“Things are going really well at home and at school. Angus’s teacher added the behavior plan that you all wrote up for the school into Angus' IEP!! So that behavior plan will now follow Angus wherever we go! We are really focusing on Angus' patience level at home and at school (and
Saige). I am a LOT happier and relaxed along with the kids so I know we are doing the right things and it's working for us. I am sitting down and reading thru the entire plan (original and
maintenance) at least once a day. It's starting to sink in and become second nature. The pairing is coming along, still something we all have to get used to. But the teachers are so excited and comfortable with your new plan, it made all the difference!
THANK YOU!”

“We are from Austria and Jakob (now 13 years old) was from 2008 till 2011 in your program. I still feel very connected towards you and your institute. Jakob’s progress has been great, from a clear young child with autism to a teenager with self esteem, where you would never guess, how difficult his way has been to get there. I never forget what a blessing your institute has been for us at a time where ABA-VB has been a completely new in Austria – for that reason I would like to say “Thank you”.”

“My son has done amazing things and I know ABA therapy was the turning point for him and for us as a family.”

“We moved to England for 4 years after living in Germany. From 2012 to 2016 we were at RAF Lakenheath. I kept Angus back to repeat 7th grade after homeschooling him for two full years. Homeschooling got him away from being aide dependent and he figured out how he learned, how he felt and how to start advocating for himself. He gradually started back to school 1/2 time through 8th grade and then attended high school full time on base. He joined the golf team and his dad and I pitched in with helping coach and supplying snacks. Angus helped build the golf team back up and opened the door for other kids on the spectrum. When he started with the team it was only 8 kids. By the time he left at the start of his junior year the team was up to almost 30 players!
Angus had a phenomenal sophomore year, he lettered in golf and traveled with the team to Spain, he worked at the commissary bagging groceries, volunteered for the Red Cross at the post office, got invited to join the NHS and discovered his favorite place we traveled was Scotland.
We moved stateside in Oct 2016 and Angus handled the transition well. We beefed up his IEP before leaving the DODDS system, so he had many accommodations and lots of aide hours.
Can't believe he is a senior now! He has taken the ACT for college 3 times now and they will take his best score. He is looking at MSU here in Minot ND and his interest is on computers. The college has alternative programs of support that Angus will hopefully qualify for due to some intellectual, social and academic weaknesses.
It's a bit frustrating because he is not "severe" but he still needs support in place to make this transition and not get "lost."
Angus has impressed us with his continued motivation to be independent and happy. He is learning to drive and we bought a used truck for him and his sister to share.
He carries a copy of his IEP with him and asserts/advocates for himself with teachers and staff. He has modified his own homework when needed and pushed for test modifications (true/false has always been tough). Of course I still monitor and check in but Angus has really shown me he will ask when he needs my help.
He tells me when he feels like a certain teacher is not listening to him or respecting him and then I show him how to address that teacher or that teachers supervisor. He is learning that his case manager and his paraprofessional don't always have good communication with his teachers or with each other and it's his job to follow up and make sure everyone is on the same page to support him.
His self awareness is amazing. He does sometimes get angry at having the autism spectrum label but he does understand that everyone has strengths/weaknesses.
Angus is on his way and I am not as fearful for his safety and future as I was when he was 6 or 7 and we started ABA  journey.
I can't thank you and your wonderful, empathetic, creative and professional team members enough. Everyone we worked with brought something new to the table to build on and gave us the tools/structure/motivation my son needed to move forward. The positive aspect of the learning and the behaviors continues today!

Robert, Nadine, Allison, Mike, Silva.......I think I may have forgotten a name or two......
You gave us back our family and taught us how to give Angus the tools he needs for life!
I am forever grateful and I hope to cross paths with some of you again one day.”

“My son has done amazing things and I know ABA therapy was the turning point for him and for us as a f"We had yesterday another meeting with your consultant to see and discuss the progress of Lucas over the last 1,5 months. It was good to ask her to come again after a short period of time, because she gave us good advices to improve our training with Lucas. In general we are all happy with the progress of our small hero, even if the last weeks where really exhausting especially for my wife. I don’t want to write too much today – but one thing I have to tell you because it is the best thing happened in this terrible year.
Yesterday, we added more signs to the program and also the sign “open / auf”. We didn’t use it before at all. AND …. (it is really true!) Lucas not only makes the sign he also says the word “auf” in a really clear way.  
So it is the first real word he ever “learned” and says and we are so happy you can’t imagine. If someone would have told me a year ago I would be once so happy if my son would say the word “auf”  - I wouldn’t have believed it – now it is the greatest Christmas present I ever got. I have tears in my eyes so happy I am just if I ‘m writing about it. It is so nice to hear him say this word."

