Charise just finished 5th grade. After surviving leukemia but struggling in school for many years she was finally having a good experience, making lots of friends and science was her favorite class. Just before the school year ended it was discovered that she had relapsed and her leukemia was back. Charise was very sad that she was missing school and would not be able to go back in September. How would she stay connected to kids her age?

In a special arrangement with the New York Hall of Science, Charise participated in science throughout the summer and into the fall while she was at home and in the hospital. By using desktop video conferencing Charise participated in experiments with Hall of Science staff  so her love for science didn't fade. At LTLF we look forward to the day that Charise' experience is the norm not the exception.

Marley had just finished her sophomore year of college, and she had not done very well. Despite studying twice as much as any of her friends she could never seem to get above a 2.0 GPA. She was very discouraged and nervous about her next semester’s statistics course.

She met with David Gordon who assessed her primary academic challenge understanding the language structure used on exam questions. Using a learning strategies approach, they met four times that summer and used technology to touch base during the semester. Marley used the strategies and earned a C+ in the course, (much better than the class average!). Marley generalized the strategies to other courses and earned all B’s this last semester.

More important than the grades, is that Marley has the skills necessary to be a successful college student, the confidence that she can assess an academic challenge and successfully manage it. At the Living Through Learning Foundation, we want all students with chronic health conditions to have these skills, and this level of confidence in their abilities.