On Tuesday, August 9, 2022, Jessica Gant, owner of Jessie B’s Academy in Normandy, Missouri, returns students to classrooms after a field trip.
Jessica Gant announced plans to pursue her goal of opening an educational academy to family and friends at her 30th birthday celebration. The “Her Roaring Twenties” themed party emphasized affordable, quality education, with ticket sales going toward school supplies and Gant’s Scholarship Fund to help families in need. was devoted to
Six months after her announcement, Jessie B’s Academy enrolled students in its summer camp program. Her dream has now become a reality. The school was in the Goodfellow Wells area, in the basement of Emmanuel Baptist Church.
But the heartbreaking news that his mother’s breast cancer had returned made Gant re-evaluate his plans. She quit her job as a behavioral specialist for her special school district, so she didn’t miss her mother’s doctor’s visits and radiation/chemotherapy treatments.
Gant needed a sustainable income and thought he could “kill two birds with one stone.” She opened a full-time Jessie B. academy at her mother’s home. Her family and friends gathered to turn the basement of their house into a school.
She said there were some “hard moments” but with guts and family support she got through. Her mother’s breast cancer is also in remission.
In 2018, a friend told Gant that the empty Normandie Collaborative School was once again filling the halls with young students.
Jessica Gant, owner of Jessie B’s Academy in Normandy on Monday. August 9, 2022.
“It was very difficult to find a permanent building,” says Gant. “But now Jessie B’s Academy has been a part of her Normandy community for four years.”
Jessie B’s Academy is for children from toddler to age 5, or those who are ready for kindergarten. She uses Starfall’s curriculum, which includes reading, language, and mathematics. She emphasizes phoneme awareness and general site her words, along with audiovisual interactivity.
“This is a great curriculum to ensure that our family has a quality education and that our students learn STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) age-appropriately. I’m learning to develop athleticism and gross athleticism,” Gant said.
Each lesson is designed so that all students can learn at a comfortable pace, she says.
Gantt was dyslexic and had difficulty recognizing letters and words.
It didn’t stop her from graduating from the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff with a Bachelor of Science in Human Development in Family Studies.
He then went on to pursue a degree in business administration from Webster College, followed by a master’s degree in human resources.
However, before his academic success, Gant was helping people facing learning disabilities.
“One of my friends was being teased for not keeping up with the other kids in the classroom. I asked if it would feel like that.
She nominated her for the Do The Right Thing Award, totally unaware that teachers were paying attention to student interactions.
Gant said, “When I won that award, I made a promise to myself to create a place for all students. No matter how they learn, we can all learn together.” .”
She added that it wasn’t her first time being taunted and that she was embarrassed walking down the corridor to her classroom at the special school.
“I wondered why there was such a difference and realized it was a kind of separation. she said.
“I felt like there was nothing wrong with us in this classroom. I need a little help, but I just want to be treated like any other child.”
Gant plans to expand into a larger building over the next five years, adding more sensory spaces.
“At the end of the day, we’re a family. If we don’t have a home environment, how can we raise the next doctor or lawyer?”
Ashley Winters is a reporter for the St. Louis American Report for America.
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