“The visit of your team of consultants was close to a revelation! I now understand my son's behavior much better and can handle it appropriately. He has already made progress within the three days. It was so nice to see him so happy and realize the potential in the little guy. I am full of hope and can face my son again positively. Your consultants were absolutely professional and were friendly and understanding all the time. Thanks to you all!!!”

"As you probably aware, the situation in area of autism in my homeland was quite disastrous only few years ago. There was a total lack of support for these children and their families. No diagnostics, no treatment, no inclusion or special education, no information, even no professional literature in Russian. Only the antique Russian theories and aggressive medical treatments.

The translation of your book to Russian was the first ray of light in the darkness of almost total ignorance in this area. There was a significant progress since then. Many important books were translated, many international evidence-based practices were introduced and adopted by some of the local professionals. As expected, most of the efforts to promote the issue come from the parents of autistic children, but gradually is emerging a new society of open minded professionals who are ready to learn from international experience, follow new researches and trends and use them in practice. The autistic children in Russia and other CIS countries (former USSR) has much better chance for a full and independent life today then 4-5 years ago. Still, we have a long way to go.
 
Your book is a "must read", first step into ABA and ASD for any new family that forced to face this diagnosis or any professional exposed to ASD. In your book you succeeded to introduce the ABA in a friendly and non-threatening way that motivates the reader to deepen the knowledge use the principles you are describing with their children or clients.
Your outstanding contribution to the field is widely known in Russia and highly appreciated.”

“I just wanted to inform you that my daughter has started at a nearby preschool (with aid) and she is doing good. We are so grateful for your book, your YouTube videos and your visit that made this happen for her. It was not possible to think about her going to school a few months back.”

“We’ve tried so much in the past, but were never satisfied with the approaches and recommendations of the therapists. When I found your website, I was excited right away. Your consultant seemed very motivated and professional, and we were surprised how much you can do through behavior therapy. We also got a very comprehensive program, where everything was explained very detailed and showed new approaches. I have never seen such a structured and comprehensive program to help our son. The therapy approach is just right for our needs with our son (lots of fun and happiness) and shows us, how we can help him better. Thank you!!!”

“I was very impressed by the introductory workshop in Hannover. With all of your professionality I especially liked your huge acceptance, awareness and love for the children.
As an occupational therapist I have been working for 14 years (7 of those in my own practice) with developmental delayed children and adultent psychiatric patients. Currently I’m treating 3 children with autism and asperger’s syndrom.
Thanks to the workshop many of my approaches got reinforced, but at the same time, I realized some “mistakes” I’m making.”

“We’ve tried so much in the past, but were never satisfied with the approaches and recommendations of the therapists. When I found your website, I was excited right away. Your consultant seemed very motivated and professional, and we were surprised how much you can do through behavior therapy. We also got a very comprehensi

“We've been extremely happy with my son’s progress recently. We've found an internet site www.starfall.com where he enjoys learning his ABCs and using the computer. We've gone back and reviewed previous goals to make sure he has them mastered. He echoes everything he hears and sings songs, but his pronunciation is still not mastered for some sounds. He no longer throws a fit when mom/dad leave the house. He is more patient and will wait his turn with his siblings when playing. He likes looking at books, but prefers looking at and flipping the pages more than being read to. He constantly hums or "sings" and still hits people with his fist/head if he wants their attention or wants to play.  He usually only initiates interaction with someone for physical play or food/drink.  When he does have outbursts he still prefers to find things to knock over. We're starting to get his constipation under control and will begin focusing on potty training during Spring break in April.

It has been difficult/trying on all of us and he still has a long way to go. But a year ago I would have done anything and paid any price to be where we're at today (talking, learning, listening, counting).    

Thank you, your staff, and God for giving me a new son full of life and such a fitting Easter gift.”

ve program, where everything was explained very detailed and showed new approaches. I have never seen such a structured and comprehensive program to help our son. The therapy approach is just right for our needs with our son (lots of fun and happiness) and shows us, how we can help him better. Thank you!!!”

