

My son, David Rees, was fortunate to attend this outstanding program from the summer of 2010 to May of 2013. David loves golf, running, swimming and anything that has wheels!

WISE was the answer to our journey of Listening and Spoken Language (LSL). Watching Vivi struggle for 2 years (her first 2 years of life) was heartbreaking.  Out of the womb, Vivi had a dynamic personality, even with her hearing loss.

I will never forget the hours we spent at the table inputting the learning to listen sounds and the sheer delight I felt when Caroline said her first “word”, if you could call it that. We were working on “ho, ho, ho” when I heard Caroline say “hmm, hmm, hmm.” I called everyone I knew and quickly realized that they were not nearly as aware what a milestone this was as I was, but I knew we were on our way!

She has attended the Woolley Institute for Spoken-Language Education (WISE), formerly known as the Alabama School for Hearing for three years. I can never express in words what this school did for Amelia. Thank you doesn’t seem enough.

It wasn’t until he attended The Alabama School for Hearing, now known as the Woolley Institute for Spoken-Language Education (WISE) that his language took off. I liken the school to a match that set afire the previous years worth of kindling. The lessons the kids took each day were real-world but unique (building birdhouses, running a restaurant) and filled with new and expanding vocabulary words.

Our miracle came through a group of people who have dedicated their lives to children like our daughter. She will leave this school with a hope and future that didn’t seem possible a couple of years ago. Please accept our sincere appreciation for what the entire staff does for these children, especially our daughter. We will be forever grateful.