Student Spotlight: Meet Rylie!

ACES has partnered with Global Arts Plus (GAP) for more than 15 years, providing before-school math and social-emotional learning support for students at its upper campus in Saint Paul. This year, we were thrilled to welcome a cohort of new students to our GAP program, including 6th grader, Rylie!

The year has flown by and with the final weeks of the semester fast approaching, Rylie reports that her favorite ACES lessons were about Sports Science. Specifically, Rylie enjoyed building parachutes and ping pong ball catapults, reflecting, “I like when we get to put things together and be creative.” Rylie also enjoyed a project about barrier-breaking athletes, for which she researched world champion figure skater, Michelle Kwan.

Site Coordinator, Claire Williams, who has been with ACES for nine years, shares, “it has been so great having Rylie in the program this year and watching her grow as a student and a friend. I have seen her math confidence grow so much, and she does a great job at making everyone feel included, always showing up as a team player!"

Outside of ACES, Rylie plays on GAP’s volleyball team. While volleyball remains her favorite sport, she has been enthusiastic about trying a new sport during her gym time with ACES: basketball! When asked to share her favorite thing about the basketball, Rylie responded, “If your teammate falls down, you help them up.” Indeed, Coach Em, who leads Rylie’s ACES class, reflects, “I’ve seen Rylie’s confidence and willingness to try new skills grow, as well her strength in building community amongst her peers.” During a recent ACES field trip to Target Center, Rylie cheered energetically for the Timberwolves!

Rylie’s mom, Tayler, has also noticed Rylie’s growth through ACES. She share, "Rylie had a tough start to the year and had trouble making connections. This made it hard for her to wake up and actually want to go to school each morning. Now, every night she tells me, ‘We can't be late tomorrow! I have to go to ACES!’ Her confidence, drive to do well, and her academic skills have truly excelled, and I know she genuinely enjoys all that ACES has to offer!" 

When asked what she’d tell a new friend about ACES, Rylie didn’t hesitate to respond: “It’s fun because you get to learn math, play games, and research about some stuff. And sometimes we get to have fun parties with snacks.”