Academic Success Center

Helping students develop their academic gifts to the glory of God.

At Grace Community School, we believe each child is fearfully and wonderfully made. Furthermore, we recognize that each child at Grace is called to live in community, to celebrate each other’s God-given gifts and to minister to each other’s needs. Our goal is to partner with students, parents, and teachers for the academic success of each unique learner so that together we can grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Academic Success Center offers a range of varied experiences and connectivity to background knowledge, interests and abilities in order to enhance the mastery of essential skills, knowledge and understanding for identified students.

One aspect of assisting Christian families to educate, encourage, and equip their children to influence the world for Christ involves supporting students with professionally-diagnosed mild learning differences. Grace provides the following fee-based services:

  • Early intervention (Search and Teach for students 5-6 year olds)
  • Educational Therapy (diagnosed learning differences at elementary, middle school and high school)
  • Reading Lab (Orton Gillingham based reading and spelling instruction, as well as modified reading comprehension instruction for elementary and middle school)
  • Learning Lab (small groups of middle school and high school students with guided study hall with executive functioning instruction and core content reviews)
  • Academic Advisory (high school students receive individualized executive functioning instruction and tutorial support).

In conjunction with teachers and parents, Grace designs specific academic plans for identified students with diagnosed learning differences which may be reflected on report cards and transcripts.

Speech therapy provided by the Independent School District may be available to diagnosed students on our campus. Grace can recommend outside resources or options for diagnostic services, social skills training, spectrum disorders, occupational therapy, physical therapy, or other services not available at Grace.

Meet Our Teachers

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Julie Aldredge

Academic Success Center

Julie Aldredge

Academic Success Center

Except for two brief stints, Julie Aldredge has been a dedicated Tyler resident since the age of 12. She left the area for a short time to attend and graduate from Stephen F Austin University, where she met her husband Philip. Julie served as a fifth grade teacher with Grace Community School for 19 years before she and her family moved to Arkansas in 2018, where she served as a third grade teacher and then as director of The Eagle Foundation Learning Center.  She is excited to be back in the Tyler area where she can be near family and rejoin the GCS family as well. She and her husband have two adult sons, who both graduated from Grace Community in 2015 and 2018.

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Beth Beach

Academic Success Center

Beth Beach

Academic Success Center

B.S., University of Houston

Beth joined Grace Community School’s Academic Success Center in October 2018 as an NILD Educational Therapist. Prior to her work at Grace Community School, she taught at Cypress Christian School in Houston for 11 years. She received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Houston. Beth and her husband, William, have three grown daughters, and they attend Grace Community Church. In her spare time, Beth enjoys spending time with family, photography, and scrapbooking.

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Taylor Cannon

Academic Success Center

Taylor Cannon

Academic Success Center

B.A., Stephen F. Austin State University

Taylor joined Grace Community School in 2021 and works in the high school Academic Success Center. She graduated from Stephen F. Austin State University with a bachelor’s degree in English and philosophy with a minor in writing. For several years, Taylor taught ninth grade in Houston and eighth grade in Tyler prior to joining GCS. She has previous experience with a college advising company, tutoring juniors and seniors, and teaching SAT/ACT test preparation courses. Taylor and her husband have four children and three of them attend Grace University. She enjoys spending time with her family and friends, playing tennis, and reading books.

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Julie Gourlay

Academic Success Center

Julie Gourlay

Academic Success Center

B.S., Southeastern Bible College

Julie began with Grace Community School in 2017 as a third grade teacher and now works in the Academic Success Center. She has taught junior kindergarten, kindergarten, and third grade for four years at Lake Norman Christian School in Davidson, North Carolina. Julie received her bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Southeastern Bible College in Birmingham, Alabama. In her spare time, Julie enjoys reading, traveling, exploring new places, and learning new ways to create different kinds of crafts

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Debbie Hale

Academic Success Center

Debbie Hale

Academic Success Center

M.Ed., Regent University

Debbie has worked as an educational therapist for over ten years at both Grace and other Christian schools –even in a school in Africa. She has been with Grace Community School since 2015, serving in academic services in the elementary. She received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Texas at Tyler and her master’s degree in Education from Regent University. Debbie is a professionally certified educational therapist with NILD and a certified dyslexia therapist with the International Dyslexia Association. She and her husband, Robert, have four grown sons and two grandchildren. They are members at Redeemer Presbyterian Church in Tyler.

