Through Olson's prodding, Utecht gradually made progress. On his assessment on a recent Tuesday at the end of his session, his long-term memory score was in the 98th percentile, which Frieder said was an above-average increase.
Utecht will be tested again in a year to see if his gains held, but his hard work seemingly paid off.
"I wish every student was like him," Frieder said.
Even before his test results came in, Utecht said his ability to multitask and focus was getting better.
It needed to, with a wife and four daughters at home, the youngest of whom is just 11 weeks old.
"I don't stress out as much," Utecht said. "Before I started, by the end of the day, I had no patience. I would just get such a brain overload I couldn't handle being around four crazy, screaming girls and a wife who really needs help."
Besides being better at home, Utecht is making small strides in other aspects of his life. For the first time in a while, he's handling his own calendar again.
Another small victory came two weeks ago at his parents' 40th anniversary party.
When his mother and father sat down to go through their years of marriage, Utecht was able to keep coming up with memories and was complimented for remembering so many.
"As small as that may seem to people, I haven't gotten that compliment since before 2008," Utecht said.
