| Date | Who | Comments |
| 5/26/2011 | parent | This is the BEST program hands down! In a regular clasroom my daughter was chastized for reading a book that was too thick. (3rd Grade) Another year the teacher told her she couldn't possibly be bored, not in her class. (5th Grade) When your child is gifted there are so many necessary levels to their education that are crucial to their happiness and productivity as a child and as a future citizen of our society. THANK YOU LIBBY for all your do and the enourmous pride you have in teaching, inspiring, and encouraging our gifted children. |
| 9/11/2010 | other | I began the Odyssey program at Libby Middle in 7th grade, just about 9 years ago. As a senior in college, I can honestly say that Odyssey was perhaps the most vital factor in my academic success to date. The program reinforced my intellectual curiosity, while it may have languished in other middle schools. From learning fractions in 6th grade, I maxed out of my high school's mathematics as a sophomore. I stood out in high school and I stand out in college on the basis of this outstanding program... despite my "B" in Orchestra! |
| 4/10/2010 | student | Wow!!! This is an amzing school! The teachers are top notch, everyone gets along like a family, and the advanced academics prepare us for the future. I am in my fourth and final year at Odyssey. I cannot thank my teachers enough for what they have given me. Every year, we do special things at Odyssey like trips to the University of Idaho, Camp Shoshone, and new this year, Chewelah Peak. The last day of school this year will be hard as I will walk out the doors of the school for the last time. I want to personally thank each of my teachers for what they have done to make this school unlike any other in the nation. It was a once in a lifetime opprotunity to go to this school and I will cherish all of the memories that it has given me forever. |
| 9/20/2009 | parent | Libby Center is seriously one of the best schools out there. Last year I just finished my forth year in the main program, Odyssey (Grades 5-8), and it was a life-changing experience that I don't think I could ever have again. As the only middle school in the area without actual class periods (you have all the subjects, just not in a 'period' schedule), you stay with the same general class of kids for a couple years in everything and get to build a huge family feeling with everyone there. All of the teachers, whether you realise at the time you have them or not, are amazing at their jobs. They understand the gifted kids who go there, and know exactly how to treat them - willing to even give up their personal time to help them learn and understand. I could go on and on about what a great place Odyssey is, the amazing teachers, or the traditions and spirit everyone has there, but words wouldn't be enough. I am truly happy that I was privileged enough to be part of this wonderful program. Thank you Libby. Thank you Odyssey. Thank you to all of the teachers, students, and parents who have made this place an important part of so many people's lives for over 12 years. |
| 9/20/2009 | student | Even though I've been out of this school 4 years, I'm still best friends with so many kids that went there. It creates lasting bonds between all of us. It's truly a great place to be. It's not only the kids that are amazing. The teachers not only help you learn a lot, they make it interesting and fun. You actually enjoy learning. If you ever have a problem, you can talk to them and they'll help you, no matter what it's about. Once we go out into 'normal' high schools, we're so far ahead of the normal freshmen, mentally and emotionally. Kids are generally placed in sophomore, if not junior math once they leave Libby. In short, we learn so much. Even the parents of these kids are an amazing, supportive, loving network. Even now, they're supportive. It's ridiculous how much this school rocks. |
| 9/20/2009 | student | With every fiber of my being, I miss attending Tessera at the Libby center. Once a week, I was swept away from normal elementary school to a wonderful safe haven that was Libby center. In Tessera I was always inspired to go above and beyond expectations. I learned to reach out and make friends, to make my opinions known, and to find ways to make learning enjoyable. My teachers were kind and admirable. Without their support I would not be here today. Libby Center has created me, and I am proud of who I am. I seek more than an answer, I seek humanity, justice, and perspective . Thank you Mrs. Mai, and Mrs. Khols, and all the other teachers and staff who helped support me for those 4 years. |
| 9/20/2009 | parent | The Libby Center is a wonderful middle school that serves kiddos with one of two special needs. They either have learning disorders or they are gifted learners. The school works extremely hard to make sure that every child gets their needs met! They are working with a population from ages 10 - 14. It is a very hormonal age and with the expectations of parents on top of that they do a phenomenal job! |