“My message is a relatively simple one of thanks to your organisation and the assistance you provided to our family. In 2008, one of your consultants, Isabel Huth, assisted us with our daughter, Felice who had a diagnosis of PDD-NOS, which was subsequently confirmed as autism. Isabel visited us in our home in Neu-Isenburg and helped us tremendously to manage Felice's behaviour and prepare her for learning.  Eleven years later, I am happy to report that Felice is well on her way to a life with great potential.  After moving to Australia in 2009, Felice made sufficient progress within a year to attend a "normal" primary school where she made great progress very quickly.  

This year Felice has made the transition to High School and to all intents and purposes is leading a "normal" life.  Naturally, she still has some quirks but that is well within the range of behaviour of children she attends school with and we fully expect her to have a happy and fulfilling life.

Therefore, please pass this information (plus our thanks) to Isabel for helping us at the beginning of our journey and to Nadine and Robert as the key drivers for the program.”

"It’s great how far we have come thanks to ABA!!!! The small and quiet spezial ed school was surely good for our son for the first years, but we realized, that there were limits for Leonard’s development. After years we were finally able to get him enrolled at a regular school, thanks to Robert’s recommendation. Even though he is still in probition phase, we’ll keep going towards this direction und fight for it, because we are realizing, how well he is doing and liking it.

I would like to thank you for all the support you have given us. With your help Leonard has come so far!!!! Thanks again for your support, where we sometimes would have lost hope without it.“

„You guys are great cost wise! In the USA I would pay at least double for this kind of services.“

“Without everything we have learned from you, Lucas would’ve never been, where he is at today. Certainly it was often an exhausting time, which you could see on my wife, but without question, I’m convinced, that without ABA we would not be able to live in such harmony as we do now with our son. It was absolutely the best decision ever.”

“Our consultant is such a treasure. Every visit is a great enrichment and brings us so many impulses. We are happy and thankful that our paths have crossed!”

„Our son is really making astounding progress! He really enjoys doing all of his exercises and feels a real pride in his accomplishments. We are very thankful to your Institute for making all of this possible in Germany and we feel especially grateful to our consultant for her constant encouragement, professionalism, optimism and kindness!! May you all be blessed!!!”

“I don’t know any institution, consulting center or similar (- and I know so many!), which works so fast and with so much heart and soul! It always touches me! :-)))))”

"Hello Mrs. Knospe, we were very excited about the advice of your colleague today! We would like to schedule another appointment with her for case reviews / live supervision."

"I would like to give you a short feedback about the workshop. It was very informative and very logical. Sure, it was exhausting, because the brain wanted to understand as much as possible and take it home. Mr. Schramm has a very clear and authentic approach to explanation, which reinforces the effect of the statements and leaves no doubt about the truth. My partner and I are convinced that this methodology is helpful and successful - for us and especially for our 10 year old daughter. We were able to agree and recognize each other in our parenting behavior."

“Dear Nadine, Let me thank you and Robert once again for the great workshop last weekend, we really feel we benefited a lot from it already!”

“I am on my 3rd BCBA here at Ft Lewis and none compare to the help you guys gave me. I have observed and interviewed many more......You guys spoiled me. Should I lower my expectations?”

"Hello Mr. Schramm,
I “attended” the webinar you presented last Thursday for the Autism in Education Partnership on maximizing motivation and earning instructional control. I found it fantastic and was really grateful to have the opportunity to hear you speak. I came across your “7 Steps” article about a year ago and have been giving to the home therapists whom I train since that time. I also suggested that one of my current home therapists participate in the webinar, and she told me the next day that she also found your presentation fantastic. So thank you!"

"We just wanted to drop you a quick note to say a BIG "Thanks" for the last 2 years of Guidance, Education and Professional Support that we have received from your institute.... I still find it pretty hard to believe that tomorrow we have been part of your program for exactly 2 years, don't know where the time has gone things are moving so fast I can still remember my wife telling me she will never get ABA, strange that my son’s German is now a lot better than his English and that we have managed to balance our strengths and weaknesses as our own little team working towards a common goal....in all honesty we are still amazed at the progress we are making with my son, we have come a long way in the last 2 years and we strongly believe it would not of been even remotely possible without your Support....we obviously still have bridges to cross and hurdles to get over, but we are confident that we can also take these steps as and when they come along, having a strong and knowledgeable consultant to fall back on makes life a lot easier!!