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Jessica Hicks

Academic Success Center & Cross Country Coach

Jessica Hicks

Academic Success Center & Cross Country Coach

B.A., Cedarville University

Jessica has been a part of the upper campus Academic Success Center since 2021. She received her bachelor’s degree from Cedarville University in Ohio. Jessica has previous teaching experience which includes years teaching second and third grade, as well as homeschooling her four children for 13 years. Her oldest son, Payton, graduated from high school, and her other three children, Colby, Caleb, and Olivia attend Grace Community School. Jessica and her husband, Steve, attend Grace Community Church, Old Jacksonville Campus along with their children. She loves to travel, camp, hike, run, and just enjoys the great outdoors.

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Sarah Jones

Academic Success Center

Sarah Jones

Academic Success Center

B.S., East Texas Baptist University

Sarah has been an elementary public school teacher for the last 17 years. She has taught in various districts around east Texas and has spent the last 7 years as an RTI teacher for her campus. She received a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education, specializing in reading and music, from East Texas Baptist University in 2003. She has been happily married to her husband, Brandon, since 2003 and they have four children: Kate, Kennedy, Addison, and Drake. She spends her time with her children’s sporting events and relaxing with family and friends. She and her family attend Rock Hill Baptist Church in Chandler.

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Tammy Kozsuch

Academic Success Center

Tammy Kozsuch

Academic Success Center

B.S., Texas A&M University

Tammy has been a part of the upper campus Academic Success Center since 2021 and has been a long time Grace mom for more than 24 years. Her four children have attended or are currently attending GCS: Seth, Class of 2011, Sarah, Class of 2012, Kate, Class of 2019, and Kaden will graduate in 2022. She also has three precious grandsons, Landry, Levi, and Layton. Tammy received her bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M University and is a member of Southside Baptist Church.

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Lisa McGowan

Academic Success Center

Lisa McGowan

Academic Success Center

B.S., Oklahoma Wesleyan University

Lisa joined the Grace Community School team in 2022. She grew up at Grace Community Church, where she met and married my husband, Nate.  Lisa graduated from Chapel Hill High School and went to Oklahoma Wesleyan University, earning a Bachelor of Science in Behavioral Science.  She has been an inclusion instructor at Cumberland Academy Elementary School for six years, working mostly with students in Special Education, before coming to Grace.  Lisa has two sons, Noah and Solomon.  They attend and serve at South Spring Baptist Church.  Lisa loves soccer, reading, and long walks in the country.

Class of 2002
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Russell McLennan

Mathematics & Academic Success Center

Class of 2002

Russell McLennan

Mathematics & Academic Success Center

M.S., Dallas Theological Seminary

Russell McLennan is so pleased to be part of the Grace Community School family. In addition to his teaching responsibilities, he also serves as lead pastor at 903 Community Church in Flint, Texas.

A graduate of the University of Oklahoma and Dallas Theological Seminary, Mr. McLennan loves engaging in deep and personal conversations about Christianity with his students.  He believes critical thinking and candid discussions about our faith will ultimately lead all of us to a more genuine relationship with the Lord. 

Outside of work, Russell loves spending time with his wife Kinzey and their two daughters. He enjoys playing soccer, basketball, reading, woodworking, and especially kittens. Fun fact: Mr. Russell likes to compete in the Scottish Highland games and even owns a kilt!

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Rachel Montoya

Academic Success Center

Rachel Montoya

Academic Success Center

B.A., University of Sioux Falls

Rachel recently moved to Tyler from South Dakota and is coming from Legacy High School where she taught sophomore English last year. Her husband, Michael, works as the student minister at Green Acres Baptist Church—Flint Campus. They enjoy serving the middle school and high school students at their church and being a part of their connect group.

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Phyllissa Walden

Academic Success Center

Phyllissa Walden

Academic Success Center

B.S., Stephen F. Austin State University

Phyllissa began her teaching career in 2006 at a charter elementary school as a paraprofessional for three years when she was asked to create a Response to Intervention program for third through sixth graders. She continued teaching and building the program for the next three years. Simultaneously, she worked part-time as a trainer at a cognitive learning center helping clients with learning disabilities.

Since then, Phyllissa spent five years as a private learning coach, tutoring elementary to college level students while completing her bachelor of applied arts and science degree at the University of Texas at Tyler. There, she co-published a paper with a professor in the Department of Education validating an instrument to assess cognitive test anxiety in students, advocating the need for interventions for those scoring on the moderate to severe levels.

Over the last three years, Phyllissa worked with children on the autism spectrum at the Andrews Center Treatment and Learning Center as a registered behavior technician. Here, she trained clients as well as staff and interns.

Phyllissa loves to learn, loves kids, and has a heart to help children reach their full potential. When she is not at work, she enjoys spending time with friends and family, making jewelry, and racing cars on racetracks.