Spirit of Math Vaughan Campus Celebrates Grand Opening Oct. 12. Maurizio Bevilacqua to Attend

Oct. 6, 2010 - PRLog -- Vaughan, ON – Just how much more can students achieve when really challenged? In a day school system that understandably must ensure that no child is left behind, what happens to the students who routinely earn A’s and B’s with little effort?
“Many high performing students and their parents are looking for a more challenging curriculum,” said Kim Langen, CEO and founder of Spirit of Math, a system of “after-school schools” for students who find their regular math curriculum easy. “Supplementary education is experiencing huge growth right now. Parents realize that their children are capable of so much more than what they are accomplishing in day school and are prepared to put in the time and effort it takes to help them realize their true potential.”
Spirit of Math’s new Vaughan Campus, owned by Dr. Ramzan Khuwaja and his wife Farah, is celebrating its grand opening from 5:00 to 6:30 on Tuesday, October 12 at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church, 9860 Keele St. Mayoral candidate, Maurizio Bevilacqua will be in attendance and the public is invited to join in the festivities, which include guest speakers, a ribbon cutting ceremony, scavenger hunt and refreshments.
“This location is going to provide bright young students with the opportunity to study math in a completely unique and exciting way,” says Farah, principal of the new campus.  “Spirit of Math has been challenging kids throughout the GTA and beyond for many years and we’re excited to bring this opportunity to families in Vaughan.”
With his background and passion for mathematics and her background in education, a Spirit of Math franchise was the perfect fit for the Khuwaja’s. But it was their son’s success as a Spirit of Math student that led Ramzan to open his first location in Markham East four years ago.
The Khuwaja’s first heard about Spirit of Math from a friend whose children were enrolled in the program and signed their son up for grade one.
They were impressed with the curriculum – their son was learning math concepts that his parents hadn’t encountered until they were much older. While grade one students in the public school system are learning addition and subtraction, Spirit of Math students are working on multiplication and division. By grade six they can name the perfect squares up to 60² and by grade seven they are working with Pascal’s Triangle and the Fibonacci Sequence, topics not covered in the provincial curriculum until high school. “Using our methods, the children don’t find these topics intimidating,“ said Langen “Yes, they’re challenging, but that’s why the students love it.”
“What was even more surprising and impressive was that my son was understanding the concepts, retaining them and enjoying the process too,” said Ramzan. He noticed that the classes were having another positive impact on his son. “It wasn’t just that he was better at math, he was also motivated and more confident.”
As their son progressed, the Khuwaja’s wanted to become more involved in Spirit of Math. “We saw the effect the program had on our child and we wanted to make it available to other bright students, ” said Farah.
Ramzan partnered with his colleague Dr. Mohammad Rezai to open the Markham East location in 2006. Farah’s background as a Montessori teacher made her the perfect compliment to their venture and she completed her Spirit of Math teacher training.
Four years later, with a successful location under their belts, the Khuwaja’s are now opening their Vaughan Campus. Classes take place Tuesday evenings at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church, 9860 Keele Street for students in grades 1 to 6 who maintain a B+ or higher average.
“We are providing a service that is absolutely essential,” says Ramzan, “There are many remedial programs out there to help students who have fallen behind in their studies, but there is precious little for students who want to go the extra mile. It is critical that highly motivated students are provided the opportunity to challenge their thinking so that they can reach their full potential. Spirit of Math fills that niche.”

To learn more about Spirit of Math “after-school schools” visit http://www.spiritofmath.com.

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About the Campus Owners
Ramzan and Farah Khuwaja were born and raised in Pakistan. Both the children of professors, they valued education early on in life and had the opportunity to pursue an advanced education. They moved to Canada in the 1990’s. Ramzan holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Electronics Engineering, a Masters in Microprocessor Engineering and a PhD in Artificial Intelligence. Farah holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Commerce and her Montessori Teacher Certification. Ramzan and Farah are both passionate about mathematics.

About Spirit of Math Schools
The highly acclaimed Spirit of Math is an after school system of schools and a fundamentally unique curriculum designed to meet the needs of high performing students. Developed in the classroom over 25 years, Spirit of Math combines creative problem solving, quick math drills, and proven teaching methods to set new standards in mathematics education. Classes are 1.5 hours once per week from September to June.