We would also like to pass on our gratitude to your consultant again for the dedicated support and flexibility she provided with the recent problems we had with our integration helper (or integration non-helper) ... once again she proved that she can get things sorted out in a short space of time and accomodate our issues...Really cannot say thanks enough, our new I-Helper had her first day alone in the School today and did really well... !!

So in a nutshell, Thanks for everything so far and we are looking forward to working with you and your team moving forward.”

“We are currently one of your ABA families here in Germany and we have seen amazing results with our son Pearce. In the last six months he has changed so dramatically its hard to believe he's the same person.....well, actually, he isn't. Thank you. “

“Once again I would like to express thanks for your commitment and the outstanding presentation in our house.  Due to the feedback in the last week, I can say that the event has a lasting effect and was a success in itself.”

"We are overjoyed that our son has made the leap to a mainstream school, albeit only for trial, but the principle promised to take him as long as he is not acting out. A highly motivated school aide will assist him, she will also attend the introductory workshop at the end of October. Special thanks goes to Robert Schramm. It was first and foremost his book, and above all, the chapter on our school system and the importance of regular children as age-appropriate role models for autistic children, which has opened our eyes and courage after years of ignorance, very consistently and without compromise to fight for a transfer of our autistic son to a regular school. "

“Nadine, I want to Thank you so much for this opportunity to help my son. I am so excited about the workshop and about the things I learned there. I have already started doing some things with him, like reinforcement the way you do and being totally there for him and showing him fun (more than I have done in the past) and not paying attention at all when he behaves in a bad way... (because sometimes I was giving him attention, that’s why he kept doing the same annoying things). But still, I need professional help!!! When you come to my house, I will ask you thousand things!! I’m still so unsure and insecure!! But I know I will learn it and will develop my son. At least I’m willing to give him this chance.

I must say that your work with Robert, your willingness to help other families is such a nice, beautiful and human attitude. I remember when Robert played that movie about one teenager, 16 years old, who didn’t speak and when he spoke his first syllable, that everyone was shouting, celebrating  and was very happy...In that moment I had tears in my eyes!!! Your Institute is giving hope to lots of families and this is really something you should be proud of and I’m here to give you all the credits!!!  I want you to know that ‘m very happy to have known you, your institute and your philosophy.

"Your consultant is not only very nice, but also extremely competent and committed, and she conveys the principles of ABA very professionally, clearly and structurally, and knows every answer. After attending the workshop in Kaiserslautern, I was able to teach my son his first sign according to the ABA rules. He now seems relieved that he finally found a way to communicate. Thanks to your consultant, we have now come a long way and were surprised and delighted how much my son got involved in the game and was ready to solve small tasks. We are very hopeful that we have finally found the right path for him and can take him a step forward in his life. "

"With superhuman dedication and commitment you have helped us, even the school is happy and proud to have our son back full time at the school. "

“Hi Robert,

We have exchanged emails before but it has been about a year since I last sent you an update. I first read "7 Steps" and your book ETR two years ago when we initially received our daughter's autism diagnosis. Two years later it continues to serve as my companion and guide. It has been the single most influential and important work on autism that I have read and, I believe, I have read a lot on the topic.

Today our daughter spent her first day at the school we plan to send her to next year for Grade 1 - a private school for typical children. This was a first step in a transition plan to move her from her centre-based ABA program, that she has been attending since March 2008, to a regular Grade 1 classroom in September 2010. We were able to observe her from outside the classroom and she did remarkably well. She interacted well with the other kids; the average person would not be able to tell that our daughter has autism. (They would notice her language is somewhat delayed.) This was a momentous day for our family; our daughter was able to shine on her own.

Over the last two years we have had challenges at home. In particular, we had to get through the extinction bursts. If it wasn't for your example of the 5 hour marathon that one of your staff members had to endure with a boy, I'm not sure we would have had the courage to get through the 4+ hour marathon that we had. Because of your book we have been able to navigate these waters successfully. Our daughter hasn't had a meltdown in several months; she is so well-behaved and loving. There's no autistic gaze; no self-injurious behaviour; no more sensory issues; no stims. It really is amazing. While her current school deserves a LOT of credit, we wouldn't have the normal home life we have without your book. That I know. We really have no limitations on what we do and where we go as a family.