| 9/20/2009 | teacher | Libby Center is a school that celebrates individuals. Students learn the required curriculum in a compacted format. Then they are also encouraged to choose topics that interest them. This is their time to go deeper into a personal interest. Libby teachers are highly qualified and well educated. We understand gifted students and help them learn to better understand themselves. I am grateful to work in this unique environment with these truly wonderful students. I am happy and proud to say I am in touch with students from my first year as a teacher at Libby Center. We create a family environment that fosters life-long relationships as well as an academic environment that prepares students for high school and beyond. |
| 9/20/2009 | parent | Odyssey at the Libby Center teaches kids to really think. They truly show you how to be yourself, and how to be appreciated for that. Even though I no longer attend Libby, I still feel a sense of community every time I visit. I met my best friends and heroes at this school. I learned so much, not only about math and English and other subjects, but about myself. Libby deserves any funding it can get, because I'd love to see many more kids get the same amazing opportunity I did. |
| 9/20/2009 | student | It is just simply the best school ever. I went to this school and am now in my first year of high school. It's like a family at Odyssey, everyone knows each other, no one hates anyone, and everyone will remain friends for a LONG time. Trust me. |
| 9/20/2009 | student | The teachers are the BEST in the world...and it is so small that you get to know everybody (I know kids that have graduated that otherwise I would have never met). It is the BEST! |
| 9/20/2009 | student | Libby is truly an amazing place. I've just entered my fourth year as a permanent student at the school, and it definitely distinguishes itself as a place that has changed my life in a positive fashion. The teachers are amazing at their jobs and very enthusiastic to help you in anyway they can. Students are truly a family here, and everyone's willing to help each other out. I'm really happy today to say that I had the privilege of going to the Libby Center, and will always cherish the memories that I've collected from these four years. |
| 9/20/2009 | parent | This is where you grow up, at Odyssey. People say that High School is the best time of your life, well, they didn't go to middle school with us. I would like to say that they pretty much let us do what we want, but it's only because they taught us not to ask for much. That is an important quality that you have to learn in life. As I am going through my first year of high school, and realizing how little people care here, how much I miss that place will always be on my mind. A place where everyone new your name. There was no room to be a social outcast. Not to mention the fantastic band/orchestra program. I wouldn't have turned out to be the person that I enjoy being if I had attended a 'regular' middle school. |
| 9/19/2009 | student | There's just no place like Libby. Between the Odyssey and Tessera programs offered there, Libby is a haven for gifted students who would otherwise be suffering from boredom in a regular public school. Aside from providing a challenge to gifted students, the sense of family and community in the students and teachers is unrivaled anywhere else. Without having any sports teams or other extracurriculars besides the band and orchestra, Libby has more true school spirit than any other school in the district. |
| 9/19/2009 | student | The Libby Center, and more specifically, Odyssey, is a life-changing school. It gives gifted kids a chance to come together and meet people like them, people who are different, and feel normal for once. Odyssey is a place where you can really be yourself -- even in middle school -- which is unprecedented, and absolutely appreciated. Thank you, Libby Center. Thank you so much. |
| 9/19/2009 | student | This is my fourth year attending full-time Libby Center. Odyssey is one of the best Learning Programs that I have ever been apart of. The Teachers are magnificent, each having time for necessary one-on-one time. And the other students are a great experience, you are given the privilege to meet people that share the same qualities as you do. Though some say that it is located in a bad neighborhood, it really isn't. Plus the teachers make the classroom feel comfortable, especially Mike Cantlon- 5th/6th/8th grade Teacher, who is the most philosophic man I have ever met! |
| 9/19/2009 | parent | The finest school in the district, with an excellent staff. Some of our family's best memories come from it's halls. I owe them so much! |
