Testimonials

“I love to see the passion in Traci.  She cares deeply for the students and their families.  She understands how to connect the school and home.  She is a true educator with compassion and integrity. She has breathed life back into my campus with her ability to communicate and empathize.” 
D.M. from Westwego, LA

I requested Traci to talk to my paraprofessionals about special education.  They were not happy they had to go.  The last time someone was hired to talk to them, my staff said it was a waste of time.  Traci was with my paraprofessionals for 2 hours.  I was busy when she finished.  I didn’t even have time to ask them how it went because they came to me first.  They said she was wonderful.  They loved her and her ideas.  I rushed to book her for our next meeting.  My staff loved having her wisdom, humor, guidance, and expertise.”
V.L. from Harvey, LA

“I asked Miss Smith to come to my campus and talk to my teachers.  It was the end of the year.  Instead of the usual, she presented an entire presentation on burnout, self-care, and resiliency.  It was so powerful.  So many of my teachers said that there were going to change their routines and diet over the summer because of the reminder to take care of themselves.  Her presentation, sense of humor, and ability to connect with my staff was appreciated by all.  We will have her back.” 
D.L. from Metairie, LA

“Traci Smith is the best.  Nothing else to say.”
C.J. from Gretna, LA

“I still taught spelling even though the people from Central Office said it wasn’t going to be on a test.  I knew that it is important to learn how to spell.  I had inclusion students in my class.  Some of them were really low.  After bombing the test for several weeks, I reached out to Traci Smith for suggestions.  The suggestions helped and my students started scoring much better.  I didn’t realize you can change the format of the test to suit the needs of the students.  Traci continued to teach me how to adapt tests for my students.  I feel really empowered due to her expertise.”
A.G. from Austin, Texas

“I had a huge class of 19 special education students.  They were in First through Third Grade.  It didn’t seem anyone in my school offered any good advice for managing the class.  Dr. Smith offered classroom management tips to arrange my furniture, designate areas of the room, provide self-monitoring tools to teach students how to stay on task, and how to group students.  Her wisdom and little tips changed the course of my school year.  Now, people ask me for suggestions!”
A.A. from Marrero, LA

“I didn’t feel right about just teaching the test to my special education students.  They were so far behind.  My principal kept stressing that their scores counted.  When I talked with Miss Traci, she explained to me how the failing all the tests was affecting my students’ self-esteem.  They had to be successful on something.  So, I advocated for my students.  My principal noticed the change in my students when I gave them tasks that they could complete.  They were more engaged in school.  I am grateful for her empowerment to persist with advocating for my students.”
V.H.  from Gretna, LA

“I didn’t know anything about IEP meetings. I was nervous about writing an IEP and talking to parents. Traci taught me how to collect information for the meeting, how to write the goals, and how to figure out accommodations.  Her little tidbits about how to conduct myself in the meeting helped me out so much. She also said it is OK not to know something. You can’t know everything. She said she always tells people that just because she has a doctorate doesn’t mean she knows everything. When you don’t know, just say it. She became my mentor. I am the teacher I am because of her.”
S.A. from New Orleans, LA

“My step daughter had an IEP that stated she had a learning disability, but I knew it was deeper.  My step daughter grew up with her mom and she told me the child was slow.  We moved my step daughter in with us and from a traditional school to a charter school.  At the traditional school, they put her in a mild class even though she was learning disabled, but the kids were mean.   She was doing well in that class.  At the new school, she was placed in a regular class.  She came home every day crying and feeling stupid. We went to a free seminar at the library and made an appointment with the advocates.  They said that she was in a new home and new school and to give it time.  We had no more time.  My stepdaughter wanted to kill herself.  We called Miss Smith and she helped me understand that her evaluation was probably wrong so her IEP was wrong.  She said legally the traditional school was not supposed to put her in that type of class.  They just didn’t want to go through more paperwork when this paperwork was still good.  I requested another evaluation in writing for the correct classification for my child.  Turns out, she was 3 points away from scoring in the moderate range on her new evaluation.  Without Miss Smith’s guidance, my child would still have the wrong classification.  She helped me realized that the correct label for my daughter meant the correct test for testing time, correct services, and correct setting. She understood there was no time to wait.  She helped me remain positive and reminded me that it was my job to stay strong. I will never forget her.”
S.G. from Gretna, LA

“Miss Traci was an angel who gave advice to help my granddaughter that I am raising because her mom is in jail a lot.  She told how to get the school to listen to what I was saying and told me that being calm at the front desk was important.  Also, I have to follow up with teachers.  My granddaughter was not learning in a big class or the smaller one she was moved into to get help.  She had been in the smaller class for weeks and was not doing nothing different.  I called an advocate and they said she had to be in the class for a while before she could get in special education so they could get more data.  I was done with waiting.  Miss Traci helped me ask for an evaluation because the other stuff wasn’t working.   After getting evaluated, I found out she was low in math calculating and reading skills.  She was moved into an even smaller class for some classes and started making Bs and Cs with her new teacher.  Miss Traci was a gift from God who didn’t just put me off.”
L.R. from New Orleans, LA

“Traci figured out that the teacher had not read the IEP even though it was the 4th week in school. He wasn’t getting the bus and didn’t have any of the things he needed that the school was supposed to give him. It never occurred to me that they didn’t read the paper, but she had a feeling. After I said everything about what was not happening, Traci suggested to go to school and ask the teacher what he was working on and why he wasn’t getting the bus service. The teacher had no idea he needed the bus and finally admitted to not reading it.  How Traci figured that out, I will never know. But, from now on, I will make sure the teacher is reading the IEPs. A simple solution. Just talking to her made me feel better, and I didn’t feel as helpless. She is very positive.”
D.D. from New Orleans.

My son has always been a bad reader. For years, he struggled to answer questions about the book he was reading. I was embarrassed because I taught college but couldn’t help my son. He was now in middle school and started to fall behind.  He already had an IEP since first grade. When I went to the advocacy place, I brought the papers.  They said that he was getting a lot of stuff, and it was just take more time because middle school is harder. Two months later, he was failing, and I was worried he would not pass. I told Traci about his accommodations and struggles. She suggested that he dictate his answers to someone and have someone write them down. It was called answers recorded. Well, we had a meeting to change his IEP and like Traci said, I asked for answers recorded. After one week, my son brought home As on his tests and I cried like a baby. Her expertise on what to do made a huge difference in my son’s life. It was a turning point in our lives.”
L.M. from New Orleans, LA.

My staff hated Professional Development from outside people.  They felt very talked down to and belittled.  I requested Traci to talk to my paraprofessionals about special education.  They were not happy they had to go.  The last time someone was hired to talk to them, my staff said it was a waste of time.  Traci was with my paraprofessionals for 2 hours.  I was busy when she finished.  I didn’t even have time to ask them how it went because they came to me first.  They said she was wonderful.  They loved her and her ideas.  I rushed to book her for our next meeting.  My staff loved having her wisdom, humor, guidance, and expertise.”
V.L. from Harvey, LA

“If I want to know anything about special education, I call Traci Smith.  She knows and understands the law and how to translate student needs, parents’ desires, and school offerings into a balanced perspective and happy ending. I call her the ‘special ed guru’, and she is.”
V.E. in Gretna, LA