Dear Ms. Wingfield:
I have reviewed your proposed program, “From Chess to Success”, and support your effort to expose children in early childhood development centers to the benefits of learning chess at an early age. The information offered from your program is supported by studies that prove using chess as a learning tool enlightens children to look for choices and opportunities that will guide them to academic, social and professional success and prosperity. It also affords many opportunities for children to exercise higher order reasoning skills by learning strategies to navigate and master the game of chess.
I will personally encourage parents and guardians in our area to participate in this very worthwhile endeavor. There is no more important task for us today than equipping children with the reasoning, verbal and social skills that will enable them to become life long learners.
Judy Mickens-Murray
Upper Marlboro, Maryland
Ms. Wingfield:
As an employee in Prince George’s County School in Maryland, I can definitely say how appreciative I am of the services provided by Nehemiah’s Vision. Nehemiah’s Vision has the talent, knowledge and professionalism which helped me to understand how the role of a parent liaison is important to facilitating improved parental involvement, communication, and collaboration between school staff and the families of students in order to enhance student achievement. Parent involvement is known to play a critical role in student achievement the suggestions and help from Nehemiah’s Vision makes doing this fun and informative. The visions and aspirations that I have is similar to Nehemiah’s Vision in which encouraging and empowering parents is key to their children’s academic success. Knowing this has made it possible for me to overcome many obstacles as a Parent Liaison in Prince George’s County.
Thank You,
Mrs.Smith
I am pleased to offer you this letter of recommendation on behalf of Ms. Tonya V. Wingfield, Executive Director for Nehemiah’s Vision, Inc. As a former Regional Director in Prince George’s County School (PGCPS) in Maryland, I observed Ms. Wingfield to be a very active member in the Kettering Elementary School PTA. She served as the Legislative Co-Chair in the PTA and a Delegate to the PTA County Council. In 2002, I invited her to serve as a member of the Region III Parent Advisory Council.
Ms. Wingfield’s primary focus was in legislative issues impacting children’s education in PGCPS. Prince Georges County has the second largest school system in the state of Maryland with more than 130,000 children. In addition to actively participating in the PTA, she effectively represented the PTA at statewide legislative functions; testifying before the Commission on Education Finance, Equity and Excellence (The Thornton Committee) regarding state funding of local school systems. She coordinated Kettering’s first Legislative Forum, which gave parents the opportunity to speak directly with their state and local elected officials on issues that concerned them.
Ms. Wingfield devoted a great deal of time and demonstrated a strong commitment to gain an understanding of the School Improvement Process (SIP). This process afforded parents the opportunity to gain insight on how school reforms are decided, implemented and monitored. Consequently, parents that gain knowledge are better able to communicate the academic needs of their child and provide input for change that benefits children.
Ms. Wingfield’s passion and commitment for advocating for a quality education for all children is an asset that will prove beneficial to this organization.
Sincerely,
Marcus J. Newsome, Ed.D. Superintendent - Chesterfield County Public Schools