| 9/16/2009 | student | I loved Libby Center because it was a great school for kids who were often overlooked in normal public school environments. The Odyssey Program run by the Libby Center, for gifted magnet students, as well as the one-day-a-week Tessera program were amazing ways to spend 4 years of my public schooling. I met great people- friends, teachers, staff- and fostered my education through non-traditional teaching and learning styles provided by the school. The Libby Center also housed a large program for Developmentally Impaired (D.I.) students, or students with disabilities, which offered a great education to those whose learning styles and needs were often overlooked. I cherished my 4-year experience at the Libby Center and wished, upon graduating in eighth grade, that I could stay there for high school as well. The community at Libby Center was much like that of a small private school; everyone knew everyone (even if you were an eighth grader and they were a fifth grader, or even a teacher) and the environment felt continuously supportive nurturing (especially to some of our students' different or even difficult needs). It was the best schooling experience I have had during my educational journey (I am now a freshman in college, attending Gonzaga University in Spokane) and I attribute the majority of my successes, both academic and extracurricular, to the strength, open-mindedness, and caring provided by the Libby Center, including its staff, students, and everyone involved in offering the small group of students there a prestigious public-schooling experience. |
| 9/16/2009 | student | I love Libby Center! I attended the school for six years and going there gave me and the other students the opportunity to learn beyond what our peers outside the school were exposed to. It was a personal environment, designed to focus on the development of each student, and it helped me prepare for higher education better than a conventional school could have. |
| 9/16/2009 | student | Libby Center creates an environment which nourishes and encourages the students more than any other school I have ever attended. The staff is caring and genuine, and there is a great group of kids there. I can honestly say that my education during my time there has provided me with extraordinary opportunities I never would otherwise have gotten. It prepared me for the rigorous studies I now pursue at a 4-year private Jesuit university, and taught me that to constantly challenge myself and the people around me. |
| 11/20/2008 | student | I am a kid that goes there. Honestly, sometimes I wish I went to a regular middle school, but odyssey is a great opportunity. It gives you a chance to get ahead in highschool, and the school is so small its like a family. (By the way, Mike Cantlon is the greatest man alive. You will love him.) |
| 8/31/2008 | student | I go to Odyssey and I cannot be more thrilled about it! There is a lot of challenge and I just love to go there. Mike Cantlon is awesome! |
| 7/30/2008 | student | I love this schoool, it is exciting, challenging, and fun. I am in the seventh grade odyssey program. The teachers are wonderful, and I get to express my full potential. Even though the school is in a 'bad' neighborhood, the staff there help make the school area safer. When I am at the Libby Center I feel safe. If I have a proplem there is always someone there that I can trust to help me. This school is really cool and so unique, it has given me many opporitunities that I couldn't get elsewhere. This school is awesome |
| 5/2/2008 | other | I had sent my child here but had to pull out. It is hard to find a shady neighborhood in Spokane but the School District found it! Cars parked across from school with broken windows, 1 block from the notorious East Sprague area, numerous programs run out of the same building with a constant stream of different people coming and going each day. What a site to nurture the growing minds of the gifted youth of Spokane. I have to give them credit for their Teachers, most are excellent but had approx 28 students in each class, clearly overstretched and also limited in resources. School District is clearly not vested in this Program, if you have a highly capable child there are other better options in Spokane. |
| 4/28/2008 | student | this school is awesome I would especialy like to thank mike cantlon because of what a great speaker and moralist he is. |
| 12/2/2007 | student | I used to go there, but I just moved. It's a great school with really cool and unique oppotunities. although it is for gifted children, they also have a great special ed program, where the kids in the odyssey program( meaning not the tessera program) get ot volunteer to interact and help the special ed kids. The teachers give the children work that challenges them in all fields, and gives addditional attention to those who need help. overall, it's one of the best schools. It's awsome. I suggest talking to Mike Cantlon. He's one of the teachers there and is probably the smartest one there. He also runs a summer camp called Satori camp in Jily every year! |