Though it may seem odd to receive such praise from someone you've not met, your book has had a profound impact on me, my daughter and my family. It has given me great confidence in how best to help our daughter.”

“I visited Robert Schramm's seminar (workshop) near Frankfurt this past April, and the information packed into two days was simply amazing! His lessons were easy to follow, compatible with situations that parents are used to and could "springboard" learning off of, and dove deep into the learning(s) of autistic children. We had been applying mild to moderate lessons of ABA into our son's curriculum, which gave him the ability to learn the alphabet (no easy task), but with vocal communication at one word (the word "more").  After using many techniques that Robert suggested, my son can say 18 words, and not robotic responses, but genuinely knowing words. He now voluntarily says words when asked "What's this?", or "Where's your ....?"  Robert Schramm hosts a great seminar, and I encourage anyone who's reading this to attend one (he goes to international destinations).  
Anyone out there can write back if they want any more details.”

“I found a book "Motivation and Reinforcement" on internet, bought it and read it, and it's the best book I ever read on the matter. Our home ABA consultant was also very positive about the book.”

  "We have been working together with you for almost a year now very successfully and are VERY satisfied with your consultant and her professional advice. Our son literally became a "different child"! I would like to take this opportunity to thank you very much for letting us attend the workshop last minute and for the in home consultations.”

"The in-house workshop at our facility was a source of great enthusiasm to our employees. We thank Mrs. Follmann and Mrs. Huth for the successful presentation."

"It's always clear that you are REALLY interested in our children. And that's just your quality. THANKS THANKS THANK YOU for everything we have achieved through you and will still achieve. "

“Working with ABA/VB and the Knospe consultants has not only changed Alexander's life but also our lives. I am deeply grateful for what has been happening in the years since the start of therapy in November 2009 - with all the ups and downs.... Not only Alexander has learned a lot, I also learned a lot about him, about life and also about myself. "

"I just wanted to say that I'm so thankful that your consultants came to us because I've been looking for such an institute lke yours for years, and no one, really no one could help me or give specific advice on my son's behavioral problems. But what I wanted to say to you: THANK YOU, only now I know that I found what I was looking for too long. Even the school is suddenly interested in you ... "

“I attended one of Robert's workshops in Virginia a few years ago and was amazed at his presentation. I have a child on the spectrum, and also work as a child mental health therapist. My personal experiences have helped fuel my desire to work with other families with kids on the spectrum and when I saw the training felt compelled to attend. I was impressed by Robert's knowledge and focus on the verbal aspects of ABA, but was moved even more by his clear passion and commitment to helping children and families managing the challenges of ASD. I refer parents and other professionals to his book constantly.”

“We are very pleased with everything so far, and very grateful that you are all so helpful and approachable - it makes a big difference to us. Thank you.”

"We visited your workshop in Hanover last weekend. I would like to thank you and your husband for this very successful and vivid talk! The workshop showed us in a very impressive way what I, as a mother, have believed in all these past years and have often been ridiculed. I was and still am convinced that my son (now 7) has great potential. We have "just" not found the lever to elicit his skills. Since yesterday I am very convinced that ABA / VB is exactly the lever we need. I would like to thank you, because the last weekend showed me clearly that as parents we were just right with our gut feeling and we are the only experts for our child. "  

“Lawrence continues making progress, but it's a constant fight with the school to provide consistent services. Though, still on the Autism Spectrum, has has made gigantic progress that have enabled him to move with a small group of LD kids and finally leave the Autism program. He spends his time between this group and the GE class, which is really big. He learned to play the violin and now moved to the trumpet; he's a red belt at TKD Academy and participates in local competitions; he likes museums and loves hanging out.

I'm including new pictures of him. I've always thought that if we had not given Lawrence a good head-start with ABA/VB, he would not be where he is right now. We did 3 and 1/2 years with you guys. I truly miss all of you and the kind of support we received. If his story can inspire other people, by all means, share it with other parents.”

“I attended your workshop in Minneapolis on Motivating Learner Participation Without Blocking Escape, Forced Physical Prompts or Nagging (workshop No.2) and found it incredibly helpful and thoroughly enjoyed it (a huge thank you!).”

