Jack Casady ’15

You can hear the imprint of Cushing Academy in the way Jack Casady ’15 talks. When he tackles challenges as a marketing manager for Boston-based Putnam Investments, Jack drills down to understand why something isn’t working, and what to change — all things he learned at Cushing.

Academic support gave Jack the tools to pull abilities he already had together. “I had all the pieces,” he recalls of when he arrived at Cushing, “but I wasn't reaching the level that I needed.”

The youngest of four children, Jack followed his sister Maggie ’08 to Cushing. It was a natural fit. “From the minute you got there, it was like you were with members of your family.” Jack thrived, playing sports, trying out unique arts offerings like silversmithing, and living in a cozy house dorm. “It was such a great experience to make lasting memories and make lifelong friends,” he remembers. “Between the academics and the focus on the students, [Cushing students] have the ability to go anywhere.”

For Jack, anywhere meant Boston University, where he majored in advertising communications. After an unpaid internship at Putnam, Jack landed a full-time job. “I kept showing up and kept staying,” he says. “A little Cushing fact: you show up, do your best, and put a smile on your face — and things work out.”

Even after a promotion last summer, grow as a personJack still finds himself drawing on skills built at Cushing every day. “If I’m digging — that you take with into something really complex, I kind of sit back and say, ‘Well, what is it that is making it complex? And how can I break you forever.” — Jack Casady '15 it down?’ That was something that I definitely remember learning early on [at Cushing],” he says.

Jack appreciated how normal it was to get help at Cushing. “Having Academic Support built into your schedule was key.” By junior year, he just dropped in periodically for extra support. But he is grateful for the long-term impact: “Cushing provides you with a lot of tools — to think better, write better, and grow as a person — that you take with you forever.” life, also serving as coaches and dorm parents. “When I taught in the public schools, students were often embarrassed to come see an academic support teacher,” he said. “We wanted to avoid this at Cushing by helping students to see us in all the ways that they engaged with other teachers.” The approach worked, and Rich recalls even students who weren’t enrolled in the program might sometimes stop by during study hours for extra help.

A lot has changed in the 40 years since Cushing launched its Academic Support program. While terms such as dyslexia and ADHD are now widely recognized, experts continue to add new layers to our understanding of how the brain works. In recent years “executive functioning”—a phrase to describe the ability to organize and implement the details of life—has joined the lexicon about learning. Meanwhile, as awareness about neurodiversity has grown, having learning differences has become much less stigmatized. At this point, it is widely recognized that every student body has some range of neurodiverse learners.

Yet Cushing’s thorough, thoughtful approach to serving these students

still stands apart. The school’s early entry into this field, its educational philosophy, and the close collaboration of faculty have brought years of expertise and success to work on behalf of today’s Cushing students. The Academic Support program currently has five faculty, serving students in classes of up to four students or through one-on-one coaching. The vision of having Academic Support teachers integrated into campus life continues to pay off. “The relationships that we build with students are first and foremost,” said Michael, who joined Cushing this year to lead the Academic Support program into its fifth decade. “I can build great relationships with students in class, through being a dorm parent, or coaching the basketball team. These roles also create opportunities to collaborate with colleagues. Whether it’s during an athletic practice, or at dinner, or anywhere in between, conversations are often happening about various strategies to support our students.”

Michael and his colleagues often hear from parents who value the depth of these teaching relationships. “Parents appreciate that we know who their children are as learners and as people. We can both celebrate a student’s unique qualities and also find ways to challenge them.” Everyone celebrates as students grow and take increasing agency over their own learning. “It’s a fantastic moment for students when they can really take on the process themselves and tweak a strategy to become their own,” Michael said. “Ultimately, all of our students engage with the same learning objectives. It is really up to us as educators to help students find those paths so that they can navigate the more difficult pieces.”