“I attended Robert's workshop at ABAI and absolutely loved it. I thoroughly enjoyed his workshop - I learnt the most from him! I'm based in Australia now and we'd love to get him down our way sometime soon. I think what you two have achieved is just wonderful. Keep up the good work!”

"At this point I would like to thank the Knospe-Team!!!! The rules of ABA and your always professional, constructive, optimistic advice have really changed my life (not exaggerated ..) and that of my sons and our whole environment. I have been asked many times about the "secret of my good upbringing";) And the advances were enthusiastically praised even in the after-school care, at the treating physicians and at the youth welfare office and I was asked about "my therapy concept" in order to pass it on to other parents. With us, your concept worked 100%, not too much was promised. Also, the service of Knospe was unique: always the patient was the focus and no other interests. "

“I really liked the workshop. I think that was an incredibly well spent time for us as a family.”

What pleases me most, and for which I'm very grateful to Knospe, is that my son has actually developed a "natural" motivation to learn (enjoyment of learning, ambition, curiosity). I do not have to lure him with artificial stimuli, to deal with things and to learn new things. And he has friends, is empathic, funny. Actually on a very good way. I do not need an ABA in the classical sense anymore!

“Robert, I'm so grateful for your time and efforts given to our team and students.”

“Just a short note to inform you that we all are very impressed and happy with your consultants last visit. She’s very professional and her recommendations concerning one of our pupils needing to comply with a “NO” without blowing his top works extremely well. He is doing really well and shows much less frustrations and have got great report on improvement from his parents.”

“Thank you Robert. It’s a privilege to hear from you, as you have truly made a huge difference in our lives (through your book and through Allison Kane) and we know many others in the area who feel similarly (even if we have a special appreciation, given how much your methods really help save our family).”

“We are a young couple living in Sydney and our precious two year old son has been diagnosed with ASD last January. Since then, we have embarked the endless quest which led me to your VBA presentation in Youtube and ultimately to your "Motivation and Reinforcement". After seeing your presentation, I immediately believed VBABA is the right thing for our son and applied your behavior management techniques and got immediate result. We started VB/ABA under the supervision of a BCaBA and the future looks much more promising to us now.

I want to thank you for your amazing book. I am only half way through it but I keep thanking you after every page I read. Thank you for having the courage about being so positive ignoring the fear of being called "recovery salesman". I just wanted you to know you should never stop that. As parents, our life was devastated with the diagnosis, felt like we got the life-time prison sentence. Only for people like you, we can see the light at the end of the tunnel. We know the future may not be as we hope, but there is nothing worse than advising a parent for not being positive about the future. The hope gives us the strength to fight against autism every single day, gives our life a purpose. Whatever action we take with the 'hope' can only bring better result than what we could have done being all doomed and gloomed.

I'll take the 'Hope' of recovery any day rather than giving up. Even if the future turns out not to be exactly what we expected, I will have no regret knowing we tried our best and made our son the best he can be.

Its a pity our society warships the hero who fight in the battle and takes lives, but don't recognize people like you who touches so many lives. My sons diagnosis helped me cross path with so many wonderful people who I didn't know existed. You are my true Heros.

I hope I have been successful in expressing my gratitude and respect for your work. English is my second language and it doesn't always help me expressing my feelings. Regardless I still like to try :).

Thank you again for your wonderful job. Know that you have a one more dedicated fan and friend 'Down Under' in Sydney.”

Our son is doing great! ABA was our golden ticket for him. He is now 18 and self motivated. Last year he lettered in golf and was invited to join the National Honor Society because he carries straight A's in his academics. He works at the commissary on base bagging groceries and is saving money to buy a car. He volunteers for the Red Cross and he loves to cook. Two years of high school left. Our son is looking into working in video games development and testing. We move back to the states this month after 11 years overseas. Thank you so much for what you do. Your training and the follow up, support with your wonderful staff was our foundation for a better life with our family and for our son of course.

“Our sincere thanks once again to the Knospe-ABA team in making such a difference to our daughter’s future.”

“Thank you for your book that changed our life in the last two weeks like a miracle.”

 “In my 7-year career in ABA, I have found Robert Schramm’s 7 steps to be the single most valuable training out there. I actually think it should required reading for our new hires.”

“Thanks again for your great professional help with the school meeting yesterday. Without your convincing and well-argued points we would not have gotten the permission to repeat the school year!”